Izuna was in the middle of a battle, just like he was all the time. Just like he was regularly. A battle against his rival, against Tobirama. They were always pitted, one against the other. They were destined to fight until one of them conquered the other, until one of them proved they were better than the other.
Until…until he won. Izuna won. His sword slid home, into Tobirama’s chest. He missed his heart and lungs somehow, but he still hit Tobirama in the chest, and his blood was flowing. But somehow, it was wrong. Somehow, it wasn’t a fair victory. Tobirama…Tobirama let him win. Let him land that hit. In fact, Tobirama had moved into his hit. Had…sacrificed himself? Killed himself? Was he suicidal? He didn’t think so, he had known Tobirama since they were children, and this wasn’t like him.
Before he had gotten the chance to figure it out, Hashirama had appeared from his fight with Madara, and thrown Izuna away from his brother. Izuna flew back, hitting his head on a tree behind him. He slammed into it so hard that he was dizzy and his vision smeared and doubled.
He couldn’t quite see, but his brother was there, helping him up, helping him to his feet. His brother’s hands – his callouses were there, and when he was on his feet, he could see the black mass that was his brother’s hair, even if he still had double vision.
He wasn’t really sure what happened after that, but he thought he heard his brother yell something before picking him up and carrying him back to the compound
He had a blazing headache for several days, his vision didn’t settle for a full day, and his thoughts were scrambled for quite a while. But while his thoughts were scrambled, he was still able to think, still able to review what happened in his mind. And Tobirama had definitely intended to move into his strike, intended to die.
It left Izuna feeling conflicted. He had won. He had defeated the White Demon. But… but it wasn’t real. He hadn’t really won, hadn’t really defeated him. It was all a lie. And he didn’t know how to feel about it. And, like every time he didn’t know what to feel or do about something, he went to his brother to talk about it. “Hey Aniki?”
Madara looked at him, giving him his full attention, the way he usually does. “Yes, Izu?”
Izuna hesitated for a second before telling his brother, “Something was wrong in the last battle,” he confessed.
Madara was confused – Izuna didn’t blame him – “What do you mean? You beat him. You won. He fell.”
Here we go. Time to explain. “Yes, that’s exactly it. I shouldn’t have won. He wasn’t fighting any worse than usual and I wasn’t any better than usual. It-the fight was the same way it usually was, it looked like it would come out the same way it always did, the two of us with minor injuries, neither of us winning.”
Madara still didn’t get it, not he that blamed him. This wasn’t an easy thing to think about. “Yes, that’s exactly it. I shouldn’t have won. He wasn’t fighting any worse than usual and I wasn’t any better than usual. It-the fight was the same way it usually was, it looked like it would come out the same way it always did, the two of us with minor injuries, neither of us winning.”
“Yes, ok?” Ugh, his brother was an idiot.
He had to be as clear as possible, so his brother would – hopefully – get it. “And then, Aniki, he-he moved wrong. I moved in a way I always had, and instead of moving to avoid me the way he usually does, he moved into the strike. He purposefully stepped into my strike.”
At long last, he saw realization fall over his brother’s face. He could see as Madara realized that the Senju – Tobirama – had tried to kill himself on Izuna’s sword.
Izuna watched as his brother walked off with a stunned look on his face. He knew that Madara still harbored concern and care for the big tree man and didn’t actually want The White Demon to die, knowing how it would affect Hashirama.
Izuna couldn’t really blame him, he was conflicted as well. When they got back to the compound, he went back to the Main House and sat down on the engawa, lost in his thoughts as he considered what this might mean. How could Tobirama get to the point where suicide seemed the only option? What could drive him there? It had to do with Hashirama. It absolutely had to. Like Izuna, he loved his brother more than anything, and if Madara got hurt or their relationship fell apart, or if Madara rejected him, then Izuna didn’t know what he would do.
It was a few days later that Madara approached him again, this time with a look on his face that made Izuna wary. It was the look Mada always got when he did something that he knew Izuna wouldn’t like. “Hey, Izu,” Iuna knew it would be bad, Madara was using his nickname. “What’s on your mind, little brother?”
Izuna was very wary of what was going on with Madara, though he thought it would be related to what had been going through his head anyway, so he decided to play along. “The same thing, really, that I’ve been thinking about for a while now. I know the White Demon, Mada, I know him. I know him really well. Maybe not the same way that his family knows him, but I’ve been studying him, his behavior, his everything, for years just to keep up with him. I know him. And this is so out of character. I can’t get it out of my head. What-what could have happened between the last battle and this one that would change him so much? Hashirama didn’t die, the Senju didn’t suffer huge losses from anything, we haven’t heard about anything else like that, so… what happened?”
And, like a premonition, Izuna could see it coming. Could just see that Madara was going to say something terrible, stupid, ill-thought-out, reckless, and that he was going to hate.
“So… you may be angry, but I wrote to Hashirama about it.”
He was right.
The glare he sent his brother was something else, even if he knew it would do no good. “You what?! You wrote to him?! You’re in contact with him?!”
Madara did not seem to care at all about the recklessness of his actions, nor did he care about how this could affect the Clan in the long run. Communication with the enemy! Come on! With anyone else, it could be considered treason, not that Madara would let anyone be charged with treason for communicating with this particular enemy. “Yes, I wrote to him. No, I’m not in regular contact with him. Now, do you want to know what Hashirama said? Do you want to know why Tobirama did this?”
Against his better judgment, he really did want to know. This wasn’t like Tobirama at all. It really wasn’t him to try to kill himself, and it was really bothering Izuna to not know what was going on. Madara seemed amused at Izuna’s silence, which really pissed him off. He wasn’t the one communicating with the enemy!
“Well, you’ll be happy to know that this was, actually, completely in character for him. He did not break character or change behavior whatsoever. You are absolutely correct in your assessment of him.” This completely flustered and confused Izuna. What did it mean that it was in character? No, it wasn’t. It was completely out of character for him. He was not behaving in the way he usually did, and Izuna ought to know! What was Madara on about? And the irritation from Madara’s behavior and not knowing was getting to him a bit, so maybe he snapped a little when he said, “Are you going to tell me or not?! Quit taunting me and just say it!”
At this, Madara had the audacity – the audacity! – to laugh at him outright, amused at his frustration and outrage at the entire situation. At least he answered the question – sort of. “Well, it took a little digging before Hashirama and their cousin, Touka, figured it out, but apparently Tobirama left a note. And Hashirama had really, really, really put his food in it. Implied something that he didn’t really mean and he didn’t think about what he was actually telling his little brother.”
This did not endear him to Hashirama at all. He had no idea what that oaf might have said to Tobirama, but it could not have been good or benevolent or the type of thing a big brother should say to his little brother. What on earth was happening in the Senju Compound?! “What-what the fuck could he have said that made Tobirama want to die?! That type of thing isn’t a slip of the tongue!”
This seemed to ignite Madara’s anger – as well it should – and he ground out, “Apparently, he told Tobirama that he needed to go easy on the Uchiha. He said that Tobirama had been ruthless against us, the Uchiha, and that he knew we were wary of Tobirama, that a large part of the reason we wouldn’t accept peace was because of Tobirama and his reputation. So he told Tobirama that he needed to go easy on the Uchiha, stop being so ruthless against us.”
This seemed completely incomprehensible to Izuna. The tree-man was an idiot, sure, but surely he wasn’t that much of an idiot! “What…? What? I don’t-what? How-how could he? We-we’re at war! He-he’s supposed to fight us! Hard! How-how is he-how is he supposed to defend his clan if he can’t fight us?!” Izuna couldn’t contain his anger and started pulling at his hair just to give himself an outlet. “What the hell?! And Tobirama doesn’t even really fight many of the Uchiha! He just-he just-Mada, he just fights me. Just me. So, if he was supposed to be going easy on the Uchiha, and he doesn’t fight a lot of Uchiha, he only fights me, does that mean, does that mean that Hashirama told him to go easy on me?!”
Madara’s eyes, when they looked at him, were sad as well. He was feeling this just as much. “That is what he implied. He didn’t outright say anything about going easy on you, specifically, just the Uchiha, but… Tobirama was a genius. He would have heard that he needed to go easy on you. In fact, that is what happened. The note he left made it clear that he thought Hashirama was asking for him to die, since going easy on you would mean his death. Hashirama… hasn’t realized that. I plan to reply and let him know exactly what he asked for from Tobirama. And then I plan to head to the Senju compound to negotiate peace.”
Madara seemed intent on sweeping Izuna’s feet out from under him at the moment. What on Earth could he be thinking?! He was their Clan Head! Going to the Compound of an enemy Clan?! He’d get killed! And if he didn’t, it would only be because they were going to attack the compound while he was gone, instead! “What?! You’re going to what?! That’s suicide! If you go to the Senju compound alone, they’ll just kill you!”
Izuna really hated that condescending look that Madara would get on his face sometimes. The one that said he cared about you and understood you, but that also completely dismisses you. Izuna could just tell that Madara wasn’t taking him seriously with his worries about his brother’s health. It wasn’t like the Senju had been trying to kill them, and they them, for generations now or anything. Izuna was being completely rational in his worries and it was Madara who was being completely insane here. “Think about it, Izu. If Tobirama was willing to go to these lengths for peace, doesn’t that show that who we thought was the biggest detractor is, in fact, a very large supporter? You and the Elders have both been talking, for a while, about how it’s Tobirama we can’t trust. That Hashirama could control the rest of the Clan, but his brother was something else, and we couldn’t trust him to not try to sabotage everything. But Tobirama nearly just gave his life because he thought it would help Hashirama achieve his dream. He nearly gave everything for this peace. If he’s the biggest reason we can’t have peace, and he just irrevocably proved that he supports peace, then why can’t we have it? We really could. Think of all of the lives we could save. Can you imagine never building another pyre for a child?”
As his brother kept talking, Izuna was seeing where he was coming from more and more. It did not mean that he liked it or that he wasn’t still completely worried about his big brother, but… watching a small body go up in flames was something neither of them wanted, and something that both of them had mourned over repeatedly. He had to make sure his brother was listening to his worries, though, and would be careful. “I mean, Nii-san, you’re right. You’ve always been right. Peace would be amazing. So, so amazing. I would love for the Clan’s children to be able to grow up without having to die on missions or battlefields. And it is a wonderful sign that Tobirama is willing to die for the peace of his Clan. But… I don’t know. I still don’t feel like we can really trust them. I mean… I know you trust Hashirama and this really shows that Tobirama is also trustworthy, but…it still gives me a bad feeling.”
Izuna understood. He really did. His brother had been dreaming of peace and not having dead children for a very long time. It was an amazing dream. He just…he worried. Izuna worried about what these risks would mean for them, what it would cost their Clan. He knew that if it paid off, it would be amazing, but if it didn’t pay off, it could completely destroy their Clan, and while it wasn’t his decision to make, he did worry about it. Quite a lot. His brother saw that in his face, and said, “Hey, Izu. I know you can’t really trust all of them, but… do you think you could trust in me? Believe me? Trust that I will do what is best for the Clan?”
Now that, that he could get behind. He would always trust his big brother. Madara had always been there for him, and always acted in the best interests of the Clan, even when he hated what it meant doing. He could rely on Madara. “Yes, nii-san. I can trust you.”
Izuna could see the moment that it hit his brother that he was putting his trust in him, fully, even with all of his reservations, even with all of his doubts and concerns and worries. He watched as Madara’s face filled with how much that meant to him, that his little brother would stand by him. “Alright, Izu. Then, since you’re trusting in me, can you support me when I go talk to the Elders about this and let them know my plans? You don’t have to say or do anything, really, since I know that you are trusting me, not the Senju, but I would really appreciate it if you would stand behind me and show that you support me.”
Ugh. Izuna hated the Elders. So much. They were, at their best, an annoyance that just would not stop talking. But there wasn’t a lot that Izuna wouldn’t do for his big brother. “Yes, Nii-san, I think I can do that. As soon as we’re done with that, you send your letter to the tree man, and then we need to prep the Clan for your absence.”
Madara’s face after he said that made all of the worry worth it. “Thank you, Izu. Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me.”
The entire situation with the elders was exactly as dreadful as Izuna had thought it would be. Just as Madara had promised, he didn’t have to say anything himself, but it was still incredibly irritating to listen to them.
He agreed with them on a few things, but they were far too hung up on ‘honor’. He actually agreed that this was a huge risk, that this could go terribly wrong. But they were spouting nonsense when they spoke about keeping going just for honor’s sake. In this, he agreed with Madara completely. What was the point of being honorable if all it did was kill the Clan?
Besides, it didn’t matter what they said or wanted, when the Head Family stood together against them. They were able to talk about how much they hated this and they could complain that this would ruin the Clan and bring about their downfall. It didn’t matter. This wasn’t their decision. It was Madara’s.
And there was absolutely nothing they could do about it.
After Madara left to go to the Senju Compound and Izuna was left to run the Uchiha, Izuna needed to check in with the Clan. He knew that Madara cared about what they thought, but he also knew that Madara could get caught up in his plans sometimes and would forget to actually check in with them. As much as Izuna was putting his support in his brother, he wanted to check in with them and see what the Clan as a whole thought about this peace and he wanted to make sure to put out any fires that were starting in his brother’s absence.
And to start, he went to his cousin Hikaku. Start with the people you know, get a feel for what’s going on and then go from there. Try and figure out when the general feel is and then adjust course based on that.
He found his cousin at home, relaxing after his recent mission. With Madara out of the Compound, he wanted both Izuna and Hikaku, second and third in rank, to stay in its defense, and Hikaku was taking the opportunity to get some down-time in.
Not that Izuna blamed him at all. Even if peace looked to be making battles fewer and farther between, the work to do for it was also going to be through the roof. Just, hopefully, with fewer casualties.
Coming up to his cousin’s house, Izuna saw Hikaku lounging on the engawa, and called out to him, “Hey, Hikaku!”
His cousin just gave him a look. Hikaku knew what he was here for, what he was doing, and was not at all impressed by him. Didn’t matter, though. Izuna wasn’t going to leave him alone. “So, cousin……..how are you?”
Hikaku was not at all impressed. He was, in fact, suspicious. “What do you want, Izuna?”
This was hilarious. As much as Izuna didn’t appreciate Madara trolling him, he completely understood why he did it. Izuna did it to Hikaku, after all. This time, though, he actually had something he needed to do, not just troll his cousin. “Well, Hikaku, I was wondering what you think of Mada’s plan.”
Hikaku just flopped onto his back and sighed dramatically. “Of course that’s why you’re here. My lovely little cousin can’t possibly be here to see me or because he misses me.”
Hearing this, Izuna feels a bit bad. He does love his cousin. Hikaku is his closest relative after Madara, and he definitely doesn’t want Hikaku to think he doesn’t. “Hey, don’t be like that. You know I love you and have missed you. I’m glad you’re back and you’re alright. But you know how it is. I have my responsibilities and duties, as well. And this is part of it. So…what do you think? Because I know I wasn’t sold on this, still not, but I’m following this for Mada. But I need to know what everyone else thinks, too.”
Hikaku looked up at him from the ground and smiled softly, “I know, Izu. I do. I know that you care. I love you, too. As for what Mada is doing… I’m hopeful. I’m not sure how much we can exactly trust the Senju, but if we can get this to work, it will be well worth it. I honestly really hope that this can go through. I would love to have a family and to be able to just enjoy having them. Not have to worry about my children dying. Or me dying before my children are grown. Knowing that, while being shinobi is still dangerous, the chance of death before age 13 isn’t over 50%. My family having a chance at all. I would like that.”
Izuna’s eyes softened as he listened to his cousin. Most of the Clan shared the yearning for those around you to not die, and yet, “I didn’t know that you wanted that. Wanted a family.”
Hikaku sighed and closed his eyes from where he was laying on the ground. “It’s not that I don’t want that. I always have. It’s just… until very recently, I didn’t see the point. I didn’t want to outlive any children I might have. I’ve seen so many of our Clan go through that, your parents and mine both, and I didn’t want to go through that. And on a similar note, I didn’t want any children I might have to grow up without me. I didn’t want my children to be fatherless. Both of those stories are ones that are told all around the Compound constantly. They’re commonplace. And I didn’t want that for my family. So I didn’t even look around at anyone. Didn’t let myself see the people around me, really. I didn’t want a relationship that would end in tragedy, so I decided that I wouldn’t have a relationship at all since I had no way to prevent that from happening. But now… now that peace looks like it might be around the corner… I would like that. I would like a family.”
Izuna stayed silent. He didn’t really know what to think about what his cousin was saying. Was this common? Was this something that a lot of people in his Clan felt? Were there more people around him who were denying themselves what they really wanted because they didn’t like the risk of trying to have it during wartime? It was… sad. Oh, he understood, he really did. But, the fact that his cousin, and an unknown number of other Clan members, were denying themselves happiness in fear of tragedy… It really was unspeakably sad. “Do-do you think there are others in the Clan who feel the same way? Who want a family, who honestly have any dreams or goals, that they aren’t working towards, because of the war?”
Hikaku looked at Izuna sadly. “Oh, little cousin. Virtually everyone. I honestly don’t think there is an adult in the Clan who hasn’t given up on at least one of the things they want out of life, because of the war. So many people who have children want their children to not be shinobi. And a lot of the time, that isn’t an option. There are several people who want to be something other than a shinobi themselves. And they don’t have that option. That’s not even counting the people who are like me and who don’t want a family that is only going to die.”
Izuna just stared off into space for a while. He didn’t know what to think of this. His focus, for so long, had been on preserving what he had, that he didn’t realize that left and right his Clan was giving up on the future and their dreams. That his own cousin had come to the conclusion that it was better to not have a family than to have such a high risk of losing them. Or that some people wanted to transition to being civilians and felt that they couldn’t. He just hadn’t seen it. “Do you think the Clan agrees with Mada, then? They want to try for peace? Despite what the Elders say?”
Hikaku just looked at him for a moment before saying, “They absolutely want peace. The Clan as a whole does not want to keep fighting. The civilians don’t understand why we fight, we aren’t gaining anything from it, and the shinobi ranks are so tired of dying off left and right. There are some people who are just trying to keep from forming connections at all anymore because they’re losing too many people. And now that they can see that it’s possible, most people are not going to let it out of their grasp. No matter what Madara-sama does, I don’t think the Clan will accept this peace failing or falling through. They can taste it.”
Well. It looks like peace is on the horizon and Madara isn’t the only one who is desperate for it.