Kindling

The complex was much the same as it had been when Madara left six years ago, only more patchwork and showing clear signs of a worryingly large amount of repairs (how often had they taken damage here in the base itself?), it was so obvious how badly they needed the infusion of Uzumaki wealth- and no, Madara hadn’t made the extra effort to bring Mito here as a sort of gift to Tobirama, he hadn’t- and Madara could only hope that Hashirama’s charm and the dogged persistence of the Senju-Uchiha forces would help her decide that they were worth it (the fact that the Konoha forces had the lion’s share of the ZETSU kill count in the entirety of Fire country- of all the the five countries- and sat right on the edge of the moon gate somehow didn’t mean that they should get more funding than other bases, or even as much as some other bases apparently). Madara hesitated at the door of the command room, looking into room that had changed everything for him (“Madara! Get your ass in the Susanoo! You’re on point with the Hiraishin, both of you get moving” running, glancing at red eyes with a wild grin- living on the edge of life and the rush of battle and the bitter taste of blood “Tobirama-“ “Hello Madara” “… are you ok?” a pause “I – I will be I think” “It wasn’t your fault” “I was supposed to be watching his back Madara!” “And sometimes shit happens!!” stepping up behind a thin form and wantingto wrap his arms around the pale figure), the room that had shaped everything that had happened since (he spoke before the shadow at the door could “The Naka tablet doesn’t have anything about it.” movement and warmth at his shoulder “You finished decoding it then?” “Yes” ”Not anything?” he shrugged listlessly “Enough to know it would help” he hesitated, and a hand landed on his shoulder “my father…” “You have always missed Izuna” “I know, but-“ and then sirens blaring and their conversation was lost in the rush of battle and the Tsukuyomi drop he never forgot) as if on cue sirens exploded filing the metal corridor with bouncing sounds and light; fuck, Madara had forgotten how disorienting that was.

On autopilot Madara darted forward, booting up the complicated command console and swearing when the lights flickered and glitched slowly off and on; he hesitated a little when he came up on a new machine at the front and center right in front of the screens, it looked like a strange reclining chair enclosed in a glass coffin and covered in wires and tubes like some strange flayed nervous system. Ok, he had no idea what to do with that, best to just leave it alone. Just as Madara got the last console running Hashirama burst into the room in a flurry of hair and robes, a pale faced Mito and other personal darting into the room behind him- Madara recognized a few of them, but not all-; Hashirama looked at the glowing screens and his shoulders dropped a little in relief “Thank you Madara” he nodded and walked to his old friends side “Is there anything I can-“ but his words were cut off by a flurry of movement at the door as, as Tobirama came in, straight backed and tall and strange.

Tobirama strode across the room with focused steps ignoring the subtle way people stepped back from him as he did- he looked odd, too cold and stern and tired- all but the young teen with the Uchiha look behind him. “Tobira-“ “Not now brother” Tobirama said coolly; reaching to his collar and pulling off his loose kimono robe as he stopped at the coffin, intoned “Edo Tensei” and the strange thing opened with a creaking whoosh and a hiss, he dropped the robe into the teen’s arms and (shit, he, wow, he looked, wow, that suit showed off a lot of skin) the suit underneath it left his arms and sides (even the sides of his legs, he must have gotten more tattoos- focus) bare as he stepped into the coffin. Madara hesitated and then stepped forward as Hashirama was yelling for pilots that Madara only knew as children and Tobirama sat down in the strange reclining chair; Madara knew the second that the albino saw him when cool red eyes went wide and flooded with emotion, Madara smiled and thumped his fist to his chest- he might not know what was going on with that machine but he knew danger when he saw it and their old good luck symbol was all there was time for- and Tobirama’s face softened. His eyes remained fastened on Madara’s face even as he lay back and the coffin shut, even as the wires writhed and twisted around him he watched Madara, he watched Madara with slightly desperate eyes right up until the thing hissed as wires like snakes twined around him and slid under his skin, his back arched in pain and his eyes slid closed and Madara felt strangely as though he was losing Tobirama in a way he hadn’t on that rooftop six years ago.