Kindling

Tobirama shivered in the night air the coolness of it not touching him at all in comparison to the ache of the anger seeping in from the other side of the Senju compound walls; how had this happened (foolish, he knew how this had happened and it was his fault), how had his status as a Guide and a powerful one shattered his brother’s dream so deeply? He had known it would but he had allowed his brother to convince him and- like an idiot- he had allowed himself to begin to hope, begin to think that maybe everything would be ok, that maybe Mito could help enough, that maybe in time Madara would think better of him and Tobirama would be able to – well. clearly he was as much a fool as he had always thought he was; it had only been a week since his Guide status had come out and already the village was fracturing, falling apart under their feet not matter what they tried (the people doubted Hashirama now, as if this wasn’t all because of him and his dream, as if they didn’t owe him everything, but no, what if the White Demon had him in thrall?). Noise at the door almost convinced him to turn as Hashirama spilled out into the garden “Tobi? What are you doing?! Taking a mission-“ “Calm down Hashi, I just – maybe getting me out of the village will help. If I’m gone long enough then they will see I can’t have you in thrall and maybe you’ll have a chance to get this under control” in any other time Hashirama would never have listened and Tobirama felt a little bad for taking advantage of his brother’s exhaustion but…this was for the best (Madara- his Sentinel- recoiling from his touch, from his presence) “Very well, you can have the mission little brother” Hashirama whispered, aching hope in his voice (he thought this would work, thought this would help, Tobirama was scum for doing this wasn’t he?).

Tobirama looked at the men before him, they were strong, very strong; the gold and silver brothers were a terrible foe on any day and Tobirama was already tired after completing the delivery mission for the Daimyo. But he had a secret weapon and he would not suffer this enemy to live and hurt his people later, not when they spoke of Hashirama, not when they spoke of Madara (of trapping him with a guide the other new village was grooming, of forcing him into a bond he didn’t want or consent to- like the one with Tobirama); it was easy with a threat to his Sentinel to call up the power of a Guide in full anger to let his Presence wash out of him and roll over the men that would hurt those dearest to him. He would not survive this, but that was never the plan- he had known form the reports that they were in this area- all he had to do was bring them down with him.

Hashirama looked out the window again and Touka frowned a little “What’s wrong?” she asked gruffly, he chewed at his lip for a moment  “I – Tobirama had been gone for such a long time” he whispered and Touka frowned “Has it been to long? Is he overdue?” Hashirama shook his head, “Not yet but…there was something when he left and I just – he offered to leave you remember, and I – I’m worried” he whispered and Touka pressed her lips together tightly, she did remember Hashirama sobbing into her shoulder after Tobirama offered that, remembered Tobirama looking at her with tired eyes remembered that all too well. She looked out the window at the village that she…well, she didn’t love it, couldn’t love it when she had seen what they would do to her little cousin when Sarutobi got his claws into the rumor mill. Though, she smirked a little, things would be different when he came back (he had to come back) after she and the Senju that know what Tobirama was got their fingers in the rumor mill; after all it was easy to start poking holes in the things people were saying about Tobirama when he had had so long to do what they said he had done and had never chosen to do so, after he had been gone for long enough that there was just no way he had Hashirama- or anyone else- under thrall, after he had never given any sign he was a Guide even when it would have helped him, after she started digging up dirt on Sarutobi’s relationships with Guides in the past (and oh was there dirt) and pointed out why he might speak badly of them. The only question was if she was going to get the Yamanaka involved.

“He’ll come back” she told Hashirama (he had too) “and when he does the village will be better, we’re already making progress with that Hashi and Madara will back us up if you let me tell him why he’s starting to have more micro zones, especially if the Yamanaka start talking; you know he’s not what a normal spur-broken Guide is and if we tell them they might know what he is fighting against, they won’t think ill of him if they know, you just have to let me tell people if you want him safe” Hashirama blew out a harsh breath tapping his fingers on the desk sharply. Touka knew that he didn’t want to break Tobirama’s confidence or making things worse for him, didn’t want to make his brother face the sort of questions that this might encourage but at this point did it even matter? He already couldn’t leave the Senju compound by the time he left without crumpling under the strength of the miasma of bitter distrust that filled Konoha. “Alright” Hashirama said quietly “alright, tell whoever you needed to. Better he resent me than he die thinking it is better for us.”

Madara frowned darkly at Izuna, seething with anger at the stubborn look on his face “A rumor Izu, a rumor, that’s all. That’s all the proof you have that the Senju is my Guide” Izuna snorted roughly “Yeah, a rumor, and you aren’t zoning at least twice as bad since he left. As if he wasn’t he only Guide strong enough to match you, as if he wasn’t the only Guide that had never tried to pull you, or thrall you, or anything. Madara, think, where else will you find someone like this and I know that you think he’s attractive so that’s not the problem” Madara bared his teeth at his brother “I don’t want a Guide” he hissed and Izuna laughed, “Yeah? Would you say that to his face? Because you might have to. Touka, yes Touka Senju, told me that he found you in a zone years ago and dragged you out of it, told me that he formed a bond with you then and still walked away because he didn’t want to do that to you. Told me he has been dragging you out of zones since we formed he village. So when he comes back I fully intend to bring him here to you and you’ll have to tell him that to his face, tell him that you don’t want him even after everything he has done for you” Madara stared, stunned into silence, Tobirama had, Tobirama was the one that had pulled Madara out of those zones? Tobirama was the one that had – “I thought you hated him Izuna, I -  Sarutobi said” Madara stuttered, Izuna threw up his hands with an angry sound “Yeah, that was before I knew that he had been helping you like this! I thought you were smarter than to listen to men like Sarutobi. When did you let fear control you Madara?” Madara looked away, Izuna was…right, Madara – Madara closed his eyes and imagined Tobirama standing before him knowing what he knew now, and – oh. shit. fuck, the only thing he could imagine doing  was dragging his Guide into his arms and trying to make it up to him for the time he pulled back when he saw the other man, trying to make up to him the way he had been treated since Sarutobi had started “I need my Guide” he whispered “I need to – I have to make it up to him Izu”.

Izuna sighed and tucked himself closer to Madara’s side, leaning heavily against his brothers side and Madara was so grateful for his brother; Tobirama was late, overdue for his return date and he could feel the tension in the village, the way that it was torn between those that would force the Guide out and those that wanted him back to tuck him into the heart of the village and keep him there until they could make him safe (it was the special providence of Guides, those that were loved instead of feared were held more dear than anything in the world by their community), the Uchiha and Senju more than any other (it was strange to feel both clan so closely aligned in this, the first time he could remember seeing the two founding clans talking quietly as they plotted ways to get help Tobirama and Madara and their star crossed love- Madara didn’t even care how the story was being told, at this point he just wanted Tobirama back). Madara shivered as his memory wandered- as it did so often now- the day after Tobirama was supposed to be back, wandered to seeing a too thin, scarred snow leopard with chains on its neck and ankles appear before him looking at him with large tired red eyes before fading into nothing and leaving a broken ache in Madara’s chest like it had been filled with broken glass. “Izuna” Madara heard Touka speak from far anyway “how is he?” “I don’t know, something happened yesterday and he’s – he’s ben in and out ever since” Izuna replied and Touka made a sound like a hard sob; wait, she had been part of those sent out to find Tobirama hadn’t she? “What happened?” he asked roughly. Touka’s jaw was tight and her eyes were red and swollen “He, he didn’t even try to run. He never even tried to get away” she said brokenly “I should have known, Hashirama knew – he was so convinced we would be better without him, kept offering to banish himself and I – I should have gone after him sooner” “Touka” Izuna said “what happened?” but the ground was already falling out from under Madara and he knew what she would say before she did “He’s dead”