Chapter Text
Being chased by a god is a lot like running underwater
She first arrived in his brother’s arms, barely clinging on to her life. Her face was peaceful, but her body told differently. Bruises, black and blue, littered across her exposed skin. Broken bones, obvious with how her arm dangled from her sleeping form in an awkward and probably painful angle.
“Tobirama,” His brother pleaded and like all other times Tobirama found it hard to deny his jovial brother anything, more so when he looked uncharacteristically solemn. Just like how Hashirama told him of his dreams, of this village in the making , and asking for his brother to be by his side.
Tobirama could only step aside. He could never deny his older brother anything.
The woman was likely to die anyhow, judging by the blood dripping from his brother’s arms. He should’ve known when his brother’s voice was border-lining hysteria. He should’ve known the whereabouts of his brother’s scarily frequent disappearance to god knows where, Tobirama should’ve known that this woman would be their catalyst.
“It's phenomenal,” Their clan medics exclaimed, an unusual glint in their old eyes. “Her body had shined like the stars! Then- then black branches stretched out on her skin, all from the seal on her forehead. Her body was covered in them. The branches looked almost alive,”
It all screamed dangerous to Tobirama. Fascinating.
He needs to investigate her- to get this unknown intruder out of their village, their home. He wants to study her- her seals. How could she heal so fast? She’s not his brother.
Where the hell did Hashirama pick up this stray? She better not be a security hazard.
Figures he found his loudmouth brother by the woman’s side, and not in his office. He was talking animatedly about random topics Tobirama deemed unimportant with the sleeping, bandaged woman. Not for the first time, Tobirama questioned his brother’s sanity, or lack thereof.
“Tobi! Ahaha… what are you doing here?”
“Aniki,” Then a pointed stare at the healed woman, who just arrived two days ago, looking as if she didn’t go through a hell of a battlefield. “Explain.”
Hashirama wasn’t that much of an idiot as he seemed, because his brown eyes lighted up with understanding. Or maybe it's because they were brothers and had known each other for so long that no extra words were needed between them.
“It's amazing, Tobi, she’s amazing. I came as soon as I heard,” Tobirama raised an eyebrow at his brother’s enthusiasm which seemed more than usual. Obviously, his brother has been shirking his Hokage responsibilities again. He’d have to rectify that.
“I’ve been studying the seal, and it felt like a well, you know? It felt vast, like the ocean we visited once but looks like it's empty or half empty right now. I’m not really sure of its depth and it was difficult to venture it with my chakra, it's barring me from digging deeper. From the feel of it, I think it stores Yin chakra? I’m not completely sure, but that would be incredible, and her chakra control is unbelievable! I knew she had good control but I never thought it was to this extent. No wonder she acted like she wasn’t afraid of anything, it would be-”
“Hashirama, stop babbling. It’s unbecoming of the Hokage.”
“ But Tobi, I’m not in office right now-”
“Well you should be,” Tobirama rolled his eyes at the puppy eyes directed his way, he never fell for that. Not anymore at least.
“Let’s go to your office. We need to talk.” About the girl went unsaid but Tobirama knew that Hashirama knew. They should’ve had this talk the moment Hashirama brought the girl, but his brother kept delaying it for some bloody reason.
“Alright, alright, let me just,” Tobirama clenched his hands to not let the disbelief show on his face as Hashirama all but fretted beside the pink haired woman’s slumbering form. Like some mother hen. His brunet brother fluffed the pillows, as if it would change anything, and made sure to pull the blankets up to the woman’s chin to protect her from the chilly weather of the upcoming winter.
Kami, he never saw his brother act like, act like some lovesick fool . Which was worrying with how the Uzumaki matriarch obviously held a torch for his brother and Tobirama wondered what the fuck was he going to do when that exploded in his face.
When it looked like his brother didn’t plan on leaving anytime soon, Tobirama finally let out the sigh that he’s been holding ever since he realized that he had to be the older brother, because this was just ridiculous . Tobirama never thought his brother would become more foolish than he already was.
“ Hashirama .”
His brother groaned, sparing one final look at the sleeping woman before grunting out. “ Fine. I’m coming, I’m coming.”
“Her name is Sakura,” His brother told him yesterday, in the privacy of his office. No last name, no clan backing up her knowledge in seals, and apparently her prowess in healing. “She’s a traveling healer, which is amazing, you know? She visited our borders nine months ago. I stumbled on her when she was gathering herbs, you should’ve seen her. She almost decked me when I called her out, civilian get-up and all.”
And the thought of that, of his idiot brother doing recon alone outside Konoha walls was irritating to learn because his brother had little to no preservation instincts despite being hailed as the God of shinobi. What if she was a spy? An assassin sent by Kumo? Her story was too unlikely, too suspicious, too good to be true and his brother wasn’t a complete idiot, he should know this.
But when his brother looked at him, with the same eyes when he told him about that Uchiha Madara and asked him to be friendly because this person was a friend and Tobirama raged at the brunet until he couldn’t anymore and here they were: building a village.
Tobirama felt his skin crawl because the Uchiha will never be his colleagues, much less friends , even if they were currently united under one banner as Konohagakure shinobi. Too many people lost, too much blood spilled. He still felt the loss of his little brothers and Tobirama could not find it in him to forgive like Hashirama had.
“Tobirama, she’s a friend. I admit, I’ve been reckless for going out of the village whenever I hear of her possible presence– but nothing ever happened. We talked, we shared stories. Stories that won’t harm Konoha. She taught me about foreign herbs, Tobirama. Be nice to her, otouto.”
He most certainly did not like the threatening look that flickered on his brother’s face near the end of their talk.
Little did he know that his older brother had been pestering the woman to visit the village before, to settle in the village. All offers were refused, and only now did Hashirama successfully had the woman behind village walls, behind his village walls.
When the woman woke up, it wasn’t Hashirama who greeted her. It was himself. When Tobirama was notified that the woman was to wake up at any moment, he made sure to busy his brother with meetings and paperwork that he had been shirking recently. Distracting Hashirama to give himself enough time to interrogate their little guest .
“Uhm, hello?” The woman looked nothing like the healer his brother told him she’d be, nothing like the kunoichi he perceived her to be with her seal and posture. He wanted to hand the woman over to the Yamanaka but Hashirama might blow a fuse if he did that behind his brother’s back.
Tobirama stared back blankly at her confused gaze, her eyes were like those of the Nara’s deers for Kami’s sake.
“Hello.” Still, safety hazard or no, his mother raised him to be a gentleman. So unless he has enough evidence, unless this woman proved his theories of her being the enemy, he’d play nice. That, and Hashirama might sense the pink haired woman to be awake anytime now. Knowing his brother, he’d come barreling through the entrance anytime soon, so he should finish this quickly.
It’s been two weeks since the woman arrived, and everyday somehow one way or another Hashirama managed to slip from his grasp and kept hanging around the sleeping woman. Sometimes, Tobirama would sense his clumsy brother escape in the night, leaving their compound and going to this pink woman’s side.
It was inappropriate in more ways than one, and why couldn’t his brother see that? Or maybe Hashirama did but being the dense, thick skinned person he is he just didn’t care.
“Where am I?” The confusion and anxiety in her eyes didn’t seem fake at least. Forest eyes. Either that or she was a great actor. An actor Tobirama would applaud for her skills before slicing her throat with a kunai.
“Konohagakure.”
“Oh.”
And for the life of him, Tobirama couldn’t understand why her eyes dimmed at the answer but now at least he knew that he wasn’t alone in not wanting her to be here.
“I have to go,” ‘Please,’ Tobirama thought. Hashirama was thinning his patience. His brother was adamant in spending time with this pink haired problem, even if he had his kage duties to attend to and the summit is just around the corner .
The summit that will decide the fate of the continent and here Hashirama, their esteemed Shodaime Hokage , was always buzzing near the flower girl like some fucking bee .
“But Sakura-chan, you can stay a little longer and rest more!”
“Hashirama, I’m already behind my schedule as it is-”
“It's winter, Sakura-chan. It’s dangerous to travel right now, why don’t you wait for spring? Or at least, when it stops snowing. I’m sure your patients can understand,” And that did make a valid point, much to Tobirama’s chagrin. Valid enough to silence the fiery woman and let the gears in her mind work. Winter just settled as soon as the woman woke up. Like a spell, snowfall occurred the same day after Tobirama grilled the woman for answers. Though, the ‘interrogation’ ended with him having more questions than answers.
As much as he loathed her presence here, because she made his brother more of an idiot than usual, Tobirama wouldn’t let an innocent woman freeze in the harsh cold.
Innocent woman, that is, and this Sakura has yet to prove otherwise so Tobirama has been lenient. He never allowed her to leave the Senju compound though, too much of a hazard for this budding village, and much to his surprise, Hashirama didn’t want her outside either.
“… Fine, but can I at least not stay cooped here? I want to help with anything, just so I won’t go crazy from doing nothing.”
“But Sak-” Hashirama began, no doubt thinking this pink haired intruder was a guest in their clan which she wasn’t . Tobirama has had enough of this coddling.
“Agreed, Sakura-san. Starting tomorrow, Kiyoko will give you your duties around the compound.”
Tobirama pretended not to feel warm at the grateful smile directed his way, it’s been a while since someone was thankful for what he does. Most people were scared of his demeanor, that and most people only saw his shining beacon of a brother to notice the washout spare.
Tobirama also pretended not to notice the disapproving sound that erupted from his brother’s chest. Honestly, Hashirama was such a child. He couldn’t pamper the girl forever. Tobirama learned from her short conscious stay in their compound that she was a spitfire, though she was polite but not polite enough for politics. She seemed too kind for that, and it startled Tobirama that he was thinking of a woman he barely knew as kind .
‘Dangerous,’ Tobirama thought to himself, as Hashirama once again took over the conversation with the woman.
‘ Bleeding heart,’ His mind whispered to him before he could even form a coherent thought. It was wee hours in the morning, and it was damn cold with the ongoing winter. He did not like the cold, no matter what anyone thought about him being a water-type, he did not like it at all. Why else would he always don on his fur collar even in the midst of combat? Because it was freezing.
He was meditating in the comforts of his room, with the hearth blazing quietly to keep him warm when he felt the movement of their safety hazard moving up and about in the back garden– which she wasn’t allowed to visit. Because it leads to the forest where there was a back gate but Tobirama liked to think she didn’t know that, but he didn’t want to risk it either way.
So, quite grumpily his brother would say, Tobirama donned his winter jacket with his ever-present white fur placed on his shoulders and went to reprimand the woman or maybe catch her in the act of being an enemy and annoy Hashirama with an ‘I told you so’ for a month.
The sight he was greeted with when he arrived at the edge of the garden, hidden in the shadows of his home, made him feel weird and Tobirama didn’t appreciate it at all. The woman was still in her sleeping wear, and it was snowing for heaven’s sake. This idiot would end up sick and add to Hashirama’s worries which would add to his worries and Tobirama did not want that.
At first, Tobirama didn’t even know what the woman was doing, crouching in front of a pile of snow, when the snow moved and belatedly he realized it was an animal. A dying animal with how little chakra it had, no wonder Tobirama subconsciously dismissed it. It wasn’t a threat.
“Shh, shh, it’ll be okay.” And now here he was, still in hiding, watching the woman’s hand glow green and it rattled Tobirama how much of a healer this Sakura was. And she was stuck with dish duty and laundry.
‘Still,’ Tobirama thought as he eyed the unmoving white-furred creature, ‘once too late, no healer can do anything now.’
It was cold, they were still outside in the snow and no doubt the animal was already a victim of hypothermia.
Yet he was wrong again , when the creature opened its beady eyes that were a startling shade auburn red.
It somewhat irks him that his instincts keep being proven wrong because of an enigma like her.
The snow around the woman and that canine melted away. It was as if they were untouched by the winter that plagued the world around them. Tobirama never appreciated the greenness of the grass until now, when it was stark against the snow-covered land.
An ethereal image indeed, with her white yukata and bright coloring. Like some spring nymph trapped in winter. Hashirama would love it, and Tobirama never thought he would be thankful that his brother wasn’t an early bird. He was sick of hearing how beautiful and amazing Sakura -chan was. This sight would surely make such comments more frequent, which was not needed with how obvious they were.
“Hey there, friend,” Tobirama couldn’t deny the small amusement he felt as the woman cooed at the creature, like some baby, while said creature snarled back. The woman laughed at its attempt to look threatening and offered her hand. The fox’s growling paused and hesitantly sniffed the appendage. He was about to leave when the woman’s last comment irked him.
“You remind me of Tobirama-sama,”
He narrowed his eyes at that, he wasn’t some helpless animal. This girl was getting cheeky.
Still, as the fox happily yipped back at the woman, Tobirama retreated back to his quarters. It wasn’t his problem if the woman got sick. She seemed fine outside, as if in her element. Besides, his brother would have a field day at the opportunity to pamper and nurse the woman.
Tobirama was right. He should have never allowed this, what the hell was he thinking?
He barely withheld the scathing ‘I told you so,’ that he so wanted to point out to his abjectly laughing brother. This damn festival was a mistake, the alcohol was a mistake.
Enemy shinobi could come barging in their gates right now but here they were, shinobi of various calibers drunk off their asses.
Kami, he expected those damn Uchiha bastards to be at least smart and sane but it turned out no and they had little tolerance to alcoholic beverages. What with how many drunk and flushed red Uchiha he had already passed by. Whose idea was it to spike the drinks anyway? He doubted the Akimichi would do such a thing, though they were in charge of the food and drinks….
“Hashirama,” He growled but even the surprised yelp from his brother did not ease his mood.
Their one and only Shodaime turned to him with his oafish grin and Tobirama hoped his scowl was evident as always on his face because what . Was that Sakura ? Drinking sake? In a drinking contest?
“Ah! Tobi, ahaha, nice to see you- er, here?….” Ignoring his brother, Tobirama moved pass him.
True to his thoughts, Tobirama was greeted with the sight of their pink-haired safety hazard drinking away as Hashirama stepped to the side. There was quite a crowd surrounding the table and no wonder Tobirama passed by a few people on the streets, drunk and unconscious on the ground, as he was on his way here. This was where those drunkards originated and Tobirama figured his brother had to have his sticky hands in this.
“Aniki, what were you thinking ?”
“Woah, okay wait a moment. First of all it wasn’t my idea, okay? Well, okay maybe it was a little bit of my idea but it wasn’t entirely-”
“Hashirama! I won again!” Tobirama felt his eyebrow twitch at the squealing voice that interrupted their conversation. ‘That pink-haired hellion.’
Tobirama closed his eyes in frustration when he saw Sakura drink an Uchiha under the table with little effort. The raven-haired man was burning red, nearly like the kekkai genkai they boast about and fell face first asleep on the table in front of the woman.
“You’re doing great, Sakura-chan!”
“Enough,” Tobirama had to put an end to this, no matter what their damn Hokage said there were enemies everywhere and drunk shinobi don’t have good aim. In fact, from Tobirama’s experience at handling things like this, drunk shinobi don’t have any aim. “It is late, the official festivities are over. Everyone , go home.”
Which was true, the games and booths have long closed and the ending speech was said and done. He knew it was too good to be true for it to be peaceful like that, what with his brother in charge of it. The people in the room were, much to his annoyance, sluggish to move if they were moving at all.
'Are these idiots even awake?' He grumbled in the privacy of his own mind.
“Finally, a Senju with a decent brain, I’ve been telling that idiot to call this off for hours.” As if the night couldn’t get any worse, Uchiha Madara had to show up among the surrounding crowd. Tobirama was tempted between groaning in frustration or growling with hostility but instead, he did neither and just stared blankly at the equally stoic man.
“Madara,” Tobirama spat but with no real venom, no, because it was a special night and everyone was apparently friends here. “Get your clansmen out of the streets,” 'lest hypothermia gets to them first.' went unsaid but the white-haired man was sure, with how the Uchiha glanced at the snow outside, that his message was understood. Madara hummed before replying, as if not worried that some of his clansmen were snoozing on the pile of snow in the streets near the bar.
“Ah, Izuna will take care of that.” And that’s one old thing he still couldn’t figure out, how the hell did Uchiha Izuna survive their battle? Tobirama was sure he dealt a killing blow and the Uchiha weren’t exactly known for their healing abilities.
‘Whatever,’ Tobirama decided, he had more pressing matters to attend to. Not bothering to reply at the bastard, because he’s exhausted damn it this night was supposed to be relaxing, Tobirama surveyed the damage around the bar. Madara disappeared from his sight, hopefully he was getting his strewn about clansmen back into their compound.
Shinobi of various clans littered the establishment. Tobirama realized with increasing aggravation some, if not half, were of his clan both civilian and shinobi alike. And smack dab in the middle of that mess was a bubbly pink-haired woman who was drunker than she let on, smiling like an airhead, with his smiling brother, who was a genuine airhead.
Nearing the table where Sakura sat, Tobirama counted around twenty-four people. Most of them looked like they could get home by themselves once dunked with cold water. Green eyes turned to him and Tobirama could admit to himself that the smile was blinding, and it made something beneath his ribs lurch. Maybe he was getting tipsy, which was preposterous because he only had a few cups.
“Tobi! You came- hic- Hashirama and- hic- thought you’d never- hic- come!”
And so, just to spite his brother, Tobirama let the healer woman stand up unsteadily and fall against him. Predictably, his brother immediately protested but the woman just swatted his hands away with a laugh. She was worryingly light and weighed close to nothing but when she started giggling Tobirama became aware of how she clung to him and babbled to him about winter foxes.
“Sakura-san, it’s time to go home.”
“Aw, already?” Tobirama wasn’t helpless against her puppy eyes, he had two younger brothers before and currently one baby older brother.
“Yes. Aniki has to clean up here,” He ignored the indignant spluttering of his brother and steadied the woman on her feet. Or at least, he tried too. She was swaying dangerously left then right. “I will escort you instead. May I?”
The woman blinked at him slowly, the smile no longer on her face, and was obviously teetering on the line of staying awake and falling on her ass to sleep. Kami, no woman should ever get drunk like this. They were dangerous to men and themselves.
And just like he guessed, Sakura closed her eyes but before she could fall Tobirama already had her in his arms. Turning to his sobering brother, Tobirama glared at Hashirama. His brother had no right to frown at him like that.
“Tobirama, I should–”
“ You should wake these idiots and fix this mess,”
“It’s not entirely my fault, hey -” Tobirama avoided the arms of his brother, who was reaching for the woman in his arms. Hashirama could frown all he wanted, but Tobirama wasn’t leaving the drunk woman Hashirama had a crush on to the man himself. Not that he doesn’t trust his brother but Hashirama had this habit to do stupid things and Tobirama wasn’t willing to try his chances.
“Be sure to clean up. Goodnight, Aniki. ”
Now that he was facing the aftermath, Tobirama wondered if the entire drunk escapade last night was deliberately planned to end like this. He wondered if the incident last night was actually a way, a subtle way, to show that maybe– maybe the Uchiha weren’t all uptight peacocks.
He was doing his usual routine, after a brief morning training, he was walking around the village to observe the streets. Hopefully, brawls and small fights weren’t present anymore. The first few weeks of building the village showed that clansmen of various statures can act like spoiled children.
Some had no brains and just duke it out in the streets, to relieve their frustrations but it was detrimental to the infrastructure and the civilians present around the scene. Recently though, the different clans are begrudgingly tolerating each other. Specifically, his clan and that bastard’s clan.
In short, Tobirama just wanted to make sure none of his clansmen made an idiot of themselves.
However, now it seemed that wouldn't be necessary because, dare he say it, his clansmen had become… friendly with the Uchiha. As friendly as one could be with their longtime enemy, he supposed. He was not blind, and his eyes saw signs. His people were conversing with some of them, though they were civilians. Tobirama noticed a few mixed groups of shinobi heading to the training fields. Uchiha and Senju? Training together? Voluntarily ? Now that was something he never expected in his lifetime, if not ever.
“Ha! You were right, Uchiha-san, you-”
“I know I was right-”
“Pompous ass, it was just one time–”
Tobirama muted out the conversation he was eavesdropping on and went his way. His people seemed happy, happier than before, to get along with a few of their old enemy. In fact, from what he’d seen, the village seemed livelier. The line between enemy and friend seemed to have blurred last night. Tobirama wondered if this was his brother’s plan or… ‘That minx had something to do with this.’
His brother’s way of invoking friendship was more forward than this.
But, as he passed by a gaggle of laughing children from clans that used to war against each other, Tobirama didn’t have it in him to criticize his clansmen. He hoped that this was peace, true peace, and not some faux pleasantry that was abundant when the village was first built.
Walking back to the public training grounds, Tobirama saw two of his clansmen leaving with two Uchiha at their side. They were messy with dirt, no doubt from doton techniques, and singed around the edges, which was inevitable what with their opponents being Uchiha.
He never saw an Uchiha bastard grin before and until now he never saw one, but as he observed the lighthearted talk of the group and the black eyes of the Uchiha light up Tobirama thought that it was close enough.
Maybe, not all of them were bastards. Maybe it wasn’t a bastard clan.
Still, that Madara was a pain in the ass and a bastard through and through. Uchiha or no, Tobirama will never like that asshole.
“Ugh, Madara, you asshole, ” Tobirama paused from his work at the familiar feminine voice. She conveyed his thoughts accurately, and now he was curious as to what warranted such aggression from the normally polite woman. He knew Madara would be visiting the compound to hang out with his brother but he never thought they would pull Sakura into their disastrous mix. “You tricked me!”
Hm, sounds like that asshole alright.
“Now, now, pinky. It was just a prank-” Tobirama never thought he would put ‘Uchiha’ and ‘pranks’ in one thought in a way that it was an Uchiha pulling out the prank.
“ Still , Madara, look at him! What did you do ?” Their voices turned into harsh whispers but Tobirama can clearly hear every word. He was just in the adjacent room, after all.
“What did I do? It was you who gave him-” That would mean since he was in his room, the only adjacent room there would be– oh.
‘Kami give me strength.’ Tobirama better not be pushed to clean his brother’s mess. Hashirama better not be the person Sakura was talking about.
“You deceiving prick, you know what I meant! What did you put in there ?”
“ Nothing , at least nothing dangerous. He’s just asleep, god knows he needs it.”
“It better not be dangerous, Tobirama-sama would have my hide if he finds out!” Now Tobirama had a sketchy idea of what was happening, that Uchiha must’ve drugged his brother again. It wouldn’t be the first time and it probably wasn’t the last.
At first, Tobirama was furious to find out his brother let his guard down and got drugged but he tolerated it when he realized that the Uchiha does it to get his brother to sleep and rest.
Tobirama faced similar problems when he was handling his brother’s apparent insomnia. The constant moving of a familiarly bright chakra in the dead of the night was not healthy for Tobirama’s sleeping routine.
“I doubt it. That ice block is many things, bastard included, but harming a woman is beneath him. Most Senju are gentlemen, as far as I’ve known.” The brush snapped in his hand, that Uchiha must be drunk to spout such nonsense. Like with many things, Madara was wrong.
Tobirama was prepared to hurt a woman if they were an enemy, and he loathed his readiness to do so. Something ugly burned in him at the thought that his enemy thought him to be above harming women when in truth Tobirama wasn’t that noble. Women were as dangerous as men if they wanted to be.
“Nuh uh, I don’t think so. He always glares at me whenever I see him! Especially after the festival, he always had this scary look on his face when we greeted each other. Did I do something? Kami, I’m never letting Hashirama convince me to join a drinking contest ever again. I can't even remember anything that night.”
“Ah, you were a mess if you must know. A blubbering mess and Tobirama had the honor to carry your sleeping self back to the compound.”
Silence. Tobirama could actually imagine the woman's face turning red, from her neck to the tip of her ears. He'd seen it once, when Hashirama was far too affectionate in public to be labeled friendly. Hugs are too intimate to be done in the middle of the market.
“ No way, I don’t even remember Tobirama-sama arriving- much less him-”
“Trust me, you were hilariously drunk that night of course you don’t remember a lot of things, it was that Senju who escorted you and not this one.”
“Oh no, no no no . Kami no wonder he hates me, I must’ve puked on him or something. Crap, what if I did ? I can’t believe this, I’m so dead. Why did none of you tell me earlier- stop laughing Madara. ” Tobirama grabbed another brush from his desk, ignoring the Uchiha snort and continued his work. Maybe he should lighten up on the woman. Albeit, most of the times they met were when he was in a bad mood because of his fool of a brother or the damn elders.
“Fine, I’ll- itai ! What the hell ?”
“That was for being a jerk .”
“I’m going to get you- itai ! That hurts, woman-” Tobirama heard the Uchiha snap but he knew the raven-haired man held no hatred in it, he knew what hatred sounded like coming from the Uchiha.
“Okay, maybe I went a little overboard-”
“A little ?”
“Oh stop whining, you big baby. It's just a small bruise-”
“Are you sure there isn’t anything internal? Kami, my ribs ache, Sakura. Do that thing again- no not that one woman. Are you trying to kill me?” Tobirama heard muffled laughter and not for the first time, something in his chest churned. And just like all of the times it did, Tobirama dismissed it.
“I’m just kidding, Madara,”
Tobirama would never confess to feeling a little bit annoyed when she called the Uchiha in such a friendly manner. She knew him longer, she stayed in their compound for heaven’s sake, but she always attached that annoying prefix to his name. She never called Hashirama the way she called him, and Tobirama recently found it irritating.
“If you get hurt, I will break every single bone in his body.” It was such a contrast to his bubbly brother that Tobirama had to do a double-take at Hashirama. Sakura just laughed at the threat, probably thinking it to be one of the brunet’s terrible jokes, but Tobirama knew better when he saw the promise in his dark brown eyes.
“Hashirama, it's just a spar!” Winter was ending, the snow stopped several days ago but the air was still cold. Hashirama somehow persuaded the healer to stay for two more weeks when a few letters arrived telling her that the villages she visited were okay.
“Yeah, but you haven’t trained in a long time!”
“That’s why I need to spar, Hashirama-”
“But it doesn’t have to be with Izuna,” Tobirama rolled his eyes at Hashirama’s whinings, well used to his overprotective nature the past weeks. Honestly, Hashirama made it seem like Sakura was a fragile flower. At first, Tobirama thought so as well but now he knew better when he found the fire in her eyes. She was strong and smart. He just didn’t know to what extent.
“Izuna is an old friend, he wouldn’t hurt me seriously.” Looking resigned, Hashirama sighed with all the theatrics he could possibly muster. Tch, drama queen.
“Have fun, then , Tobi and I were going to spar anyway.” They certainly weren’t planning that but he supposed his brother needed the support.
“Hn, you better start stretching, Sakura-san.” Tobirama pointedly glanced at the Uchiha a few distances behind her, already stretching for their quick spar. Sakura flashed him one of her brilliant smiles, and already he could feel Hashirama perk up from his dejected slouch.
“Will do, Tobirama-sama.” With that, she turned to the training grounds and Tobirama dragged his brother’s discontented person to the side for their spar. It’s been a while since he let out some steam.
The earthquake was certainly unexpected and it must've been an embarrassing sight, the Senju brothers were startled and unbalanced like fawns who just started learning to walk. Hashirama met his eyes and shock was evident in his chocolate orbs before worry flooded them. Tobirama barely let out a sound before his brother zipped past him and towards the field where the Uchiha and Sakura were training, obviously the source of the impact.
Not a second passed and Tobirama was already on his brother’s tail only to stop at the sight of the Uchiha desperately dodging the woman’s punches. Hashirama was beside him, both of them were looking at the small craters littering the field and Tobirama was stuck on how those came to being.
His question was answered a few seconds later when the Uchiha quickly swerved to the side to avoid a nasty punch, which connected to the earth which shattered like glass. The resulting tremble of the field made Tobirama sympathize with the Uchiha’s wide eyed stare at the woman’s hands.
The mirth in her viridian eyes and a playful smile painted across her lips made him feel something he wasn’t familiar with.
At his side, something keenly animalistic rumbled from Hashirama’s chest. Tobirama wisely ignored it for the most part. It was quiet but it made something crawl under Tobirama’s skin. The battling duo in the field were too far to hear it, at least Tobirama prayed they were.
Two months went by fast and winter was completely over, but the cold still lingered. It was early in the morning, the sun barely rising from his slumber, but here they were. Gathered below the village gates, saying their respective farewells to the unknown woman.
But, based on the tender goodbyes of the Uchiha brother and Hashirama’s pained stature, maybe it was only Tobirama who didn’t quite know the woman because he never bothered to study her, to know her. He was too busy with the village and his family to waste time with his brother’s friend.
If Hashirama hadn’t invited him today, he probably wouldn’t even be here.
“Are you sure you can’t stay?” His brother asked once more for the umpteenth time since last night. His brown eyes boring down on green ones and what a pair they look together, like a tree. Tobirama was disgruntled, that he could admit, because no doubt his brother will annoy him the following days, bemoaning the lack of pink-haired women in the village.
Viridian eyes twinkled and she gave Hashirama one of her sorry smiles that Tobirama became familiar with. Tobirama may not know her personally, but he became familiar with her.
“Sorry Hokage-sama. Duty calls,” Madara grunted at her words before shoving his brother aside, obviously offering himself to be subjected to her hugs much like his brother was.
“Ignore him, if you agree to his words you’ll never be able to leave. Look what happened to me,” The Uchiha said but with a small smile on his face, Tobirama rarely saw it but the first time he did it was when the name of the village was being announced. Sakura laughed at Hashirama’s indignant shout of dissent and moved to briefly embrace the Uchiha clan head for one last time.
“Duly noted. Thanks for the advice, Madara.”
“Anytime,” Madara replied, letting go of the woman to ruffle her pink hair. Izuna rolled his eyes at his brother’s smug demeanor but Tobirama could see the smile on the younger Uchiha’s face.
“Visit soon, Sakura-chan. Next time, you should stay with us.”
“Hey, what’s wrong with staying with us?” Hashirama interjected, with a gesture towards Tobirama and himself.
“It's unfair how you got her cooped up in your compound for the whole winter.”
“What? No, it wasn’t. Sakura-chan was our guest.”
“Well she can be the Uchiha’s guest next time,” His brother was obviously finding it difficult to counter Izuna’s argument and before this could dissolve into some petty pissing contest Hahirama and Izuna were surprisingly prone to do, Tobirama turned to Sakura without the usual frown on his face. Hopefully, it didn’t look like he was glaring because people normally assumed he was when it was just his natural look.
“Stay safe in your travels, Sakura-san,”
“I will, thank you for your hospitality, Tobirama-sama. I enjoyed my stay.” And it still irked him, how she had to exert effort and be polite with him when she was so casual with everyone else even with the Uchiha brothers. It was obvious to Tobirama that there was history there, but he didn’t want to pry and it didn’t seem to warrant any digging on his part because it didn’t concern the village’s safety.
The Uchiha were a loyal bunch, and recently they seemed more generous with their lighthearted attitude and friendly banter with the other villagers.
Still made Tobirama want to grill her though, because he’s curious and he wanted to know how deep the bond between her and the Uchiha brothers went. Before he could even think of stopping himself, Tobirama spoke his true thoughts.
“Tobirama.” Sakura blinked at him, evidently confused and Tobirama did not like repeating himself but since she didn’t understand he had to.
“You can just call me Tobirama.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth the woman lit up like a bonfire, all smiles, and bright eyes. He never wanted to burn so badly before.
“Oh! Okay then, Tobirama, please just call me Sakura. My winter here has been warm,” She turned to the others, the smile never leaving her face. “Thank you for letting me stay but I must go. People to tend to, villages in need of help, you know, the usual.”
“Be sure to stay warm, Sakura, the night is still cold,” Izuna said, giving a small hug to Sakura, who immediately hugged back.
“If you’re asking if I have the clothes Madara gave me, the answer is yes I packed them. Thank you, could’ve been better with the uchiwa fan and all but it will help me a lot and I will cherish it.” Tobirama sighed in resignation as his brother turned to his long-time friend, aghast at the revelation. He was hiding the frustration when he realized she wasn't making a move to hug him, unlike the others.
“You gave her your clan clothes ?” Hashirama asked, affronted. Madara shrugged, seemingly not caring but the smirk on his lips said otherwise.
“It was nothing, a few old robes no one was going to use anymore.”
Before his brother could reply, Sakura placed a hand on Hashirama and immediately his brother lost his ire. It was like magic. Tobirama glanced away at the intimate moment, it felt like he was intruding on something. He ignored the stabbing feeling underneath his ribs.
“I’ll be going now, Hashirama.” Tobirama could practically feel how his brother was torn between imprisoning Sakura within the compound or running away with her. Neither idea won because his brother just sagged with defeat and fragility Tobirama never saw in the older man.
“Alright, be careful out there.” Sakura nodded, all solemn and unlike the joking nature she was exhibiting just seconds ago.
“I will visit soon, maybe in spring or summer. I’ll write letters whenever I can.”
Hashirama looked resigned in his stance, and nodded in reply to Sakura.
“Okay,” His brother breathed out, like the idea of this woman leaving was the same as the oxygen leaving the atmosphere. Sakura surveyed the village behind them and exchanged one last look with all of them. When her eyes landed on him, Tobirama dared to hope that she could understand him and his silent messages.
‘Visit soon,’
“… Nii-san, you didn’t give her Okaa-san’s clothes, did you?” Not even a few minutes after her departure, Izuna spoke in a low tone to his brother but all of them knew that all of them heard it.
Madara was silent in reply but the fact that he didn’t deny it was already telling them that, basically, yeah he gave the Uchiha Matriarch clothes to Sakura.
Hashirama, who was obviously sulking a while ago, quickly overcame his shock at the news and warm fury showed on his face, “ Madara, ” His brother all but growled before the Uchiha disappeared in a blur and Hashirama gave chase.
A glance to his Uchiha counterpart, who glanced back at him, told him that they both shared the pain of having stupid older brothers. Tobirama didn’t know how to feel about that.