Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Burning chakra itched constantly at the skin of the Uchiha and burned at their noses and lungs. Everyone was uncomfortable, even Sakura though her discomfort clearly stemmed from empathy as her hands flickered with green light. The rosette was doing her best to fight off the worst of the symptoms, but her chakra was slowly dwindling and she wouldn’t last for much longer.
“She’s a strange one,” Ryuko said softly to Tajima, her tone wasn’t hostile but rather curious. The rosette had long ago been accepted by the clan as one of their own. She was everything they valued in a person, kind, compassionate, fierce and ruthless when necessary. Sakura had killed in her very first battle and trained without complaint. The bar for a good clan member wasn’t all that high but Sakura exceeded it constantly as did Madara.
“She is a gift from the Kami, I would be surprised if she was normal.” Tajima replied and Madara walked over to his father, gravitating towards the conversation with all the curiosity of an eight year old boy. “Madara are you alright?”
“I think Sakura’s chakra is helping.” He answered, his seal visible on his hand and cool minty chakra flowing through his body occasionally, soothing away the burning itch. It was strange, her chakra didn’t make him immune to the fox’s effect but it did make the burning bearable. “Are we going to shelter here?”
“Yes, at least until-” Tajima was cut off as the temple lurched, the feeling of the ground shifting beneath their feet followed by a continuous earthquake like rumble as the world tilted backwards. The Uchiha, being shinobi, all latched onto the floor with chakra, steadying themselves instinctively even as rocks and pebbles skittered past them, falling down towards the entrances tunnel.
Madara felt his ears pop and he ran towards the entrance along with his father. The waterfall was gone, replaced by a glowing barrier as blackness spread out before their eyes. It took Madara’s brain a second to register exactly what he was seeing but when it clicked into place he felt fear turn his blood to ice.
“We’re underwater.” Madara whispered and tried not to shiver at the terror that brought. Shinobi could operate underwater, to an extent but once the sun faded away and the water turned black, their bodies would be crushed into pulp even with chakra. Not even the famed Hoshigaki clan could survive such crushing depths and they were built for living underwater. Rumor had it their clan even had a submerged fortress somewhere off the coast of Mizu.
“Indeed, it appears we’ve stumbled upon more then just a temple from the age of the Kami.” Tajima said, a frown on his face as he looked at the barrier. His sharingan took in the chakra construct and once he was satisfied it would hold, he let them fade to graying onyx. “This is Genbu, the turtle guardian. A companion to Sakura’s Byakko if memory serves.”
“So we’re safe?” Madara asked and Tajima let out a tired sigh. It was obvious that his father genuinely had no idea if they were safe or in extreme danger. However Tajima still put on a weary smile and nodded.
“Yes, I think it’s taking us where we need to go. Who knows, maybe we’ll even reach Uzu, myth states that the people of the northernmost Isle are under the protection of the four guardians.” Tajima replied, unaware of just how right he’d be.
***
Sakura woke up in ANBU’s private medical wing deep underground. The remnants of Root’s conditioning still clinging to her brain and while she hadn’t yet forgotten who she was or how to feel, that was only because of Inner’s help. ‘Itachi…’ Sakura could tell her face was utterly blank as she pulled off her covers and sat upright. Pressing the call button, Sakura summoned one of the few medical shinobi to work in ANBU.
“Hello Tora, glad to see you awake.” Rooster was a familiar face or rather mask. Sakura worked in the medical wing more often then not, it was her second most frequent mission just after Naruto duty. “Feeling anything abnormal? Any damage to your core or chakra network?”
“No sir,” Sakura answered, noting her flat tone. It was easier to react around Madara, he brought out her emotions naturally but without him here she felt empty, hollowed out. “Where is Izumi?”
“In the next room over. She’s awake and doing better then you, so don’t worry about her. Bear would like to talk to the two of you the moment you’re ready for it. Your uniform is in the locker and I’d recommend a shower.” Rooster’s tone was gentle, even though she kept the topics all business. Sakura knew the woman had a backbone of steel and enforced proper hospital stays on the flightiest of ANBU. She had a reputation for being ruthless and cold, so her behavior drove home just how worried she was for the younger kunoichi.
“Orders understood and accepted.” Sakura saw Rooster wince as she spoke and the woman drew in a sharp breath. Sakura realized her mistake a second too late but couldn’t find it in herself to react. Reactions drew beatings or worse, genjutsu torture and while she’d been able to put it from her mind in the past, because she knew she was safe there, here she couldn’t shake it.
“You don’t need to do that here kid, just take some time to gather yourself. Bear isn’t in a rush, he tolerated Hatake after all.” Rooster offered and Sakura gave her a sharp nod. It was clearly the wrong move as Rooster’s chakra burned briefly with pure rage before the blond woman let out another sigh and walked away.
‘Don’t worry, we’ll overcome this.’ Inner promised and Sakura found herself believing those words. Inner had tried to break Itachi’s genjutsu. She had shielded Sakura’s emotions, harboring them within herself and taking them away when Sakura was too terrified to think. It had helped immensely and if Inner said they would overcome this, then Sakura would believe her.
‘Thank you Inner.’ Sakura thought back, throwing her feet over the side of the bed and shifting forward until she was standing. Dizziness assaulted her and she wobbled briefly before her head cleared and she quickly hurried about getting ready. After a shower, Sakura pulled on her equipment and was satisfied to see her armor and scythe had been recovered. She was growing a bit big for them both, in fact the breastplate was just barely large enough to provide protection without getting in the way and Sakura knew she’d be getting a new one tailored in the past rather soon.
‘Hey Inner, you think we’ll find another scroll in the chest soon?’ Sakura wondered as she got dressed and noted the distinct lack of any kind of mask. In Root she’d had to wear a blank mask constantly, there were no names or identities in Root. She was nothing but a tool for the village. Not a disposable tool, at least not according to what she’d gleaned from her instructors. Apparently she’d been honored to be selected as a candidate for something, though for what she wasn’t sure.
‘It’s possible, though I’m more curious about where the giant island turtle is taking us.’ Inner replied, feeling far more solid in Sakura’s mindscape then before the massacre. Sakura knew that was because of how much of herself she’d given to her other half. Inner held the lion’s share of their emotions now, protecting them from Root’s conditioning while Outer had shed them in hopes of surviving with minimal trauma. It had worked, the beatings and torture had tapered off sharply over the one week they’d been in Root. No, the real problem was the effects of Tsukoyomi. She hadn’t even been able to communicate with Inner and she’d been conditioned non-stop for three days straight.
‘We’ll get through this, you just need time.’ Inner whispered and Sakura swallowed the lump that had threatened to form in her throat. Inner believed in her and her Team would be there for her. Izumi had survived as well and Sakura had to be strong for her friend. ‘Exactly, we’ll overcome this. Now go on and see what Tsukiko wants.’
Sakura left her hospital room and walked through the familiar halls of ANBU hq. The chakra here was distinctive, familiar and comforting. It was cool, filled with grim memories and happy memories both. ANBU weren’t emotionless machines despite all the propaganda. They formed the tightest knit teams, had the best teamwork in the village and partied harder then any of the other divisions. ANBU lived like tomorrow might not come, because for many it wouldn’t. They were the most combative division in Konoha and thus suffered the highest rate of casualties during peacetime, though that was flipped during times of war as their experience and skill kept them safer then their daytime peers.
Bears office was the same as the last time Sakura had seen it and she stepped inside to find all of Team 7 waiting for her. Hatake Kakashi was also present as was a cat masked ANBU Sakura didn’t know but recognized. ‘The remnants of Team Ro,’ Inner supplied and Sakura’s gaze soon shifted to Tsukiko who was observing the room with a cool detached gaze. Her male disguise was handsome, dreadfully so with a face like an angel and short wild gray silver hair that gave her an air of experience and maturity that would otherwise be lacking.
“Well then, now that we’re all here it’s time to discuss the future.” Bear was utterly serious as she met the eyes of everyone in the room. “First, Uchiha Naori and Mitarashi Anko, you two will begin your training for ANBU. Naori, I know you already qualify but I can not afford to be seen as showing favoritism right now.”
“I understand,” Naori gave the ANBU commander an understanding look. Sakura met her sensei’s gaze and Naori shot her a fanged smile, a comforting sight that screamed of home and warmth. Naori was of the Isles, her blood heavy with salt and iron in a way that Sakura resonated with. The two were similar, far more similar then Naori knew.
“Next on the docket, Team Ro is going to be reconstituted. It’s our most capable team and I cannot afford to sideline it for long. Hound, Cat, you two will form the core of the team and I’ll be transferring Leopard and Gecko to the team. In addition, tiger will be placed on your team for missions that require a medic or combat summons.” Bear’s words clearly caught Kakashi off guard as his chakra spiked nervously. The woman disguised as a man raised a silver eyebrow, her expression bored and yet impossibly patient as she waited for the shinobi to voice a complaint.
“Are you sure I can be trusted with another prodigy?” Kakashi asked slowly, his voice nearly blank but he couldn’t hide his remorse and grief entirely. He still hadn’t processed Itachi’s betrayal and couldn’t begin to figure out where he’d went wrong with the young Uchiha prodigy. He knew Danzo was involved somehow and his traitorous mind kept whispering the worst possibilities whenever he found a moment to think
“Fortunately I happen to know exactly what went wrong with Itachi and it’s above your pay grade. You can put any misplaced guilt to bed, it wasn’t your fault. ANBU Tora here is a natural at elemental release because of her chakra control and her summons all wield it. You can help her learn how to use it and fight alongside it. I expect you to help her prepare for the jounin exams once she’s back on the roster.” Bear’s tone provided no room for argument and the look she gave Kakashi only added to the silence that followed. The silver haired man gave the commander a nod, though his chakra was still shot through with nerves.
“Now then, Senju Izumi and Haruno Sakura, you two have just been through hell.” Bear’s features suddenly looked older, the weight of decades visible in her eyes. It wasn’t the look of a defeated elder but rather someone who had walked through the same trials and tribulations and come out unbroken. Bear was ancient by shinobi standards, Sakura knew that well. She had been a child during the warring states period, years before Konohagakure was founded and here she was, still going strong.
“You’ve been taken off the roster for the next six months for recovery. When that ends, Izumi will begin ANBU’s boot camp and Sakura will begin training for the jounin exams. I will not have either of you slipping out of my reach, kami knows what would happen if I took my eyes off you two.” Bear gave the two who had been taken by Root knowing looks. Everyone present knew Danzo wouldn’t give up or stop simply because Hiruzen ordered him to. A man who tries to assassinate his leader will not listen to the edicts of said leader, at least not if he can do so without getting caught.
“You think Shimura will make another attempt.” Izumi observed, her tone flat and eyes hard. Her chakra burned, the distinctive fire of the Uchiha pounding through her veins and Sakura knew it meant a wrath so intense that it was all consuming. Izumi’s eyes spun to life, twisting int a fractured mangekyo pattern.
“Put those eyes away, now soldier.” Bear snapped and Izumi pulled her chakra back. It was a struggle for her, clearly, but she managed all the same. “You’re going to go blind with those eyes.”
“I am aware,” Izumi stated tersely and tension flared between them. Bear leaned back in her chair, appearing for all intents and purposes as an unbothered shinobi though the way she picked up her mask from the desk and slid it on over her face, most likely to hide her ketsuryugan, did not go unnoticed.
“There is a cure for that blindness, if you’re interested. She would want to help you.” Bear’s words hit the room like a bomb, instantly blowing the sound and tension away. Izumi’s face twisted with pain, tears appearing at the corners of her eyes. “I won’t force you.”
“I’ll take them,” Izumi whispered and Bear nodded, grim understanding flowing through her chakra. Bear, for all that she hid it, was a child of a doujutsu wielding clan. She knew how sacred eyes were to the Uchiha, understood it in a way that only another who had been hunted for their eyes truly could.
“I’ll have it arranged. Now then, on to other things. The Hokage has ordered Uchiha Sasuke to be housed in what remains of the Uchiha district. I can’t interfere but if a friend, like say Sakura were to invite him for extended sleepovers on the regular, well that’s nobody’s business but their own.” Bear stated, the message loud and clear. Sakura was to look after Sasuke and ensure he didn’t fall apart because of the Hokage’s intentional neglect. “That is all, dismissed.”
***
Sakura didn’t head straight home after being dismissed but instead veered off towards the remains of the Uchiha district. Overhead, the sun was just starting to dip down towards the horizon and Sakura could feel a single lone chakra amid the scorched homes and ruined houses. Wrath gnawed at her bones as she made her way towards Sasuke, finding him in a house that she recognized immediately. Shisui had lived on the very outskirts of the district, an orphan who had been placed on the edges of the clan. Looking back on it, Sakura could see the logic, isolating him from his kin, despite being cousins with the heir.
‘It was all planned out, wasn’t it?’ Inner snarled, her voice demonic in Sakura’s mind. A growl slipped from the rosettes lips as she walked through the ash strewn streets, her feet coming to a stop just outside of Shisui’s door. She’d passed through this entry so many times before, but this time there would be no smiling face and cheap convenience store food waiting for her.
“Sasuke,” Sakura’s voice broke the silence that hung over the burnt out ghetto. The smell of smoke was thick in the air and the memories of the massacre played through the back of her mind. Dark streets illuminated by flames, the stench of smoke and burning flesh clinging to her as she met Itachi’s blade. He had been stronger then before, impossibly so, like he’d trained decades in a heartbeat. He’d even mastered Izumi’s kenjutsu style, a skill he shouldn’t have had. “I’m coming in.”
Sakura moved because if she didn’t she was going to drown in her memories. Opening the door, she could feel Sasuke’s chakra above her, languishing in Shisui’s room. The rosette didn’t bother taking her sandals off in the genkan, Shisui hadn’t bothered nor had she once she’d gotten settled in. The stairs still creaked, a subtle intruder alarm that most civilians would overlook and Sakura turned towards the master bedroom, the entrance hidden from the landing to provide cover in case of attack.
Sasuke was laying on the floor, coal black eyes fixed on the ceiling overhead. The boy was pale, with bags under his eyes and his cheeks starting to look decidedly sunken. It was obvious he wasn’t eating properly and Sakura could understand. If she hadn’t been pulled down into Konoha’s Roots she would likely have been equally morose, at least her in the present. She wouldn’t allow herself to mourn where Madara could see. He didn’t need her weakness weighing on his mind.
“Sasuke,” Sakura called out and the boy twitched, eyes moving towards her. Several seconds passed as they just looked at each other. There were no words exchanged, what was there to say? Sakura closed the distance between them, coming to a stop only a few short feet away.
“You’re alive,” Sasuke whispered, looking like he’d seen a ghost. “But they said…” Sasuke trailed off as he frowned and rose to his feet. His shoulders were beginning to shake and Sakura swept forward, kneeling in front of the boy, her kin and pulling him into a hug.
“I was kidnapped, briefly but I was rescued. I wouldn’t have left you alone, not even for a minute if I had a choice.” Sakura whispered, drawing a strangled scream from the boy. Sasuke shook violently, lungs expanding and contracting at a frantic pace and Sakura could feel his pulse hammering away under her fingers. She squeezed him tight, “I’m here, I’m not leaving.”
Desperate sobs broke free from Sasuke’s lips and he crumpled into her. He cried into her shoulder, uncaring that the armored pauldron was far from comfortable and covering it in salty tears. Sakura felt her heart twisting in her chest. It wasn’t intense enough to draw forth her own tears but she hurt all the same. This was her clan, they hadn’t known it and she didn’t get the chance to tell them but these were her people.
‘Sasuke, Naori and Izumi are all still alive. Anko is family as well, we should tell them.’ Inner said softly in the back of Sakura’s mind. She knew Inner was right, she would show them the truth but first she would stay with Sasuke until he had cried out all his tears.
In the end, it didn’t take all that long for Sasuke to pass out. He hadn’t been eating properly, nobody had looked after him since the massacre and it showed. ‘He’s still wearing the same clothes.’ Sakura’s nose twitched at the smell of burnt flesh that clung to Sasuke’s clothes and hair, mixing with body odor and burning her sensitive nose.
Sakura gathered up the boy in her arms and quickly took to the rooftops, crossing the village in a blur of shunshins. Setting down outside the Senju district, Sakura passed through the wards before anyone could stop her. She could tell several ANBU had been watching her since the moment she’d entered the Uchiha district, no doubt on Hiruzens orders. Bear had their loyalty, to an extent, but few operatives would disobey direct orders from the Hokage.
‘They can’t get into the Senju district though, ironic we would seek refuge in the home of our foe.’ Inner noted dryly as she moved towards one of the many bathrooms in the heir’s house. The place was messy after the whirlwind week they’d just survived and the moment Sakura passed through the main entrance, Anko appeared in a blur of purple. The girl opened her mouth but didn’t say a word as she realized Sasuke was asleep. Instead she simply fell into step alongside Sakura and helped her clean Sasuke off before putting him into a fresh yukata. It was one of Izumi’s older ones, though Sasuke likely wouldn’t be in a state of mind to care when he awoke.
“He was in the Uchiha district.” Naori’s voice startled Sakura and Anko, their sensei having arrived without even a whisper. Her onyx eyes glinted dangerously and her lips were parted just enough to show off her shark like teeth. “Disgusting, Hiruzen and Danzo both. Turning on their own village like this.” Naori shook her head and nodded for the two to follow her. The rustling of fabric drew the trio’s attention to Sasuke who was looking around nervously.
“Where?” Sasuke’s voice was hoarse, no doubt from crying and screaming. Who knew how many hours he’d spent drifting between mourning and unconsciousness over the last week.
“You’re in the old Uchiha Senju district.” Sakura informed him and Sasuke’s eyes snapped to her. She could see he was uncertain of himself, caught between the desire to cling to her and the fear of rejection. “Can you get Izumi? I need to talk with all of you in private.”
“I’m here,” Izumi arrived without a sound or even a spike of chakra. Sakura hadn’t even felt her on the property and her footsteps had been dead silent. Beside her, Naori shifted, eyes narrowing and sharingan briefly spinning to life, a clear indicator that Izumi had caught her off guard. “I have something to share as well.”
“Would you mind going first Izumi?” Naori asked, the question demanding far more then a simple ordering of turns. Izumi gave the woman a wry smile and nodded, walking into the room and taking a seat on the floor. Anko plopped down a few feet away, their little group now forming a semi-circle in the center of the room.
“Itachi pulled me into a genjutsu that lasted decades.” Izumi said, her expression speaking of a significance to that well beyond what she’d said. “We spent most of that time training. He was going to condition me for Root but I managed to talk him out of it, told him that training my skills would be a better use of the time.”
“We did more then train but kotoamatsukami didn’t fade. His emotions returned somewhat but Danzo still has him under his thrall.” Nobody stopped Izumi from speaking the truth in front of Sasuke. The boy tensed, eyes burning crimson as his sharingan came to life.
“Danzo has Itachi under his thrall? Itachi is innocent?” Sasuke demanded and Izumi frowned because it was far more complex then that. She’d seen first hand how Itachi had been changed, but his mind had been made for him, so in a way he was innocent yet the new Itachi was certainly guilty.
“It’s complicated, but he didn’t murder the clan for his own ends.” Izumi confirmed and Sasuke’s hands balled up into fists. He rose to his feet, intent on doing something, but collapsed a second later as his head swam and his vision blacked out. Sakura caught the boy before he could hit the ground and lowered him back down into his bed.
“Easy Sasuke, one step at a time. If we strike now, we’ll be marked as traitors. A ninja is patient and strikes when the moment is right.” Sakura met Sasuke’s sharingan and suppressed her own. The urge to call them forward was almost overwhelming and she could feel them pressing against the surface, turning the edges of her irises crimson. “I have something to admit.”
Sakura closed her eyes and stopped holding back. Chakra flowed through the channels in her eyes and her sharingan came to life beneath her eyelids. When she opened her eyes, the world was in painfully sharp focus, so she clearly saw the shock play across the faces around her. Sakura held her head high, crimson eyes swirling as she looked over her friends, waiting for them to respond.
“You’re Madara’s heir.” Naori was the first to speak, her words slow and considered. Izumi swallowed nervously, because she didn’t know the connection but she knew Madara’s name well enough. The man was a legend, the first missing-nin, the devil of the warring clans period, the Shodaime’s only equal.
“I won’t be revealing myself, not after what just happened but I couldn’t keep hiding this from any of you.” Sakura met Sasuke’s eyes and saw her own sharingan reflected in his gaze. He had stopped breathing in his shock, his eyes fixed on hers, even as he continued to cry silent tears.
“I feel foolish for not drawing the connection sooner. You have white tiger summons and pink hair.” Naori grumbled and Sakura silently boxed up the implications and kicked them off to the depths of her mind. Madara was her best friend, not her boyfriend, she was only eight after all. Such things were for older people, not children.
“Train me.” Sasuke demanded and Sakura gave him a sad smile and nodded.
“Alright, but first you need to take a shower, eat and sleep. Then we’ll start on your training, alright?” Sakura asked and for a minute it looked like Sasuke was going to argue. Then, he deflated somewhat and nodded, pouting slightly but not arguing with her.
“You can train him but don’t forget you’re on medical leave.” Naori informed the rosette before turning to Sasuke. “She was kidnapped for a week and tortured extensively. If she even tries to do something strenuous you let me know alright? She’s family and we always take care of our own, right?” Naori asked, playing upon the Uchiha clan’s ingrained values. Everyone saw the moment the association with Sakura and family clicked into place in Sasuke mind and he nodded, determination visible for all to see. “Good, I’ll leave watching her up to you and if she helps you train while you watch her, then she can’t be somewhere else getting into trouble.”
“I need to see Naruto at some point.” Sakura’s words caught everyone off guard. Not even Naori knew the rosette had befriended Konoha’s resident pariah as she’d been under her ANBU disguise the entire time. “None of you knew?” Sakura asked and then let her head droop as she pushed her chakra into her ANBU seal, her hair going white with black streaks and her height growing to match that of an eleven year old’s. “My ANBU disguise.”
“I suspected the rumors might be about you but you never mentioned anything.” Naori noted thoughtfully as Sakura let the disguise drop. The girl was almost out of secrets, having just confirmed her ANBU identity to everyone present on top of revealing her sharingan. All she had left was Madara, though that wasn’t something she was going to share with anyone, not unless she had to.
***
A week aboard Genbu was stressful for all involved but when the turtle finally surfaced Madara found himself far from upset. The homeland was safe in the hands of the bulk of the Uchiha’s forces and the Senju had been quiet for years so it was unlikely that anything catastrophic had happened. More pressing though was the fact that they had no idea where they were, though according to Ryuko they hadn’t been moving all that fast so they weren’t too far from the elemental nations in a worst case scenario.
The clan had set camp within the temple, the fear of oxygen deprivation alleviated by the constant flow of fresh air pulled from the seawater by large fuinjutsu arrays scrawled across the ceilings of the temple’s chamber. Sakura had improved visibly as well, her expressions were almost normal now, though her chakra was still flat more often then not. It wasn’t blank, but it was certainly suppressed and stagnant. A wound of the soul, Tajima had called it though he was sure she’d recover. The Uchiha were the best mind healers after the Yamanaka after all.
“Sakura, want to go climb the stone spires and see what’s around?” Madara asked, having noticed over the week that giving Sakura something to do tended to help her. When she was left idle, she’d fall into her own mind, trapped within her recent experiences.
“Alright,” Sakura agreed easily, though that wasn’t a surprise. Madara couldn’t really remember her ever telling him no, not that he demanded much of her besides friendship. Then again, she had ended up bearing half of his burden, though she hadn’t once complained.
‘She’s a good friend.’ Madara told himself as the two children left the temple and walked over the damp ground that covered Genbu’s shell. The spires rose high overhead, still slick with saltwater. Climbing one, the two children were the first to see a large isle spread out before them. It was solitary, standing alone amid the clear blue sea that spread out before them. Rivers cut through the island while several mountains, likely volcanoes rose into the sky.
“Uzu,” Sakura whispered, recognizing the island from her history textbooks. In her time, Uzu was a desolate wasteland where nothing could grow. The Uzumaki had left ruin in their wake, nothing able to survive on the isle for long, one last blow against their would be conquerors. Not even a military port could be established on the isle.
“You know it.” Madara noted and Sakura nodded absentmindedly. He could see her eyes were filled with a mix of wonder and something else, something distinctly like resignation though he couldn’t understand why.
“I’ve never been to Uzu before but their fuinjutsu is legendary, even where I’m from.” Sakura said softly and Madara perked up. That was new information, volunteered without prompting. It was a sign that slowly but steadily, Sakura was opening up to him. Sakura’s sharingan came to life and Madara’s followed a moment later, providing them a crisp view of the island. They could see shinobi with jewel tone hair crossing the water and approaching Genbu rapidly, though their chakras were ranged from relaxed to excited.
“It seems we’ve been noticed by the locals or at least the turtle has been.” Madara pointed out and Sakura nodded in agreement, watching the collection of Uzu shinobi approach. Madara gently took her hand, pulling her back down into the forest of spires as they made their way back to the temple.
“Had fun exploring?” Tajima asked, neither amused nor upset by Madara’s little excursion. Most of the clan had cleared out and where now reporting back on the island and the shinobi approaching them.
“It’s Uzu,” Sakura informed him and Tajima nodded in agreement. Madara glanced between them, wondering if anything would come of it. They’d had contact with the Uzumaki years ago, but the insular clan had yet to reach out to them beyond a few letters to touch base.
“Well, let’s go see if we can barter passage back to the mainland. Perhaps we’ll even get a tutor for you out of all of this.” Tajima mused and lead the way out of the temple. The Uchiha quickly formed up, breaking down camp with practiced efficiency and joining their clan leader in polished armor. Fiery chakra filled the air and sharingan swirled as the group made their way towards edge of the great turtle, preparing to meet the Uzu shinobi in a show of restrained power. Nobody wanted a fight but they would be letting the Uzumaki know that if push came to shove, they would be ready.