Chapter Text
Yoruichi was in the past a messenger between her sister Inori and Inori’s boyfriend, Aoshi, which made it easy to lure Aoshi outside of the clan’s grounds under a false pretense of another clandestine date. They were always happening outside of the clan’s compound, because Inori wanted to keep it a secret from their authoritative father. Aoshi agreed to the meeting.
Yoruichi decided it must look like an accident. She didn’t want Inori to be suspicious. She needed to do it carefully, so the sensors wouldn’t notice. She placed crystals charged with her own chakra into her room as a red herring. This way, she would have alibis.
Another problem was that Aoshi wasn’t weak. And she didn’t want her body to bear any bruises after their fight that could reliably reveal the truth in an instant. So, she used her crystal form that enhanced her chakra sensitivity to track a chakra of a group of Uchihas. All she had to do then was to make Aoshi and the Uchihas cross paths. She had no idea how big the group was, or how strong they were. There was a chance she would get killed, but she was willing to take the rebellious risk. She placed crystals with a weak Senju chakra on the path, so the Uchiha group would track the chakra and follow its trail, because the Senju chakra within the crystals made it seem like there was a weak Senju, easy sacrifice, close.
And at the end of the trail was no other than Aoshi. Unprepared, surprised, waiting for his illicit lover.
The battle ended quickly. Aoshi fell in a fight with the group of Uchihas. He was lucky enough to take one cursed Uchiha with him, but the eighteen years old boy didn’t stand a chance against the whole group.
Unfortunately, the Senju sensors noticed the nearby Uchiha chakra and sent a group of their shinobis out. They catched the remaining Uchihas and killed them. By that time, Yoruichi was gone. The information about Aoshi’s death came from the mouths of people who found him, and the news spread around.
“Uchihas, the dirty dogs, killed him. He was brave, but there were more of them,” the lips of scandalmongers said. But also, “what was the fool doing so far from the compound?” “It was probably his fault.” “He is a son of a traitor, maybe he was ready to betray the clan by collaborating with Uchihas.” So many shocking assumptions.
People didn’t care that much personally. Aoshi was young and problematic and this wasn’t the first time he went out without a permit. The hatred for Uchihas connected the whole clan, so no one questioned Aoshi’s cause of death. The Uchihas, so close to their compound, were much bigger problem than another dead kid. Now, everyone will have to be more careful and the guards will be reinforced.
The only people who knew the truth was Yoruichi and her father. It caused the girl ache of worries. She hated how much she had hurt Inori, and also the fact that the traitor was her.
***
Toka heard about Hashirama’s punishment from her mother. Hashirama and Tobirama were the closest people Toka had to brothers and her heart broke for Hashirama. He was just misunderstood, and she knew that very well. Just like her genjutsu that was never taken seriously.
“I need to go to train,” Toka said to Hatsumomo, her mother. Her mother was a tall, lanky woman with long, black hair, with a gaze that could kill. She was Butsuma’s sister, after all. She wore glasses, which only highlighted her seriousness. Toka couldn’t remember the last time her mother smiled, if ever. She just looked around, judging everyone around her.
“Are you sure you don’t need anyone’s help?” Hatsumomo asked.
“No, mother,” Toka answered.
“It’s good you started to eat. You were starting to look thin... Almost. Now you look thick again,” Hatsumomo expressed her feelings. The truth was, Toka stopped eating after her brother died. She was too stressed to swallow any food. Just recently, her appetite started to come back.
“Thank you,” Toka rolled her eyes. Backhanded compliments were Hatsumomo’s specialty. Thanks to that, Toka always felt bad. “It’s the food we are getting recently,” Toka said ironically.
“It’s MY cooking, Toka!” Hatsumomo reminded her daughter. She was a force not to be reckoned with, but kind under the surface. “Just don’t meet the same fate as Aoshi.”
“I’m stronger than him!” Toka defended herself.
“He had no future here anyway. And he wasn’t even pretty. Do you think he was pretty?” Hatsumomo raised an eyebrow, scanning her daughter’s reaction.
Toka left through the door. “Have a nice day,” was the last sound before she left. She went straight to Tobirama’s house. She knocked on the door and Tobirama came outside.
“Good morning, Toka!” Tobirama greeted her.
“Have you heard the news?” Toka asked.
“About Aoshi’s death? Of course,” Tobirama looked around.
“Terrible. I talked to him just a few days ago.”
“I just feel like there must be more to it.. Why would Uchihas be so close?” Tobirama looked suspicious.
“They probably got lost. Bad place, bad time,” Toka nodded. Tobirama was always careful and paranoid.
“We should get Hashirama,” Tobirama exclaimed and started to walk down the sandy path.
“Is he still in the shed?” Toka sighed.
“Yes. I hope he is alright. We will accompany him to the clan council meeting, where he will… Recite a poem,” Tobirama rolled his red eyes.
“That sounds like a tragedy,” Toka smirked.
“I hope they won’t lock him up again after he’s done with it.”
“They might publicly execute him if he will recite anything he composed,” Toka smirked. She believed Hashirama’s bad poetry skills would just offend the council.
As they approached the wooden shed, a guard unlocked the doors and Tobirama hastily opened them.
“Hashirama!” Toka exclaimed, handing Hashirama a few dumplings she had in her wicker basket.
“Hello,” Hashirama scratched his temples and laughed like nothing was happening. He didn’t want to show his weakness, just like his father teached him.
“Are you alright?” Tobirama folded arms on his chest.
“Of course, you don’t have to be worried!” Hashirama said boldly, smiling at their surroundings.
“Did you write the poem, anija?” Tobirama asked and Toka chuckled.
“Of course, I did write it, it was part of my punishment, Tobirama.” Hashirama looked at his brother and took a deep breath. “I will recite it in front of the board!” Hashirama raised his hands to the air.
“Hashirama, I have bad news for you,” Toka started to say. “Aoshi was killed by a feral group of the members of the Uchiha clan.
Hashirama parted his lips and let out a low sigh. “Oh no,” he breathed out and shook his head. This war was a slaughterhouse. And they were cattle. The death was hanging over their compound like a chandelier, never leaving them. “If there wasn’t a war yet, these clans would create one,” Hashirama distorted his mouth in disgust.
“You shouldn’t distract yourself before presenting your… Poem,” Tobirama sighed. “Anija, I wrote a poem you can recite. I know you probably don’t have anything.”
“I do, Tobirama! I can speak, words are my specialty!” Hashirama reminded his brother, almost insulted that his younger brother assumes he can’t write poetry.
Hashirama entered the board meeting. All eyes were on him, once again. None of these people understood poetry, none of them were knowledgeable in literature. They were giant warriors. Not artists or art critics.
Butsuma looked annoyed by having to listen to some stupid poem his foolish son wrote. It seemed like a joke played on his clan’s serious meeting. Poem. What were they good for? According to Butsuma, poem was usually a stupid statement said in a rhyme which masked the silliness of its meaning. Pathetic.
“Hashirama, tell us the poem!” said Genbu, the oldest member of the clan.
Hashirama looked at them and smiled widely
“Whatever you do,
sticks, swords, stones or all your words,
you won’t destroy me.”
Hashirama recited.
“What?” Butsuma said after a few seconds of silence. “And?”
“It lacks the rhyme,” Sadojima pointed out. “It’s just a random sentence or two!”
“It’s a haiku!” Hashirama explained quickly with a smile.
“Right! It’s a haiku!” Genbu agreed and clapped with a big smile.
“It’s a Haiku,” Tobirama repeated in a relief. Of course, his brother wouldn’t create a normal poem. He always needed to be extra.
***
Hashirama held a white chrysanthemum in his hand and laid it on the floor of Ryuujin’s veranda. The unpleasant elegiac news shifted his mood down. He was used to people dying, it was like this each week, or each month. Every dead person was different, every grief was special. And what made him sorrowful about Aoshi’s death was that… No one really cared. Besides the one chrysanthemum he brought, there was only one bloom on the porch, already withered, completely dry. Ryuujin, Aoshi’s father, didn’t even bother to pick it up. Aoshi didn’t have a funeral. He was deliberately thrown into a hole in the ground and buried. It wasn’t a graveyard anymore; it was a burial ground. It seemed like not a single tear dropped for Aoshi’s soul. That’s why Hashirama buried his face into his palm, let a few sobs escape his mouth and a few tears leave his eyes. Hashirama didn’t know Aoshi well, but the thought that no one else cared was like an invisible palm pressing into his chest. That was the reason he decided to grieve Aoshi for the whole clan.
The oldest son of Butsuma looked around to make sure no one was lurking. He put his palms together and used his to show the respect to Aoshi.
The floor started to shake a little. From the wooden floor and from the ground around started to sprout white chrysanthemums that grew towards the sun, opening their white fructiferous hats to the light. Then Hashirama nodded his head and looked at the door of Ryuujin’s house with a smirk. He quickly turned around, preparing to leave the place with no witnesses.
Just as Hashirama turned around, he noticed that there was Yoruichi standing behind him, like a quiet ghost. The tasks father gave Yoruichi were clear – first, kill Aoshi and then get Hashirama to marry her sister Inori and make him think he is the father of her unborn baby. Yoruichi didn’t think it was the best idea, but Sadojima was obsessed with the idea that his grandchild will be the leader of the clan. And Yoruichi needed to stay in her father’s good graces, because he was the only person she had left. Inori didn’t talk to her ever since Yoruichi killed Aoshi. And she couldn’t talk to Omeshirama either, because he was Butsuma’s spy. She was desperate to talk to anyone, but there was only the father. She was hopeless, so she listened to father’s wishes.
Yoruichi noticed Hashirama was grieving for Aoshi. She wondered why him, of all people, is grieving the dead boy. It was good for her that no one cared about Aoshi’s death. She was surprised herself how remorselessly she killed him. It was a tough decision and she wasn’t sure whether it was any good. Perhaps, sometimes there were no good decisions, only bad ones and people need to choose one of the bad ones. And sometimes only the person who understood all the things really knows why the decision is necessary. She wondered if Butsuma faced similar decisions with poor only choices and whether Hashirama will have to one day face them too. It was like she got older since the last Monday. Something broke in her and she was waiting for the moment the truth will come out.
She needed Hashirama to be on her side, therefore she had to pretend to grieve for Aoshi too. “The worst part is that no one cares, right?” she said in a quiet voice with a sad face. She didn’t even need to try hard to look sad, she looked like that by default.
“I’m just very sorry that I didn’t know him that well. No one cares. I know he was one of the many, but because he was the son of Ryuujin who was proclaimed a traitor by my father, no one wants to acknowledge it! But he didn’t do anything bad to anyone! Even Ryuujin should have been forgiven by now, it’s been five years since he tried to hurt my father. This is a tragedy and we all have Aoshi’s blood on our hands!” Hashirama told Yoruichi. The death was their daily bread. If they all were emotional, they wouldn’t be able to fight – and maybe then, there would be peace. But it wasn’t like that in the clan full of sociopaths, psychopaths, crazy minds and flawed human beings. Everyone got used to that, or maybe it was just a natural selection: Who was too emotional died and didn’t procreate and their emotional genes were inherited by no one. That was why there were so many ninjas that felt nothing anymore. They didn’t mind if they killed an adult Uchiha or a child of the Hagoromo clan. And what was worse, they didn’t care if their own children were sacrificed in a fight, because according to them, it was a proof of true parental love. It made Hashirama feel so out of place here, like it wasn’t his home.
The last time he saw Yoruichi was before he was locked up in a shed. Since then, something broke… no, nothing broke in him, he was still talking and he still wanted to change things that were ill, end the war. In the name of Kawarama, Itama and the rest of the dead, including Aoshi. He didn’t hold on to old spites and fights, he threw it all behind, the way adults weren’t able to while he was. And he hoped that it will eventually inspire at least one person who will do the same, and then perhaps the world will become a better place… If only the rest of the clan wasn’t so bitter like and elderly man in a pub.
“Yes,” Yoruichi agreed. All of them had Aoshi’s blood on their hands. Including her, who literally rinsed her hands in Aoshi’s blood – and not only hands, but also her head and her whole body. “Could I talk to you alone? I don’t know who else I can ask for help,” she whispered, carefully calculating the situation. She knew that Hashirama wouldn’t refuse to help anyone. He didn’t like the clan’s situation and if he thinks he’s the only person Yoruichi can confide in, he will feel important. And that will increase her chances for him hearing her out and maybe.. Maybe he will be able to help. Still, she felt sorry for him. He was kind, but a little bit weird and he didn’t deserve this. But if she was to choose between Hashirama and pregnant Inori, the choice was clear. There was no way back. Inori needed to get married and deliver a baby.
“Of course,” Hashirama smiled at his cousin, grabbing her hand, and leading her towards his house. Tobirama was on a mission and Butsuma was.. Gone, as always. He was either with one of his concubines, at work, on mission, or he was drinking with the Senju board. Hashirama walked through the door and Yoruichi followed him to the living room. It was austere. There were bookshelves, ancient vases, and old empty bottles of sake. In the center was a white carpet with a low table, mats for sitting and a couch. “Do you need something? Is this about Houji-sama? It’s alright, you couldn’t do anything about it,” Hashirama grinned.
“It’s not about Houji-sama,” Yoruichi said quickly. “It’s about my dear sister Inori.”
“Yes?” Hashirama asked. He always considered Inori beautiful, smart, and powerful. She was everything a husband needed in a wife and more.
“My father had an idea. He wants to ask you if you will marry her… Soon,” Yoruichi smiled as innocently as she could. She needed Hashirama to jump on the idea and marry Inori as soon as possible.
“Inori? No! I can’t do that to the beautiful Inori, she’s my cousin. She deserves love, not to get married for the status. I would ruin her life,” Hashirama said to Yoruichi.
“Perhaps she would learn to love you and you would learn to love her, in time,” she looked at Hashirama. She didn’t want to show how desperate she was.
“No, I have to refuse this offer, I can’t hurt your sister like that,” Hashirama was firm with his decision.
“She can cook! She would take care of you, you would be able to leave this house... Isn’t that what you want?” Yoruichi asked.
“Not at her expense,” Hashirama shook his head.
“She wants you, Hashirama...” Yoruichi looked at Hashirama secretively.
“She’s not my type, Yoruichi,” Hashirama explained. “And I’m not hers.”
“Hashirama, she…” Yoruichi decided to change the plan. She needed Hashirama to help.
“What is it? Why do you sound like you’re worrying about Inori so much?” Hashirama placed his index finger on his lips in wonder.
“I... Hashirama, please, reconsider marrying her!”
“Why do you need me to marry her so much, cousin?” Hashirama looked curious.
“Because,” she needed a new plan. Hashirama would probably be keener to help if she told him the truth. “She is pregnant, Hashirama! And the father of the baby is dead!” Yoruichi screeched and immersed her face into her palms, so she would look sadder.
“What? I-Inori? Are you sure?” Hashirama looked confused. Inori was the best-behaved of all his cousins. She wouldn’t do such a monstrous mistake. She wouldn’t get pregnant.
“Yes, Hashirama! And we need to find a husband before her reputation is destroyed by having a baby without a marriage, without a man. And my good reputation will be gone too, we all will be pariahs!” Yoruichi looked into Hashirama’s eyes. “She will never find another husband with a baby… And everyone will say she is a whore for sleeping with him before marriage.”
“What happened to the father?” Hashirama asked.
“It was Aoshi, Hashirama. Inori fell in love with him. And now that he’s dead, she can’t marry him! You’re her only option…”
“Aoshi?” Hashirama seemed shocked. This was worse than he thought. “Wait, you want me to marry her and father a baby?”
“Yes,” Yoruichi hanged her head. “I know it sounds foolish, but you don’t have to make the baby the next leader of the clan! We just need our honor-“
“I can’t be a father, Yoruichi. I’m fifteen years old, I can’t even take care of myself properly,” Hashirama looked scared. He couldn’t even imagine what would Tobirama and his father do if they thought he got anyone pregnant.
“It will destroy my honor,” Yoruichi bowed down in front of Hashirama. “No one will want to marry me or my other sisters. Just because Inori did this one mistake.. My father will kill the baby.”
“I..” Hashirama took a deep breath. “I have an idea on how to save you, Inori, the baby and your sisters’ honors. I will… I will marry you, Yoruichi.”
“Marry me?!” Yoruichi frowned. She didn’t want to get married, Hashirama was weird and she didn’t want to be the wife of the leader. Besides, she didn’t feel pretty or wise enough for such position. “I don’t want to get married.”
“Why don’t you want to get married?” Hashirama looked at her in surprise. In his mind, every lady wanted to get married.
“It’s none of your business, Hashirama. When a lady says she doesn’t want to get married, you respect it. Do you understand? Besides, it’s just a type of prostitution,” Yoruichi explained to her cousin.
“Then, maybe we both could say it now. And we easily won’t do it in the future. I will be the leader of the clan, so no one will dare to-“Hashirama didn’t get to finish his sentence.
“If you will be the clan leader. Hashirama, people are against you, they don’t want you to become the leader,” Yoruichi raised her finger. “Inori could help you with your honor…”
“I’m still the heir and this promise stands!” Hashirama explained. “I just want to help you and your siblings.”
“Hashirama, I’m not sure...” Yoruichi gave Hashirama a soft look.
“You’re not sure about what?” Hashirama asked.
“Fine,” Yourichi said and accepted Hashirama’s proposal. It was a fragile situation and she wasn’t sure if it will be enough for her father.
***
When Tobirama returned from his mission, Hashirama told him about pregnant Inori and her dead boyfriend who was also a father of ther child. Tobirama was floored after finding out the big secret. And if it wasn’t enough for his nerves, it was getting worse: The father of the child was Aoshi, which caused him yet another shock. Aoshi did have a certain something that attracted ladies when he was alive. Maybe it was the stigma of a bad guy he had that worked like an aphrodisiac. Tobirama always considered him stupid, but what did the ladies care? Aoshi proved himself stupid once again when he ran into the Uchiha group and died. Unless...
Tobirama had an idea of how the situation happened. Inori was Sadojima’s favorite daughter, she was the perfect rose in his garden. Until Aoshi came and pollinated the bloom and crumpled its petals. It must have made Sadojima angry. Was it insane to think Sadojima had something to do with Aoshi’s death? It wouldn’t be the first time a murderous revenge inside of the Senju clan was committed, it has happened before.
Perhaps it was desperation that made Sadojima rely on Hashirama, nephew Sadojima generally despised, which made Tobirama angry. Their house was quaking from his loud screams, because Tobirama hated even Hashirama’s proposal marrying Yoruichi.
So, in the first light of morning the next day, he went to visit Sadojima’s house. He didn’t want to talk to him, he still respected him enough, he wanted to talk to Yoruichi. She was Sadojima’s right hand. It was her fault, just as her father’s!
Yoruichi felt terrible. Never has she questioned her father, but last week this thing has changed. She couldn’t identify with her father’s choice. Aoshi was death. She couldn’t help but think her father didn’t think she situation through and he acted according to his emotions and out of anger. Could Sadojima really make a mistake? And was she supposed to betray him and tell the truth?
She opened the door for Tobirama, greeted him and walked him to their empty dining room. From the look on his face, she didn’t expect pleasant conversation.
“Does your mother know?” Tobirama asked without disclosing details.
“No, mother doesn’t know,” Inori answered, looking into Tobirama’s red eyes like she saw them for the first time in her life. Suddenly he felt like a stranger, just like the rest of them.
Tobirama knew the lies in the clan well. From his perspective, the only honest people there were Butsuma and Hashirama, each in their different ways. Hashirama blindly defended his principles. Butsuma, on the other hand, had no remorse, unable to like anyone and he had no reason to pretend like he cared. Sadojima was different from Butsuma, he was more emotional, and he honestly cared for his family.
“How could you?!” Tobirama raised his voice, but not enough, because Yoruichi’s dying mother was near. “How dare you come to our house, trying to drag Hashirama into your family issues?! What were you thinking?! What was your father thinking?! Because he’s unable to protect his daughter, my family is supposed to cure your reputation?! How dare you do that, your father despises my brother, acts like he is some serious illness and as soon as Inori stumbles and falls, he’s suddenly good enough?!”
Yoruichi couldn’t speak back to Tobirama and she was just looking at Tobirama while he was firing at her with his words.
“Stupid girl, stupid, stupid! Easily manipulated girl! Answer me, don’t look at me so foolishly!” he uttered. This was only a start. It was going to get much, much worse. The truth was, he couldn’t scream at Sadojima and Yoruichi was much easier target.
“My father had no idea. It was my mistake; I didn’t think straight. I was so scared he is going to kill her. I didn’t realize how unfortunate it was for Hashirama. I’m so sorry,” Yoruichi said while looking to the ground, trying to pretend that she is just stupid. She was often perceived as the useless one. So she thought it was a good idea to play this card again.
“You’re a foolish dunce if you thought you can get away with it!” he barks so he wouldn’t be quiet for so long. Yoruichi was daft and Sadojima made her commit a murder. Tobirama didn’t trust her. According to his gut feeling, intelligence, and his sensing abilities, she was the murderer who killed her sister’s lover. Everything about Yoruichi screamed dishonesty. He wasn’t going to show his cards and tell her he knows.
“I’m really sorry, Tobirama- “
“No! You went after my brother’s sense of justice, for his saviour nature to save you, but-“ Tobirama pointed his finger at her like he was at a court. “But it was you who this clan needs to be saved from! Since today, I don’t want you to get close to our house or to Hashirama! You will not use my brother, you treacherous witch!” Tobirama cried out.
“I don’t think I will want to get close to your house… Or to Hashirama.” Yoruichi nodded. She was the weak link in Sadojima’s plan. She and her father were both tangled in this crime. The calmness suddenly returned to her face. “You are right. I will accept any punishment...”
Tobirama left with that. And Yoruichi was left all alone.