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The festivities were in full swing when Hashirama waved him over.
"Congratulations."
The friendly pat on the back was meant lighthearted but nearly knocked Madara over.
"Come, drink with me."
Hashirama's eyes were hopeful.
Had they ever been anything else?
Madara tried to forget if that'd ever been so.
He sat, grumbling and scowling but he sat.
He hadn't made more than a toast to his husband's honor with anyone else.
"He's energetic," Hashirama commented idly while they watched Naruto talk to his friends with excited, exaggerated motions.
"Hm. You don't have a leg to stand on in that race."
Over the crowd, his descendant was staring back, eyes fathomless.
They watched in silence how the boy made his way over.
"Have a drink, Sasuke-kun," Hashirama said after the small awkward pause when Sasuke stopped in front of them.
In front of Madara.
"If you hurt him, you're dead."
He stalked off without waiting.
Madara didn't much care about the, quite laughable threat, but approved of the boy's dedication to his teammate.
He took a sip from his alcohol.
Hashirama made a thoughtful noise.
"Do you think–"
"No."
"But–"
"Stop right there. I don't want to hear it."
Hashirama sighed seep and soulfelt, comically dejected.
Madara had grown largely immune to his melodramatic antics and ignored him.
Naruto chose this moment to return and Madara was doubly glad to see him.
Something must have shown on his face because Naruto's smile turned soft.
"Hey, I wanted you to meet someone."
He tugged Madara up and away from Hashirama who made a wounded sound behind them.
Madara very explicitly didn't care about him.
Making weird implications about his new husband!
Really.
He was sure they were just teammates.
Madara ignored the knowledge that he and Hashirama could also be called 'just friends' and let Naruto drag him away without resistance.
They came to stand in front of a man of average height, low chakra, and no clan association Madara was immediately aware of.
"This is Iruka-sensei," Naruto told him proudly in a way that made Madara re-evaluate at once.
"I'm pleased to meet you, sensei," he said with enough respect in his bow that the other man blushed.
"That's–" He waved hastily but eventually sighed.
No need to be so formal, Madara-san. At least not towards me.
"You're… important to Naruto, right? So it matters."
Madara instinctively shifted into a more intimidating stance.
Iruka-sensei tensed briefly.
He didn't back down though and kept looking right into Madara's eyes.
Not many would be so bold, even if he didn't have the Sharingan activated right now.
Even if he hadn't been so obviously dear to his husband, Madara would have been sure to keep an eye on him.
"I just wanted to congratulate you two. And… I hope you continue to make Naruto happy."
The tone was warm enough but the undercurrent was equally clear.
Madara smiled, a bit crooked.
"As I said, I am pleased to have met you."
Naruto seemed delighted they got along so well and regaled Madara with a brief history of how they knew each other.
"–and then Iruka-sensei threw himself into the way."
Naruto frowned.
"It wasn't quite as dramatic."
Iruka-sensei rubbed his scar, the man visibly flustered at the tale.
"It was!" Naruto turned his terrifyingly wide blue eyes on Madara.
He felt his face do that thing again and noticed Iruka-sensei shift minutely but everything else kind of faded away from his mind while looking into Naruto's eyes.
"He… he said we are like family, you know?" Naruto's voice got smaller and softer and he wouldn't look at Madara for a few seconds.
(For an eternity.)
"Then we are," Madara said, gripping Naruto's shoulders, suddenly desperate to have him look back again.
He must have said the right thing because Naruto beamed at him and threw himself into Madara's arms near violently.
Madara's arms came up on instinct, still slightly unused to so much warmth so close but unwilling to let his husband go just yet.
Beside them, Iruka-sensei cleared his throat politely.
"I'm glad you are so happy together," he said when they both turned to look at him.
His eyes were still warm yet far gentler now.
Madara believed him.
"Thank you, Iruka-sensei!"
Naruto was still so exuberant, he mused watching Naruto as he threw himself into his sensei more than getting caught.
It was endearing, in a way.
After that, Naruto dragged him through the whole room to meet this or that person he'd saved helped, or made friends with.
It warmed Madara's heart to see so many people care for Naruto but the whole thing was exhausting.
In the end, he was glad to sink down beside Hashirama once more for a last drink while Naruto made his goodbyes.
"He will be good for you," Hashirama said between drinks.
"Hm. He already is."
Normally he wouldn't be caught dead saying something so foolish but the celebration had been long and Madara was tired.
And it was true. Without Naruto's interference, he wouldn't be here, wouldn't be happy and alive once more.
"He is just that good," he said quietly.
Maybe he had drunk a bit too much.
Beside him, Hashirama chuckled, warm and deep
His hand was firm on Madara's shoulder, squeezing, then gone.
"I'm glad you're happy, Madara." Hashirama's eyes crinkled over his smile.
Madara watched Naruto slowly make his way back to him.
"So am I."
His face did that thing again.
Madara was barely embarrassed anymore.
Naruto was a good reason to forget about his pride.
He tugged Naruto down beside him and leaned close for a kiss.
Naruto crinkled his nose but laughed.
"You smell like sake, Madara."
"Maybe."
Oh Sage, he was drunk.
Naruto laughed again but it was wholehearted joy.
His eyes were so blue.
Madara must eventually have dozed off because he was only dimly aware of voices, of the feeling of being moved, and then carried.
He woke briefly and barely in their bedroom where Naruto got them out of the wedding robes before they fell asleep together.
The next morning greeted him with a murderous hangover and the wish to take revenge on Hashirama.
Hashirama, awful friend that he was, never had as much as a minor headache after drinking Madara under the table.
"Don't kill him. Just go and spar a bit," Naruto told him cheerfully. "I'm going to spar with Sasuke later."
Madara graciously decided not to go and end Hashirama but instead strategically recover at home for the moment.
(He wasn't sulking. That would be immature. He was nearly ninety and far too mature for that.)
Naruto abandoned him to his other teammate's tender mercies while he went to have fun with Sasuke.
"I can't believe you," the Haruno girl said, sounding suspiciously like Tobirama. "You're sulking! He married you, you idiot!"
Madara bared his teeth at her and absolutely didn't sulk for the rest of the day.
Naruto came back after that spar, no sooner. But he also kissed Madara in welcome and didn't go anywhere else.
They spent a while lounging in bed where Madara unsuccessfully tried to be upset and Naruto drew nonsensical patterns on his skin until they made out.
It could have been far worse, Madara acknowledged.
He still insisted they go traveling for their honeymoon.
Unfortunately, Naruto decided to visit his good friend the Kazekage.
It was a very long, rather awkward honeymoon.
Who knew they could run into that many people who had a past (and their eyes on) Naruto?
It nearly made him paranoid.
Madara later tried to gather intel if it had been a sabotage attempt on their marriage but the evidence was scarce or inconclusive.
Maybe he was going too far (or crazy; again).
He watched Sasuke for a reaction but gave up on it after a week.
There was none.
The conclusion he came to was that it was merely the effect of Naruto's natural charisma.
Which was almost more frightening.
But, to be fair, he couldn't fault people for loving Naruto.
Madara could only thank every god that he was the one Naruto had chosen.
(Deep down he knew he didn't deserve Naruto but he wasn't selfless enough to let him go.)
They were happy.
Madara took that as the gift it was.