Chapter Text
Tobirama listened to every word spoken by the elders of her clan with the same cold, indifferent expression her face always carried. She observed how each of them seemed satisfied when discussing the matter, her father drumming the tip of his left index finger on the table and her brother sweating as if there were a sword pointed at his neck. And as if, were that the case, it would be a problem for him.
“So,” Butsuma began to speak, “this was the conclusion the daimyō reached, and you decided to accept it without saying anything against it?” His eyes were now fixed on Hashirama.
“No, my father, there seems to be a misunderstanding here,” the boy said, tossing his hair over his right shoulder. “The daimyō said that this was the safest path for everyone and that it would be up to both sides to decide something together. I’m only repeating what I was told, it’s not a direct order, but he expects us to do this if we truly want more benefits and land.”
“Who will decide to impose it as an order will be you and the leader of the Uchiha clan, together with the councils of both clans. After all, it was Madara who sent the letter saying he would accept only Tobirama’s dowry, and it has been the counselors here who, from the very beginning, wanted her to be involved in the choice of brides.”
Tobirama looked at him with disdain for a brief fraction of a second.
“But, sir,” Rikichi began, drawing everyone’s attention in the room, “if it is a political marriage meant to achieve peace and unite forces to gain the daimyō’s favor, nothing is more obvious than sending Tobirama as the Senju representative.”
“Your daughter is already past the age to marry someone in a position like hers, Butsuma,” Sachi’s voice came out hoarse from the tobacco she smoked in the room. The old counselor stood up and walked over to Hashirama, placing a hand on his head. “Besides, she helped our heir conspire and go to the Uchiha compound to heal their heir, and not only that, but he also went to the capital to speak with the daimyō. It’s only fair, don’t you think?”
“So you think it’s fair to send my only daughter into a marriage with the leader of the enemy clan?”
“They are not enemies, father!” Hashirama said in a firmer tone, removing the old woman’s wrinkled hand from his head a bit less carefully than he usually would. His gaze turned to Tobirama. “Listen, you are not being forced to marry until everyone here reaches a consensus, and also, it’s not because you helped me. You know that, don’t you, sister?”
Tobirama wanted to roll her eyes, but there, before the council, those were not her father and older brother. They were her leader and the future leader, and she owed them the utmost respect. So she limited herself to speaking.
“I know. I have extensive knowledge of politics thanks to my good leader.” The girl bowed to the man before her while whispering a “thank you very much.” “I know the shinobi world not only on the battlefield, but also behind it. Someone in Madara’s position would not want to marry anyone who didn’t hold a similar or equal position to his.”
Hashirama grew restless. It had been exactly three weeks since his younger sister had seen him with Madara, not as they always were, not merely as friends, but as lovers, naked in a brothel bed while some courtesan slept nearly unconscious between them. Madara had been the first to rise from the bed, exposing his body before the girl and, within seconds, cornering her against the wall, lifting her body with one hand while pressing a kunai against her chest with the other. Hashirama had been unable to do anything but tell his boyfriend to let Tobirama go.
“Tell me, Hashirama, what is this brat doing here? You told me this little thing was on a mission.” His arm tensed as he tightened his grip around the shinobi’s neck.
“Let go of my sister, Madara, please. I have no idea what you’re thinking, but I’m sure it isn’t this.”
The red eyes of the Sharingan met the red eyes of the albino girl.
“No, no. Don’t close those eyes, girl. I want to see why you’re here.” His hands grabbed her face after dropping her, forcing her to meet his gaze.
“MADARA!” the courtesan woke with a start. “Shit…”
“I just want to see, Hashirama. There’s not much to worry about.”
The blonde tried to scream, but her attempts were quickly thwarted by Hashirama’s strong hand covering her mouth. The girl kicked him with all the strength she had.
“Hold that woman’s mouth, Hashi— argh!”
Tobirama kicked the boy in front of her hard in the groin. She was a shinobi specialized in countering the Uchiha and had spent years of her life training to break free from genjutsu.
“YOU BITCH!” Madara grabbed her by the hair before she could run for the door. “Your little sister is here on your father’s orders. That fucked-up old man was curious to know what his son does that makes him practically disappear from the Senju compound whenever he has a day off.”
“LET HER GO, MADARA. I DON’T WANT TO— ow.” This time it was the dark-haired man who took the kick. “I DON’T WANT TO USE FORCE AGAINST YOU!”
One didn’t have to be very smart to piece together what was happening in that room, and the courtesan quickly realized it. She was in a room with three of the four heirs of two of the most feared clans in the world. Her eyes began to well with tears.
In her mind, countless scenarios arose in which she was killed for knowing too much. Her hands tried, more than desperately, to grab the arm of one of the Senju clan’s heirs. She wanted to scream for mercy. Suddenly, her head was yanked to the side, and all she managed to see before fainting were the crimson red eyes of the other man in the room. Her memories were rewritten, and in place of the two shinobi there was only some random, faceless merchant who left her a bag of money before leaving the brothel.
“YOU SICK BASTARDS!” Tobirama screamed. “IMMORAL. FILTHY. HASHIRAMA!” Her face collided with her brother’s. “HOW CAN YOU LIE WITH SOMEONE AS DISGUSTING AS AN UCHIHA? WORSE, WITH A MAN?”
“DISGUSTING?” Madara tried to approach his sister-in-law, but was quickly stopped by his boyfriend, who threw him forcefully onto the bed. “What do you think you’re doing, you idiot? Do you think you’re going to touch my sister?”
With one hand gripping his neck tightly and the other drawing back a punch. Madara wasn’t a fan of being the one who took the beating during sex, but at that moment he thought that, in another context, he would love it. They heard the door open, and moments later Tobirama had disappeared from the room.
“The Uchiha elders specifically want a marriage, and here we have the solution to our problems,” Rikichi said, pointing his teacup toward Tobirama. “And let’s be honest. Do you really think this was only the daimyō’s idea? By the most sacred gods, we are living on his territory, sharing it with those savages, and somehow we are both constantly serving him.”
“It’s obvious he wants this union,” Mosuke added. The old man, already very aged and blind in one eye, had a gentle, almost inaudible voice. His cane tapped slowly against the floor. “And it’s obvious that it’s an order. Everything could have been resolved the same way as before, but Hashirama decided to help his friend’s brother and have a conversation with the most important political leader in the country without consulting us.” He sighed. “But perhaps it was better this way as well. My son has just become a father, and I wouldn’t want my grandson to grow up without a father, nor the women…”
“That’s enough,” Butsuma said. His gaze fixed on Hashirama and then on Tobirama, severity directed at both. “If you want peace so badly that you act behind my back, then fine. We’ll do exactly what you want.” Tobirama felt her heart skip a beat. Her brother rose abruptly from his chair. “Father, are you really going to do this? The daimyō, he—”
“ISN’T THIS WHAT YOU WANT, HASHIRAMA? DON’T YOU WANT PEACE?” His father was red with anger. “DIDN’T YOU BOTH GO THERE AND ACT IN SECRET? I AM NOW FOLLOWING THE DAIMYŌ’S ORDERS!” Tobirama remained silent. She had been raised to be a proper woman and, at the same time, a great warrior. She knew she could not act weak and foolish like other girls. She was angry and wanted to scream like her father, but she was not on the battlefield. She had to act accordingly.
“I will write a letter in response to the Uchiha leader. Congratulations, Tobirama, my daughter. You will be engaged very soon.”