Chapter Text
Movement at the corner of Tobirama’s eye immediately set the shinobi on edge. Silently he unshed his katana und spread his senses across the battlefield. It was the last battle of the year, the season teetering on winter. No snow has fallen yet but the winds were biting and promised a harsh winter. Even now Tobirama could see his breath and knew that the earth beneath his feet was frozen. The Uchiha had retreated first, ran like the cowards they were, after they provoked the battle near the Senju border. Their reasoning was yet to be discovered, but Tobirama had no doubt in his mind that it would be something baseless.
The fight was short, but even then, they had lost good men. Hashirama had taken to lead their soldiers back to their settlement with Tobirama at the back, meant to cover the rear of the formation. Before following, he stopped for one moment, to take one last look across the battlefield. Letting his eyes wander over the corpses of their soldiers littering the earth.
In theory, this was his chance to collect a few examples of their dreadful eyes for his research, but the eyes needed to be collected and either put into a preserving liquid or a scroll that froze them completely. He currently carried neither. The message of the border disturbance had come too quickly, and, in their rush, he had only grabbed his weapons. He would need to visit the battlefield later in hopes of the Uchiha abandoning their dead.
Only a few times he had gotten lucky, but the eyes had been of the weaker Sharingan variety. His highest being only two tomoe and his hands itched to find one of the stronger ones. The Uchiha were trained to die with their ordinary black eyes, switching them back was usually the last move they did before death took them. They knew that an instant death with an activated Sharingan made it accessible.
Tobirama was convinced that the eyes could be triggered into a State of Sharingan even outside the body of the host, but he had not found a way yet. The nerve was simply too delicate and to easily damaged. He needed to be lucky and find an already activated Sharingan to continue his research, but the Uchiha were consistent in burning their dead, careful to keep their secrets.
Now the movement had made him wary, it occurred only mere moments after the Senju had left the field, too soon for Uchiha to have returned. Still, he was prepared for a fight. But his senses told him only of a weak Chakra signature, it might perhaps be a survivor, even if that was highly unlikely. Slowly he followed the Chakra and then came closer.
There, between the bodies and weapons laid a young Uchiha woman. The word woman seemed generous, she was nothing more than a skinny girl, but old enough to stand on the battlefield. She was clearly dead, a kunai wedged between her rips, nearly to the hilt. And there, beside the kunai, was a small child gripping into the fabric of her clothes, it’s face buried near her face. The tiny body was shaking with quiet sobs.
The sight was so foreign to him that Tobirama accidently misstepped on a fallen blade, and it scrapped against the earth with a quiet sound. The child’s head snapped up at the sudden noise, at Tobirama’s sight it scrambled to its feet, holding up a single kunai that was so dull, Tobirama noticed the state of it from afar. The child was clearly an Uchiha, its clothes dark and not warm enough to be outside during these temperatures. The hair was the typical black color and fell in tiny curls. But most telling were the red eyes, swimming in tears that ran down the child’s cheeks and had a single tomoe frantically spinning.
Tobirama stopped a few feet away when the child saw him, but even from this distance the Senju could not determine if the child was male or female. The facial features were soft and round even if his skin stretched tightly around the chin and cheekbones, showing a lack of proper nutrition. Those damn Uchiha and their androgynous looks. The child was breathing fast, small puffs of white air leaving him with every panicked exhale.
A strange sight indeed. Not the grief the child displayed, Tobirama had experienced enough of his own during and after the endless fights, but he had never seen an Uchiha grieve so freely. It made him almost seem human.
“Don’t – don’t come any closer!”
The voice was small, high and broken but Tobirama determined that it probably belonged to a boy.
“What are you doing here?”
He asked and stepped closer, the boy flinched but did not move away from the corpse.
This close the boy looked even smaller. He wondered briefly, if he was one of the Uchiha soldiers left behind, somehow miraculously alive. He had not seen anyone that young on the battlefield in a long time, but perhaps Madara had grown desperate.
But the clothes looked too casual, the boy’s singular weapon seemed completely dull, and he had not tried to cast any Genjutsu with his Sharingan. No matter how desperate the Uchiha grew, their weapons were always sharp, yearning for more blood to feed them.
The boy looked so young that Tobirama wondered if he knew any jutsu yet or had any control over his chakra.
He wondered if the boy was younger than Itama had been at the time of his death or if he just looked smaller than Itama had. It should not matter. The child held a weapon and was on a battlefield. Tobirama should kill him and reduce the risk of the child growing up to become a threat. His father had taught him early, that there were no children on the battlefield, only enemies.
But his brother, Tobirama did not want to imagine his brother’s reaction if he knew that he even entertained the thought of killing the boy.
The wind picked up, the boy was shaking from the cold or the fear and far away from the Uchiha settlement. He could leave him here. Let the boy grieve and wait for his fellow clan members to find him and perhaps he should, but that would be wasteful. An opportunity like this was not common. Madara had been a friend of Hashirama, if he read his brother right, he could take him hostage and demand supplies or even land from the Uchiha. The boy would be safe, and Madara would need to pay. And if the boy wasn’t worth enough to the Uchiha, they would spread the word of Madara abandoning his own. Madara’s reputation would suffer with his own men and the hiring lords of the Land of Fire. The boy would serve a purpose either way.
Faster than the boy could react, Tobirama moved. The took the kunai from his freezing red hand and tossed it aside, then searched the boy roughly for more weapons, noticing just how thin and worn his clothes were. Then shoved him under his arm and knelt down to cut a piece of cloth from the corpse.
“No! What are you doing? Don’t touch her!”
The boy was squirming and screaming, trying to free himself but Tobirama barely felt it due to his armour and warm clothes. When he had torn a long enough piece of cloth, he grabbed the boy once more and bound it around his eyes. Not for the Sharingan, it was too weak to cause him any harm, but he did not want the boy to know the location of the Senju settlement. He bound the cloth quickly and tightly, making the boy hiss when some of his hair was caught in a knot.
When the boy’s hands immediately reached up to pry it off, the Senju barked.
“Do not move. Keep it on till I say otherwise.”
Even to his own ears he sounded harsh, but his tone was effective as the boy lowered his hands. He did not want to waste more time, so he lifted the boy up and finally moved. Ignoring the fearful whimpers and increasing sobs. Surprisingly, the boy did not try to attack as Tobirama suspected, his small hands stayed fisted into his white fur, where the boy grabbed him in a panic from the sudden uplifting motion he had not expected.
Tobirama moved quickly and efficiently, but not at his fastest pace. The boy’s body would not be able to support itself in such speed. The wind felt even colder then, beating harshly against them. He could hear the tiny clangs that the boy’s teeth made when they met again and again. And the shaking breaths he took from the icy wind.
-
The way back seemed longer than usual and the Senju could feel the exhaustion slowly take hold of him. The days up to the last battle of the year had been filled with the preparations for winter and the nights with his own research and the development of new techniques. Then the hours-long fight against the Uchiha and now he was not only carrying his heavy armour and weapons back but a trembling child as well. The boy was not heavy, but his little weight slowly grew heavier on his arm.
He stopped for a moment to adjust the child and free his tired arm, when suddenly, without the punishing wind, he smelled it. The acidic smell of urine clung to him and the boy. He had not felt the wetness on his gloves or armour and now, with the feeling slowing returning to his numb arm, he could feel the soaked sleeve. It clung to his skin in a disgusting way. A feeling of incredible frustration rose inside of him and he started to regret his tactical decision.
“I cannot believe this…”, he muttered unable to stop himself and jolted the boy roughly once as punishment. The child started to whimper once more and tried to curl up into himself. Tobirama had to supress the urge to roll his eyes.
The rest of the way went by without any more accidents but once he had smelled the stench, it stayed with him. His nose had always been good, better than an ordinary shinobi’s. He desperately desired a hot bath.
At the edge of the settlement stood Hashirama with three other soldiers, clearly waiting for him. His brother only relaxing when he saw him approach from the thicket, his relieved smile turning into a confused frown. Hashirama was still wearing his armour. He must have not returned home to change, rather deciding to wait for his younger brother by the settlement to see how he was faring. His eyes focused on the child in his arms for a long moment, before he looked back up at him.
“Tobirama..uh….who is that?”
The soldiers looked at the boy in disbelief und suspicion each.
“Found him on the battlefield. I thought he would make a good hostage.”
Hashirama’s frown grew deeper at his words. Then he closed his eyes, his hand going to the bridge of his nose.
“Tobirama…that is not right, you cannot just – just take a child!”
The younger Senju kept quiet, there was no guilt or shame inside his eyes. He had seen an opportunity and taken advantage of it.
Tobirama set the boy down but put a hand on his shoulder keeping him in place.
The boy was breathing harshly again, his shoulders slumped down as if to make himself smaller, his head ducked down. His entire boy was shaking at this point.
“You are too soft Anija. We are in a war. The boy is an asset.”
Instead of a bit of gratitude, his brother only seemed to disapprove more and more. His empathy was too great, clouding his judgement as it often did.
“He is a child. Winter is near, how can you-“ His brother stopped himself from arguing further, now crouching down to look at the boy.
“A blindfold? For the Sharingan?”, he asked, a hand hovering in front of the boy’s face.
“Yes, but it is harmless. I did not want him to know the way to the settlement.”
As gently as possible Hashirama pulled the blindfold up, letting the boy see after a while. Watery Sharingan met his warm hazel eyes and when the boy recognized him, he shrunk even more into himself, lowering his eyes, his shoulders were raising even higher.
He looked like he expected to be hurt, small and defenceless, it broke Hashirama’s heart. The Senju tried to smile gently but a sharp stench made him frown.
“Tobirama,…what’s that smell?”
The younger Senju sighed and closed his eyes briefly.
“The boy soiled himself, while I was carrying him.”
While Hashiramas eyes softened even further with pity, the soldier behind him started to laugh. A sound so harsh and sudden, the boy flinched violently.
“I see the Uchiha found a new tactic on the battlefield.”, one of them sneered.
That earned him the laughter of the others.
“Oh no, now we need to beware of more than their eyes. Should we warn the others of this new technique?”
Another said while he held his stomach.
“They are nothing more than rabid dogs, trying to mark their territory!”, answered the third, fuelled by the others.
“That’s enough.” Hashirama did not raised his voice, but the soldiers grew quiet. He looked up at his brother and addressed him next.
“Bring the child inside. Warm him up, he looks half frozen.”
Clearly dismissed Tobirama stepped forward leading the stumbling boy with him, a hand still holding tightly into his bony shoulder.
“But Tobirama-“ He stopped when his brother’s voice sounded once more.
“Don’t think this conversation is over yet.”
-
Tobirama walked through the settlement as quickly as he could, ignoring the looks from his clansmen. When he finally entered their estate, he could not hold back a sigh of relief, only then remembering that he had an Uchiha in his home.
He thought of giving the boy to someone. Perhaps a woman who had their own children or an old woman who could need something to do. But he had his doubts that any of the Senju would take an Uchiha in willingly. And he did not want to burden his clan; this was his decision and if the boy turned out to be dangerous then it was his duty to get rid of the danger.
He led the boy deeper into the house and to the washroom, using a quick suiton to fill the tub. Then he turned to the boy.
“I will put in some wood to heat up the water. You may wait for it to become warm. Then you clean yourself up. I will find some clothes for you. Do you understand?”
The boy coward as far away from him as possible, looking up with his big red eyes and Tobirama scoffed in disgust.
“And turn off these cursed eyes of yours. You are on Senju territory now. If you know what’s good for you, you will not show those to anyone.”
The boy immediately lowered his eyes and nodded. His hands were tightly clasped in front of him.
“The towels are here.”
Tobirama moved his hand to the direction of a cupboard and left the washroom. He sealed the door after himself, trusting that the boy was too weak to break through the wooden walls.
Finally, alone, Tobirama took of his armour knowing he would need to clean it as soon as possible and changed his clothes. He cleaned the urine of his skin with the washing basin inside his room. Knowing that he would need to clean the cloth and exchange the water afterwards. They had no clothes for a boy so small, as neither he nor Hashirama had children yet.
So, he made his way outside, stopping at the house of a woman that he knew had three children. The Senju did not know their names, he had nothing to do with the clans’s children, but he saw them running around her house often. He asked her for clothes and even when she looked at him full of incredulity, he refused to elaborate. He needed clothes and she had more than enough. At the end she gathered a pair, asking if the size fit, the clothes looked too big for a boy of the child’s size. When he asked if she had others, she sighed and told him to wait.
“You are lucky that I have not given these away yet.”
She said and handed him a small bag. He offered her coin, but she refused, said it was the least she could do for the brother of their leader.
When he returned from his exchange, Hashirama was already home, pacing around the tea room.
“Tobirama-“
“Not now Anija. I need to wash. The child should be done now. You may dote on him, while I wash.”
He did not wait to watch his brother deflated at his casual dismissal, moving on to the washing room, unsealing the door and entering. He placed the clothes down and told the boy to dress before leaving him to do so.
When he finally had the washing room for himself, he took his time in the bath. He is scrubbing his arm with soap before lowering himself into the refilled, hot water. Then he just closed his eyes and allowed his tense body to soak, for much longer than he usually allowed himself. He wasn’t one for indulgences after all, but winter was a stressful time and now he also had the headache of an Uchiha child here. A headache was slowly creeping behind his eyes, and he wondered if it would not have been kinder to himself and the boy, if he had just slit his throat quickly. Hashirama’s softness had clearly wormed his way inside his mind, and he could do nothing more than sigh. Killing the boy with a sharp blade would have certainly been kinder than leaving him to freeze to death or starve in the woods. But he had made his grave and now he needed to lay in it, till spring came.
When the cold ceased, the Uchiha would certainly awake like the vermin they were and provoke another fight. They tried not to fight during the winter, both clans had to focus on surviving and couldn’t afford unnecessary bloodshed, but with spring returning so would the constant battles. The few calm months he knew to use to his advantage. He needed to create new jutsus and train them to such a degree that they would be useful in battle. Tobirama was certain the Uchiha would be caught off guard by such techniques, and he would come forth victorious. But for that he needed time. During the day he would handle the paperwork and missions for his clan as he always did, but during the night he would need to work on the jutsus. Wintertime was always demanding, most years they managed to survive without any particular losses and escape starvation, but to manage it every year, they needed to prepare.
Now with the boy he would need to keep him busy while watching him, which was even more work for Tobirama. But he hoped that he could negotiate something out of the Uchiha that was much more useful than a boy. He knew the Uchiha were always struggling more during the winter than they did. They always returned to the battlefield slimmer and fewer than before the winter. The Uchiha would probably not give up any of their few resources.
Tobirama hoped he could negotiate a part of their land, he had long wanted to expand the Senju territory, only to be stopped by Hashirama’s bleeding heart. But if the Uchiha offered it by their own free will, they could take it without any guilt. Even with the water, or perhaps because of it, the headache grew stronger and he knew that it was time to finish his bath.
When he finally left the bath behind, Hashirama called for him, telling him to settle at the table. Inside the tea room, cups of steaming tea were placed in front of Hashirama and the Uchiha. One was unattended and waiting for him.
Both of them looked up when he entered and the frustration that he had felt from the moment he met the boy rose once more.
“You dare disobey me, boy?”, his voice harsher and louder than usual.
His brother was confused but immediately tried to calm him down.
“Tobira-“
“I told you to stop looking at me with these damned eyes.”
With fast steps he marched over to the boy. Usually he avoided all Uchiha eyes, no matter if the Sharingan was buring already or not, but if he needed to establish his authority with eye contact, so be it. The boy was so weak, that even if he managed a Genjutsu, Tobirama could easily break from it.
The tomoe inside the boy’s eyes spun incredibly fast and only seemed to spin faster when he stepped closer, as if it was taunting him. He grabbed the boys chin firmly, holding it so he could not lower his face again.
“Disobedient Uchiha brat”, the insults were spit like venom.
And when the boy remained quiet, his anger only increased.
“Why is that? Do you want to test me? Or are you just too stubborn?”
His voice was a low hiss, and the boy’s eyes started to fill with tears once more. But the boy was silent and the disrespect infuriated him to a degree he rarely reached.
“I am speaking to you and when I ask a question I expect an answer. Speak, boy.”
“Tobirama it’s enough! Let him go!”
He heard his brothers upset voice but did not break the eye contact with the Uchiha.
“Do not get involved brother.” He spoke louder in his usual scolding voice, making the boy flinch violently, even when it was not him who was addressed.
“Speak!”, he ordered the boy then, quieter but with the same scolding voice.
“I don’t-“, the boy sobbed out and he let him go, satisfied to have gotten him to speak.
Now released, the boy immediately tried to make himself smaller, he lowered his eyes and body immediately to the ground.
“Don’t what? Don’t want to test me? Because you certainly do right now.”
The boy started to shake his head, his hands on the floor, he looked like he wanted to bow.
“Please I don’t-“, he was sobbing quietly and still crying.
But even Hashirama stayed quiet, wanting to hear what the boy had to say.
“I- I-“ his breathing was harsh and his entire chest heaved with the sobs.
Then finally one of his breathes seemed to be deep enough, because he finally spoke a useful answer.
“I don’t know how to turn it off! Please I’m sorry. I don’t,- I can’t,- I tried! I did. I really tried. Please Sir, I’m truly sorry I can’t-“
And then he lowered his face to the ground, so quick it looked like he slammed it against the floor and stayed low. Shaking hands came from the sides and he placed them protectively over his head, as if he feared Tobirama would use his position and kick him for his insolence. His entire body was shaking.
Tobirama stood there, truly surprised by the reaction. To his surprise there was no sick satisfaction in having an Uchiha bow so low to him.
In this moment he looked just like a child.
“Tobirama, sit down.” His brother’s voice was quiet, not upset, not demanding. Just quiet and very calm.
After another moment of silent shock, the younger Senju stepped away and sat down, while Hashirama moved to the child side. He sat beside him and slowly rubbed the boys back while muttering reassurances.
It took a while for the boy to calm down, when he did, he sat down slowly and wiped across his face and underneath the nose with his sleeve. The gesture so juvenile and childish that Tobirama felt something akin to regret.
A few very long moments of silence allowed for all of them to settle and for Hashirama to start speaking again. His voice kind and friendly.
“Do you know who we are?”
The boy nodded once, then his eyes flickered to Tobirama as if remembering his demand for verbal answers and hurried to speak.
“You are Senju Hashirama,…the God of Shinobi. And uhm..” the boy lowered his voice and eyes to a whisper.
“You are the…the white demon. Senju Tobirama.”
“White demon?”, Tobirama asked while taking a sip from his tea. Both men shared a confused look. At his questioning tone, the boy shrunk even more into himself.
“I’ve never heard that one before.” Hashirama tried to smile gently at Kagami, when he saw his brothers satisfied smirk, clearly pleased to have been given such a vicious name by the Uchiha.
When Tobirama noticed that smile himself, he scolded his face back to his usual expression and addressed the child.
“You will address us with the respect we deserve. If you wish to speak to any of us, you use the correct title. Is that clear?”
The boy nodded and then answered in a small voice.
“Y-es, Tobirama-sama.”
“That’s good.” Hashirama praised, full of warmth, trying to make the boy more comfortable.
“At least we are not total strangers anymore. Can you tell us your name?”
The boy fidgeted with his fingers underneath the table for a moment, his face lowered, he did not dare to look either of them in the eyes.
“My name is Uchiha Kagami, Hashirama-sama.”
“Ah Kagami is a good name! How old are you, Kagami?”
“I will be eight soon.”
Hashirama slowly turned to his brother, his eyes filled full of accusation. Then he turned back to the boy and smiled again.
“Wow, eight? You are nearly fully grown, huh? Say Kagami, what were you doing so far away from your settlement? Did…did your Clan Head call you to fight?”
The area around his eyes grew tight at the mention of his old friend, as if the memory itself was painful for him. The boy slowly shook his head, while Tobirama sipped on his tea, it was made with ginger and spices to ward of the cold that had settled inside their bodies. Kagami had not touched his cup. It was still filled to the brim.
“I wasn’t…I wasn’t supposed to be there.”, he whispered, his shoulders lowering slowly.
“It was my sisters first fight. I was-“, slowly his shoulder started to heave, and he brought up his small hands to wipe his face.
“It was her first battle. She turned thirteen a week ago. I was worried, so I followed.”
Hashirama gave his brother a questioning look, when the younger shook his head solemnly, his face broke into a pained expression.
“Oh, I’m so sorry. I understand being here is really scary. Tobirama, here, can be really scary too, huh?”
His elbow connected with Tobirama’s rips in a painful manner, making the younger Senju scowl.
When Kagami cautiously nodded, Hashirama leaned forward a bit.
“It’s going to be okay. You can go back to your clan in a bit! We are currently not fighting. But as soon as spring comes, we will take you back and you can join them, alright?”
Kagami nodded again, then slowly he lifted his gaze and after quickly observing Tobirama, the boy looked at Hashirama. Taking a shaking breath before asking.
“Are you…are you going to take my eyes?”
A moment of silence followed that was louder than any battle cry.
Hashirama’s voice softened even more, until it was nothing more than a mere whisper.
“No Kagami. Nobody is taking your eyes.”
When the child looked at him again, his eyes still red and the tomoe spinning in measured circles, Hashirama knew he did not believe him.
-
It was impossible to find peace during the night. Instead of finding some rest, after the exhaustions of the day, Tobirama was inside his sitting room, trying to concentrate on the scrolls around him. He was already regretting bringing the boy inside their home. He was just a child but even these could become dangerous during the vulnerability that came with the night. The younger Senju had sealed him inside the room Hashirama had assigned the boy, insisting on it even when his brother protested.
A lifetime ago the room had been Itama’s. Their home was vast, build for a big family, of that, only two brothers remained. There were plenty of rooms that stood empty, some had not been opened in years and still Tobirama spoken against it, when the boy had been given the room. He is an Uchiha, he had insisted, no Uchiha had the right to even look at anything that belonged to their brothers, after what they had done to them. He had intended for the boy to sleep inside one of their storage rooms, small and out of sight, fitting for the Uchiha boy. But his brother had reminded him that it was cold during the night. The storage rooms had no hearth.
After their tea and supper, Hashirama had made a small fire so the boy would have fresh coal and put some inside an iron pan to warm the old futon he had found. He had even tucked the boy in, wishing him a good night. To the dismay of them all.
The boy had not replied, not thanked him or wished him a good night. Showing how ungrateful the Uchiha truly were. He had not dared to look at any of them anymore, his gaze always lowered.
“He will burn down the house during the night.”, Tobirama had warned him, but his brother only shared a sad smile with him.
“As long as it keeps him warm”, he had answered and wished him a good night.
Tobirama tried to supress a yawn, but the day had been long, no matter how little his mind wanted to rest, his body concentrate on the danger he had brought home. He left the scrolls inside the sitting room, tomorrow they would continue their preparations for winter. The room got sealed. He sealed all his rooms, his brother insisted it was due to his increasing paranoia, but he just wanted to be careful. The hallway was filled by the darkness and silence of the night. Not even the wood dared to creak under his careful steps. He knew all the boards from his childhood, knew which one creaked and groaned when he stepped on them and which ones had weapons carefully hidden inside.
On the way to his sleeping chambers, he paused in front of Itama’s room to listen. The seal was not disturbed, the boy’s weak chakra signature burned inside it, but there was no sound to indicate any mischief. He was grateful for the silence, remembering when he had passed the very same room a few hours ago. The boy had cried. Not the loud cries of spoiled children, his cries had been soft, barely audible. He had only noticed the crying because of the small sobs that escaped the child.
For a moment his mind had tricked him, his hand reached for the door, his body ready to comfort Itama, before he could stop himself.
He had stopped himself from opening the door.
The boy inside the room was not his brother.
His brother was dead, killed by the Uchiha.