Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Hikaku had been peacefully enjoying a cup of tea when his wife threw open their door with an uncharacteristic sharpness normally reserved for Council meetings that ran late because of obtuse Hyuuga. There had been no Council meeting today, which left him a very short list of other causes for his lovely wife’s mood.

One in particular, because Sumiko’s son was just as shameless as his mother.

She’d come back pregnant from a mission, and had refused to bow to their Elders about revealing who the father was, and it had only been Madara stepping in for his second cousin that had let her keep that secret. It was only the fact that Sumiko had no interest in clan politics or leading the clan that had kept her from establishing herself as the closest blood tie to their last clan head as the grand-daughter of Madara’s grand-aunt when they’d been deciding whether to keep the tradition of leader-by-strength or fall back into leader-by-blood.

No one had acknowledged Izuna’s bastard as the rightful heir by blood, afraid that the madness that had claimed Madara would show itself in the child and lead further ruin to the clan.

Instead, they’d turned to him and his wife, the strongest left in the clan without Madara’s bloodline, to lead, but Sumiko’s line still represented a special headache. A special status that left them only answerable to the clan head, even if his wife had never enlightened them to the fact as to not upset the Elders further.

As it was, they were still politely ignoring how one of the Hatake now lived on the edge of their compound with Sumiko, with the end of the war and Team Tobirama moving in together being more important to focus on.

Chikako was still upset with Sasuke just letting his heir move out of his compound because it hadn’t given her precedent to deny Kagami, because he’d escaped the compound as soon as he could when they’d tried to sequester him over his newly-received Mangekyou and had since refused to come back.

Which was made more frustrating since the rest of the team kept running interference – particularly the Shimura – and Sumiko had made her opinion clear about how unless her son proved an “actual” danger, she wasn’t going to keep him inside the compound just because they wanted him to be there.

Then there was how she had come very close to accidentally putting him into Tsukiyomi when as they had been having dinner, they’d been interrupted with news of how Kagami had had the Nidaime’s teleportation seal tattooed on his skin. Like they hadn’t all been ignoring his crush for years now, because yes, they all had a bit of a Thing for Tobirama, but the most forward anyone got was asking for a spar. Kagami had all but shouted how much he cared for Tobirama with that tattoo, made worse by how the whole clan all knew he’d gained Mangekyou from believing the Nidaime was dead.

He put his tea down to pour her a cup of sake, “What did he do this time?”

Her eyes were blood-red, nostrils flaring as she tried to find words.

Hikaku didn’t rush his wife, even if he had the sinking feeling the longer it took her that Kagami had managed to find the one thing worse than the whole tattoo thing, and he was increasingly not wanting to know.

She downed her cup before answering, “Akane’s boy was over by Training Ground Nine when he saw Kagami chasing the Nidaime, red silk in hand.”

He immediately regretted taking a sip of his tea, as it went down the wrong pipe and he spent a minute just clearing his lungs.

“W-what?”

“He’s apparently decided to battle-marry, and frankly there’s nothing I can do to oppose it because he technically has been courting the Nidaime the last couple of years even if we’ve previously considered it one-sided. Not to mention that the only way Kagami will capture the Nidaime is if the man allows it, and everyone knows that, which means the clan will consider the battle-marriage binding. Particularly if he wears the silk tomorrow.”

He didn’t have anything to say to that.

Chikako passed him the sake bottle without a word after pouring herself another cup, eyes caught on the hint of red silk beneath the long sleeve of his right arm, “Drink up, husband. Tomorrow we will deal with this, for now let’s just get drunk.”

Chapter Text

It was still dark when something woke Hikaku from where he was tangled up with his wife, a brief moment left to remember how they’d kept drinking until very late, reminiscing on how the Senju were full of deadly pretty people and how there had been bets about their feud one day just ending because of a battle-marriage, before he processed that it was the Nidaime politely standing outside the door.

If perhaps this was the first time this had happened, maybe he would have scrambled up and greeted their revered leader. It wasn’t though, the Nidaime had visited several times before – almost always concerning something with Kagami.

They politely didn’t mention the years he’d been banned by Madara from ever stepping foot in the compound, or how it took the Uzumaki princess a year to create a work-around to Madara's spiteful blood-seal so he didn’t set off every trap built into the ground and walls of their compound. Even if Chikako had had to personally ask her to do so because seals weren’t a Uchiha talent but Madara had grasped the concepts enough to create a ticking time bomb not quite specific enough to differentiate between Tobirama and any Senju period.

Because it was Tobirama – and because this was most assuredly to do with Kagami – Hikaku almost buried his face in his wife’s hair and pretended like his instincts weren't screaming about the very dangerous shinobi that wouldn’t be stalled for more than a few seconds by the door if he truly wanted inside. He didn’t want to know either way if Tobirama had allowed himself to be caught and was now married into the clan – because by the Sage and his sons, Sumiko and Kagami were already special cases in the clan hierarchy, and as it was, he pretended his wife didn’t go drink tea with the Shodaime’s sons about the headaches involved with special cases in their clans, and now, Tobirama would no longer be those boy’s problem but theirs – or if he’d escaped Kagami and was now requesting – demanding, it was all the same thing with the annulment of an instigated battle-marriage – that Kagami cease and desist before he made him.

Chikako was merciless though, tugging on his ear until he moved away, “Get up and answer the door, I think I have to puke.”

Groaning lowly, he got up and straightened his sleep yukata as much as he could considering there was going to be no hiding that he’d gotten massively drunk, passed out, and had just woken up. Then he slid open the door, and blankly looked at the man who-

Hikaku blinked a couple of times in a lack of comprehension at how Tobirama did and did not look like a man who’d just been battle-married.

There were marks on his neck and upper shoulders and chest where his shirt was slipping and kisses had been sucked into his skin. He was wearing one of Kagami’s shirts – Uchiha fan surely prominent on the back. His hair was going in every which direction, falling into his eyes without his happuri – and this had to be the first time he’d ever seen him without it, in the entire time that he’d known Tobirama.

He looked content in a way that said he’d found happiness after a long struggle to get there.

He did not look like he’d been ravaged within an inch of his life, like was typical of any Uchiha who married of their own choice, and not for obligation or an alliance. He very distinctly remembered Izuna asking if he’d been beset by a wild animal after he’d married Chikako.

He also remembered how Chikako had chased the little fucker down, making him climb a tree where he’d called on Madara for help, and only got thrown into the pond for his trouble.

Tobirama spoke while he was still remembering fondly of how Izuna had given him a wide berth for a week after that dunking and following lecture about how it was beyond rude to mock a couple together for love, about their passion.

“Hikaku-san, Kagami told me that any Uchiha that battle-marries should inform the head of their clan within twenty-four hours of the marriage. As he is currently completely exhausted in our room with our sprog, I took it upon myself to inform you of both.”

While he was glad that Kagami had absorbed something about proper battle-marriage procedure, because the sooner the marriage was known to the clan, the higher the chances the bride wouldn’t be accidentally killed if they weren’t from an ally, he felt like he should still make sure there was no doubt to how binding the marriage was, Kagami didn’t have the best track record about this stuff.

Sumiko may not have told him to be sure he went to her for permission and that he didn’t marry on a whim.

Then he spotted the red silk knotted against Tobirama’s skin just as he processed Tobirama saying something about a sprog. And if he was remembering right, sprog was what the Senju called children-

Tobirama’s gaze drifted to behind him, to where Chikako had come up, “What’s this about you and Kagami having a kid, Tobirama?”

“Only that it appears our children will grow up together, and that a congratulations is in order, Chikako-san.”

Hikaku’s mind stalled, and he didn’t hear anything else that was said between his wife and their new clansman as he focused entirely on his chakra sense, and looking at his wife with it even after the other man had left.

She flicked him on the forehead to get his attention, hand resting on her flat belly, “It appears we’re going to be parents, Hikaku. He estimated that I’m just a little over a month along, but a medic would give a better guess. And you heard right, somehow – I’ll get the details of how from him later when the news goes beyond his team, us, and Lady Mito – he’s going to have a kid with Kagami.”

He kissed her, then held her close, “I can’t wait for our child, Chikako.”

It took a couple more seconds before it processed that Kagami was going to have a kid too.

“Oh my Sage, he’s multiplying. I was kidding when I cursed him years ago with kids just like him, but, oh my Sage, I don’t think I can live through a second coming of him as a kid. And- and it’s going to be smart, fucking hell, it won’t be fooled by the stupid shit Izuna used to convince him of.”