Vacuum Fluctuations
When Ryusuke’s duties end up needing to take him to the capital, Tobirama—as his temporary charge and apprentice—is expected to follow him.
This is just as well. Tobirama has long since decided that, though he desires peace, his vision of a more stable Konoha does not hinge on the Uchiha as its only co-founders. A dichotomy of power is far likelier to create an imbalance as opposed to either a singular nucleus of power or a wider distribution of it.
The Uchiha will never accept a village where the Senju are the primary force, and Hashirama will not be happy with a village that Uchiha Madara has no hand in building. So, Tobirama’s best option is to curate a situation where multiple clans find the incentive to come together and found a village so all of them are forced to share the influence and honour that comes with being a founding clan of the village, and that needs to start with raising the standing of the Senju so they become influential enough for people to want to consider their proposal of something still considered to be impossible in this world.
In his previous life, at this time, Tobirama’s priority had been strengthening his clan as shinobi so they could remain strong against the Uchiha. This time around, however, his aim is to raise them up with a shinobi village as the end goal. It will require a concentrated and visible shift in his clan’s priorities from purely the militaristic to the economic.
The capital is an excellent starting point for such an endeavour.
To that end, it is useful for him to be more proactive in aiding Uzushio with its attempts to forge new relations with the Land of Fire. It gives him an excuse to reach out to new and old allies and probe them for non-shinobi purposes under the pretence of introducing them to the Uzumaki.
In exchange, because nothing in their world can ever be for free, the Uzumaki sponsor Tobirama’s studies under the scientists based in the capital.
After all, while the Senju coffers aren’t lacking, they cannot compare to the wealth Uzushio can boast with its plentiful gold mines. And through him, the Uzumaki do not have to admit to any prospective allies that the reason they need to leave their notorious isolation and branch out to Land of Fire so desperately now are their rapidly worsening relations with the Land of Water which have resulted in many of their previous allies abandoning them.
It is a mutually beneficial agreement in every sense of the term. Tobirama is sure Hashirama will be pleased.
Hashirama has his hand fuller than he can remember them ever being.
He has a whole new appreciation for Tobirama’s efficiency now without his brother here. Of course, Tobirama’s appointed replacements do an admirable job, but Hashirama has to admit that they are nowhere near his brother’s level.
Tobirama has a way of understanding what Hashirama needs from him without any words needing to be said between them, and he is also unafraid of taking initiative to make executive decisions when he thinks he knows best. Without him here now, Hashirama finds himself flooded in unnecessary communications and decisions that aren’t high priority enough to be going to the clan head, but are just important enough that his subordinates feel it is safer for him to look things over.
It eats into the time that Hashirama usually reserves to just spend talking to his clansmen and getting first hand accounts of their troubles and needs, and that irritates him because he never wants to be the distant kind of leader that his father was. Of course, he has eyes and ears in place to keep him informed, but it is different from personally maintaining a rapport with his clan.
He is forced to rely on the elders to carry that duty out in his stead, and regardless of the respect he has for them, Hashirama can admit that he doesn’t trust the elders to not bring their own politics into what should be an unconditional duty to his people.
“The people are restless, Hashirama-sama,” Elder Kaname tells him gravely. “Our patrol has spotted irregular activity from the Uchiha. We could be faced with another attack any day now, and without Tobirama-sama here to sense and warn us of their activities, we are no better than sitting ducks. I implore you; we must be prepared to strike first lest those bastards catch us off guard and we suffer more losses than we need to.”
Hashirama grits his teeth and doesn’t ask why they need to suffer any losses at all. “I understand what you are saying, Kaname-san, but—”
Kaname cuts him off, face set in a stubborn scowl, “Do you know how many attacks you have initiated since you came into power, Hashirama-sama? Eight. In just over two years of your leadership, we have only led a skirmish against those cursed eyed vermin eight times. In that same period, they have attacked us nineteen times.”
Almost hesitant, Elder Kiyoshi admits, “It is not good for us if it looks like the Senju are not responding to such blatant transgressions against us.”
“Are you aware of how this reflects on the clan?” Kaname demands, incensed, dark eyes blazing. “Of how this reflects on you as our leader? People are calling you a coward, Hashirama-sama!”
“Kaname-san!” Hashirama snaps in warning, palm smacking hard against the wood of the long table the council is seated at.
Kaname exhales slowly and bows his head. “My apologies; that was out of line.”
“It will not happen again.”
“Of course, Hashirama-sama.”
Elder Hanabi clears her throat, effectively drawing the room’s attention before the tension can be allowed to stew. “These things do add up, Hashirama-sama,” she says softly. “The Uchiha are a noble shinobi clan—they have status in the Daimyo’s court that we do not. We cannot afford the luxury of sitting on our hands and letting them make us out to be docile without running the risk of losing our clients to them.”
Kiyoshi adds, “We've lost the deal with the Aburame to them already.”
“How many more such losses will we have to take, Hashirama-sama?” Kaname asks, face blank but eyes narrowed with something almost accusatory.
Hashirama sighs and carefully does not bring a hand up to massage his temples. It is not lost on him that the elders who are usually content to stay back and not engage with the Uchiha have kept conspicuously quiet through the entire meeting. It seems that the intra-clan scales of power are tipping in favour of the more aggressive factions once more, as they have over the last twelve generations.
Frowning, he pulls his chakra close to ensure that none of his thoughts are betrayed in its output. No one here is particularly skilled as a sensor, but Hashirama knows his chakra stores are massive and active enough that they betray his emotions even when he does not mean for it to happen.
It will not do for the warmongering faction to regain the footing that Hashirama has taken great pains to systematically knock them off since he became clan head. The whole reason he insists on personally interacting with his clan so much is so he can slowly plant the seeds of peace among them and get them to think beyond violence and revenge. His absence has clearly given his father’s old favoured faction enough time to renew the consolidation of their influence once again.
Even the more neutral elders like Kiyoshi and Hanabi seem to have sided with Kaname—the de facto leader of the aggressive faction—on the matter regarding the Uchiha, and the peaceful faction seems to have decided that this is a losing battle not worth fighting. Hashirama has no choice unless he wants to impose his will over the elders and risk getting himself branded as a tyrant among his clan.
The Senju value free will and the right to expression above almost everything else, placing great importance on individuality and staying true to one's inherent nature. Any leader who refuses to listen to his people and disregards their will is one who is automatically at the risk of being deposed for infringing on their most sacred right for his own agenda.
It seems Hashirama has no choice but to give in for now.
He bites his tongue and nods, careful to hide all reluctance. “Very well then. Let us prove to the world that the Senju bend to no will but their own.”
Kaname brightens and immediately launches into a detailed report about the Uchiha’s activities as observed by their patrols. He has clearly had those loyal to his faction keep an eye out against Hashirama's orders in expectation of such an opportunity. It means he has more support in the clan than previously anticipated. That will need to be corrected lest the elder start getting any unsavoury ideas. Hashirama listens carefully to his report and dedicatedly ignores the evaluating stares burning into his face from all sides of the room as the council undoubtedly tries to figure out what this development means for their clan’s power dynamics.
In Tobirama’s absence, it seems that Hashirama is going to have to step it up if he wants things going his way without risking his own position.
The idea comes to Hashirama when he receives an urgent missive from the third son of the Fujiwara clan who are the second most powerful family in the country after the Damiyo’s own family. Fujiwara apparently came into recent contact with Tobirama and Uzumaki Ryusuke who told him that shinobi healing is far more advanced than civilian medicine, and that the Senju in particular are pioneers of the science.
As it so happens, Fujiwara’s wife is in the middle of a very strenuous pregnancy and seems to have caught some sort of illness that none of the capital’s doctors have been able to treat. If the Senju are able to help, Fujiwara promises to pay them handsomely and also put in a good word to the general of the Daimyo’s army to recruit more Senju warriors which would obviously be a good opportunity for the clan to gain more accomplishments and prestige in a setting that is always guaranteed a lot of nation-wide attention.
Hashirama writes back immediately, of course, and assures Fujiwara that his clan’s healers will do their best to help in any way they can. As he does so, however, he wonders why their clan never tried to commodify their medicinal expertise.
It’s true that shinobi medicine is more advanced due to how it involves chakra, which in turn aids the vitality of the soul instead of targeting only the physical vessel like the civilian doctors are limited to due to the inability to harness their chakra. It is also true that the Senju invest more into advancing their medical ninjutsu than just about any other clan that Hashirama has heard of.
Part of why they have been able to withstand the Uchiha’s attacks for centuries despite their opponents having the connections and strength befitting a noble clan is because the Senju are able to heal injuries that would ordinarily result in death or disability. They developed this way over several decades because of their longstanding feud, but it is strange how no one has tried to profit off these skills yet.
And nothing is really stopping Hashirama from being the first to try. They could sell their healing skills and medicines right alongside the shinobi contracts they take and make the best of an opportunity to add to their coffers. Healing that appears miraculous to the civilians will only add to their reputation.
For that matter, the Senju clan’s non-shinobi trade agreements have also dried up considerably over the past two generations of clan heads who chose to strengthen their military foundations instead. Not that Hashirama thinks they were wrong to do so—they probably thought it was the best way to survive at the time. It certainly has aided in making them a popular choice for missions from the capital's nobles who usually prefer them over the noble shinobi clans for fear of owing anything to another noble family.
But Hashirama has long since aspired to be a different kind of leader.
His clan worries about their safety and prosperity since he keeps hesitating to pursue the military angle much further, but perhaps it will help them feel more secure if Hashirama chooses a clear direction with just as much profit and shares his vision of the Senju’s development with them.
Just because he does not want to fight in a war that he does not believe in doesn’t mean Hashirama’s clan needs to suffer for his choice. Since this is the path that he wishes to set them on, he may as well take responsibility and see things through.
With that, the Senju’s fate is set in stone.
Dearest Tobira,
I was so happy to receive your last letter! You have always been one to keep your promises, but I had worried you would have too much fun to remember to write to your poor old anija. While you are gone, your letters are among the brightest spots of my day.
The clan is doing alright, all things considered. We finished the last of the harvest and have begun preparing the fields for the autumn crops. Elder Chiharu has taken over the bulk of the preparations for this year’s summer festival. We are hoping to give the Uzumaki delegates something to remember. It’s terribly exciting!
We did lose the Aburame treaty to the Uchiha unfortunately, but not to worry. Fujiwara-dono seemed truly grateful for our help with his wife’s difficult delivery and is proving to be a valuable ally for our clan to traverse the capital markets, despite having repaid us already by recommending the Senju for the Daimyo’s army. It is all thanks to your meeting with him! We have found new avenues to expand our strength through.
Speaking of expansion; after seeing how well received our healers have been, I have found myself wondering if we should take a similar approach with our wonderful farmers and artisans. In the past, our honourable leaders have been content to allow the civilians of our clans to engage in trade at their own leisure. However, I am curious to see the heights our clan might reach if we provided our merchants with more dedicated investment and connections, allowing them to trade under the banner of the clan instead of their own names. Would it not be a good thing for all of us?
In other news, I visited my grandfather today. The temple is as beautiful as always and I found his advice regarding meditation rather helpful. My tenketsu points are certainly grateful for the exercises he suggested. I am considering visiting him more often. Father may have not seen reason to do so, but I believe that rekindling the connection between the main line and our temple and shrine will only bring us blessings and good fortune.
I trust your studies are going well under the Uzumaki. The gardens you described to me sound beautiful! I wish I could be there to see them with you. Continue doing a good job guarding Mito-hime. She sounds wonderful from everything you have told me, and I am excited for the day I will get to meet her for myself. I hope the conference at the capital is a lot of fun; you seemed like you’re really looking forward to it. Don’t forget to buy souvenirs from your trip, else Touka and I will be very upset with you.
Stay safe and write back soon. I miss you more every day that you are gone.
Your anija,
Senju Hashirama.
“I hear you have settled in well,” Tobirama comments, eyeing his clansmen to gauge their physical condition. “Allegedly, the Colonel is very pleased with your performance and is planning on recommending you to the first division troops. Good job.”
Anzu, Ren, Kai, and Daichi all bow their heads in deference to him, chorusing, “Thank you, Tobirama-sama.”
He allows a fleeting smile. “Not at all. It is all your hard work. You have brought honour to your clan just as we hoped you would.”
The group exchanges glances. Tobirama waits, sipping at his tea and turning to look out the window of the teahouse he has invited them to.
Finally, Kai speaks up, his eyes unsure as he asks, “May we ask how long we are expected to remain here?”
Tobirama arches a brow and tilts his head. “You should know that once you are assigned to the imperial troops, we have little to no control over your service. That includes when and where you go and for how long. If you wish to leave once a period of mandatory service is completed, you may resign. Until then, you will go where your superiors see fit.”
“So, we will remain here for five years at the very least,” Anzu concludes, her face unreadable.
“You are not happy with your assignment?” Tobirama asks bluntly.
Daichi shoots his friends a warning glare before turning to Tobirama and lowering his head. “Our apologies, Tobirama-sama. We know of the honour bestowed upon us for this opportunity to make our clan proud.” Befitting behaviour of the eldest of them.
Humming, the clan heir narrows his eyes ever so slightly. “Speak freely,” he instructs. “You have my word that anything said here will remain in confidence. You will not be punished for expressing your truth.”
Despite his assurance, the group hesitates. Ren’s fingers trace the rim of her cup as she quietly asks, “We are not the only ones assigned, are we?”
“No,” Tobirama confirms. “You are four among forty that anija chose to assign to the imperial troops. Six of them are part of the first division. Two are among the Daimyo’s personal troops. The others are scattered in the third, fourth and fifth divisions.”
Anzu’s hazel eyes narrow. “Would it be too much to ask who the others are?”
“You can find out for yourself. Military troops are usually public knowledge unless they are undercover or on top-secret missions. I did not ask anija for the list as I have been otherwise occupied with the Uzumaki.”
“We will do that,” Daichi responds smoothly before anyone else can. “Thank you for taking the time to see us, Tobirama-sama. And for the tea.”
Tobirama inclines his head. “My pleasure.” He considers them for a moment. “If you need anything, you may write to me at the Uzumaki main residence or to the University of Science and Technology. They will not mind holding onto correspondence for me since I am a frequent visitor.”
Something unspoken passes over the group—an understanding and a sort of relief that intrigues Tobirama.
“Thank you for your consideration, Tobirama-sama,” Kai says.
“Of course.”
Anija,
The conference went well. I have since returned to Uzushio and resumed my duties as Mito-hime’s guard. They are currently in the middle of preparing for a celebration of one of their patron deities. The entire island has been decorated with laurels, gold embroidered banners, and sea glass that catches the light like jewels under the sun. It is unlike anything I have ever seen.
I am making acceptable progress in fuuinjutsu under Ryusuke-dono’s tutelage. He has given up on finding another teacher for me and seems content to maintain our arrangement for the rest of my stay. I taught him how to play go recently. He is skilled enough to already make for an interesting opponent.
Regarding the expansions you mentioned in your last letter, I believe that supporting our merchants with the clan’s name would be a most profitable endeavour. I have enclosed a few treatises and clauses you may refer to while you negotiate an appropriate arrangement for all parties involved. A draft for what such a system might look like in the long term is also attached. If you have any questions, Elder Haruto is well versed in the matter and is familiar with many merchants, both within and outside the clan. You are, of course, free to write to me as well.
You will be interested to know that I also met with a few of our clansmen who are currently serving under the honourable Daimyo in the capital during my latest visit. I noticed something fascinating about a few of them. Did you perhaps have a special reason for choosing the ones you did?
Give my regards to your venerable grandfather the next time you visit him. I believe it is good that you are attempting to reconnect with him now. Seeking out your maternal family’s support, particularly after father’s passing, could only be for the better. Since you find the temple’s teachings on meditation helpful, I’m sure the rest of our clan will agree should you wish to share the benefits.
I am sure you and the rest of our clan are keeping well. I hope you will not waste too much time worrying about me unnecessarily. You are in my thoughts, always.
Yours faithfully,
Senju Tobirama.
“We have reported sightings of some monkeys in our forests lately,” Hikaku comments lightly as he watches Madara file the paperwork he came to pick up.
Madara pauses for a second, eyebrow rising marginally. “What are the Sarutobi doing this far east?”
Frowning, Hikaku quietly admits, “It might have something to do with the Senju. They have been making all sorts of uncharacteristic moves lately.”
Madara grimaces, fingers tightening around the papers in his hand. “It will be bad for us if they are negotiating some sort of alliance.”
Hikaku sighs and the sound comes from a place of deep exhaustion and stress as he rubs at his forehead. “I thought Sarutobi Sasuke hated the Senju clan head.”
It was a popular rumour, despite the Senju and Sarutobi never having any outward conflicts with each other. Sarutobi Sasuke and Senju Butsuma had served on the same squad in the Daimyo’s forces when they had both been in their twenties and weren’t even clan heirs as both had elder siblings who held the position before them. No one quite knows what happened, but their fallout was apparently a rather public affair. It should be surprising if Sasuke is now considering any sort of amicable relations with the Senju, but—
“Well, Hashirama is nothing like Senju Butsume had been,” Madara reasons, smiling humourlessly. “It is possible he managed to overcome Sarutobi’s dislike.”
“Sarutobi Sasuke whose stubbornness is considered legendary?” Hikaku says, looking supremely unconvinced.
At this, Madara raises his eyebrows and asks, dry as the desserts of Wind, “You have met Hashirama, yes?” If anyone could possibly match Sarutobi Sasuke’s hard-headedness, it would be Hashirama.
Hikaku falters and grimaces. “I suppose,” he murmurs in resignation. “This is still terrible news for us though. The Senju already have those pesky Uzumaki living among them right now. Adding Sarutobi shinobi to the mix would seriously put them at an advantage.”
Madara frowns as he thinks it over, humming in agreement. “Spread out our patrols closer to the borders and keep an eye on them. I want to know the moment anything out of the ordinary seems to be happening at the Senju compound.”
“You don’t think we should attack first while we still can?” Hikaku presses even as he notes down Madara’s orders. “Before the Sarutobi get involved, I mean.”
“You want to deal with the Uzumaki?”
“I’d rather do that now than later when those monkeys get added to the mix,” Hikaku admits readily. “Besides, you’ve read the reports on how the White Demon hasn’t been spotted or sensed in the vicinity for months. Our spies say he shows up in the capital for a week every month, but he seems to be untraceable for the rest of the time. Either way, without him there, the Senju are already down one of their strongest soldiers. The Uzumaki would only even out the balance at best.”
“Alright,” Madara assents after a long moment of contemplation. He is never too keen to lead an attack against the Senju, but it is also true that leaving things be any longer will either result in discontent from his own clan or possibly an attack they will not be able to withstand from the Senju and their new allies. In such a position, the choice is clear to Madara. He may long for his childhood dream of peace, but he will not let his clan pay the price for his hopeless fantasies. The reality is that they are at war with the Senju and, with the endless hatred and bloodshed between them, peace will never truly be an option for them. For him. Madara has to do what he can to ensure the Uchiha survive and succeed. “Let’s observe for now while we make preparations.”
“Yes, Madara-sama.”