one_long_mission | [open] a way to beat the cold

"Huh...? What's up?" Madara blinked over and followed the other's gaze. "I don't see anything.."

Perhaps this was one of the oversights. As those red eyes fell on his, visible from his vantage point, the boy gave a light hiss. He knew he had his chakra hidden... and still those damn eyes...
He could only stay still. Being found out had never been an option... particularly not by an Uchiha.

Madara had kept his sharingan wisely hidden away, but Itachi had his active. Unfortunately, Itachi was a master at using his to see. It was a fact born out of necessity.

"I suggest you show yourself... Make your... intentions known..." He called out to the boy in the bush.

Never before had he cursed himself so intensely. He should have ran off when he first saw the figure with the red eyes appear. He already saw all he wanted to see. A light scowl, and he dropped into view, blade at the ready, swung over his shoulder as he crouched.

"It's time to choose sides, brother."
This was not how Tobirama had wished for it to go, but seeing as he had been unexpectedly found out, they had to fight. The boy had nothing to indicate clan affiliation, quite thankfully. "And choose quickly." he instructed, keeping that sharingan out of his sight.

Madara instinctivelt slid closer to his clanmate and pulled out a kunai, although he was hesitant as he stared at Hashirama. The white-haired boy had called him brother... Had this been a trap all along?

Hashirama wasn't sure exactly what to do when he saw Itachi struggling to stand. He stepped in front of both of the children, as if he was ready to protect them both as equals.

"... from the look of things," Itachi smiled down to the future first Hokage, "He's already chosen... that perhaps we can all be on the same side."

If he was calling Hashirama brother, then this was the future second Hokage. There was no doubt. This was the man who go on to found the Konoha Police Force and proclaim trust. But Itachi also knew this was a man who would also cause seeds of doubt to be planted, setting up tragic consequences that wouldn't play out until long after he was gone.

"Perhaps... that could be something you're... interested in as well?"

"Don't talk for him!" Tobirama glared at the Uchiha, which admittedly -looked- less of a threat than he thought but he wasn't going to be fooled into dropping his guard.
"Brother, you disappoint me." the younger Senju's eyes were cold. "I have never said anything against your unrealizable dream to Father, but if you insist on continuing to meet enemy shinobi... Do you wish to be branded as traitor?"

Madara gave a light hiss. "See, it's cause of people like you that we can't have peace!"
"When have I asked your opinion?" he narrowed his eyes. From his chakra... no doubt about it. The boy was.. "Don't tell me you have never suspected anything, brother." He may be interested in peace, but not one initiated by Uchiha.

"But it's possible, brother!" Hashirama exclaimed. "And not just among us children. He's an adult, and he's got the same dream! He could talk to the other Uchiha! Other clans too..."

Hashirama was a trusting boy, to the point that he was actually defending Itachi mere hours after leaping away in fear of him. But he had the eyes, and he hadn't used them to do anything but see. And his friend wasn't scared of him... So maybe...

"It's not unrealizable. It's gonna happen one day. You'll see!!

"..." Tobirama gave a sigh and averted his gave a few seconds. "Even if he could indeed adress other Uchiha," his lip curled in distaste at the name. "have you even pondered what weight the words of this one would hold among his clan?" he gave a pointed stare at Madara.

The boy gave a snarl, but was silent. How could that boy know he was an Uchiha? Was it bluff?
"Well then." Tobirama claimed a deep breath. "You leave me no choice, brother." With the nearby stream at his disposal, he had an endless supply of water. Itachi would most likely recognize the handsigns necessary for a suiton jutsu, which if complete would launch itself at him, who in Tobirama's mind was the first he should take down.

But as Tobirama started his hand signs, Itachi jerked his head around in the complete opposite direction. Barely a moment later, another boy landed by the riverbank, a fire jutsu meeting the waterspout the moment that it formed.

"Don't you dare go after my brother, Senju!"

Madara froze. Senju... so then his brother... Hashirama was-- The boy got up, taking out his shuriken. There was no way he was going to let Izuna get another draw.

Tobirama gave a scowl. Only one person existed that could recognize him without his usual war garb. How had he not noticed the other's presence? "Izuna... Looks like we're outnumbered by Uchiha. Brother! We must retreat." winning against two, yes, but two against three was a risk he was unwilling to take.

"You're Hashirama... Senju!?" Madara turned accusing eyes to the other. Images went through his mind, of their battles against the Senju where he had happened his two eldest and youngest brother's corpses on three different occasions.

Hashirama was equally aghast, but for different reasons. "You're... You're Uchiha?! Madara Uchiha?!?"

He couldn't believe it! An Uchiha, multiple Uchiha were discussing the prospect of peace! And these were his clan's worst enemies! It instilled a kind of hope in him that was only tempered by a furious brother at his wrist, tugging him out of harm's way.

"But... But!"

Izuna, meanwhile, was as protective of his brother as Tobirama was of Hashirama.

"When father hears about this..." He pleaded, but suddenly fell short, realizing he was looking back into an unfamiliar pair of sharingan. "Where'd he come from?"

"That's right." Suddenly, Madara's eyes were also red. "I'm Madara Uchiha!" his grip tightened onto the kunai he had. "Father's not going to hear about THIS, Izuna. Father's gonna hear we killed two Senju! There's three of us and two of em!!"
He couldn't let go of it. Those murderous Senju had taken Kazuma, Kojiro and Ikkaku away from them.

Tobirama gave another tug. "Come on, Hashirama! There aren't any BUTs!" the appearance of Izuna had already shifted the tide.

Itachi stepped between them, throwing his arms out.

"Weren't we... just discussing a peaceful future... a village with clans banded together? No more fighting? No more... bloodshed?" He tried to hold the fighting at bay. His voice was breathy, but stern. He meant every word. "Madara, he was your friend until... you heard his family name! Hashirama, you trusted me... and I'm an Uchiha. Isn't that right?"

"What about our dream?!" The boy cried out.

"Yes..." Itachi echoed. "What about it? You... don't have to fight here... No one has to die!"

Tobirama gave a light huff. "Well then, you most certainly are a one-of-a-kind Uchiha." he adressed the taller. "Surely you are aware of your curse." the youth was not going to be fooled.This is why, Hashirama..." he gazed to his big brother, eyes holding a tinge of sadness. "...they cannot be trusted. How easily he changed sides..."

Madara snarled."I should spill your guts right here, Senju!" the sharingan flared, and yet... yet there was this struggling clansman stating that peace could be achieved, and there was Izuna... "I can't build peace with a Senju!! Not when my three brothers' blood is all over your clan's hands!" he cried out and jumped, taking ahold of a tree branch with a free hand and swinging himself above Itachi in order to strike at the others.

As Tobirama had stated, the curse of hatred had conusmed him. "Stop daydreaming, brother!" he drew his blade, two hands upon its hilt. "It sounds like you miss your brothers terribly. Joining them is something I can arrange."

Itachi saw Izuna fly over his head and immediately rushed into the impending battle.

"No! Stop... both of you, stop..." he wheezed, stumbling as he tried to still stay between them. It didn't matter that blades were drawn. He was determined to stand his ground. Peace was possible. If only he could convince them of what the future held. "Killing each other... will not end a war or... bring anyone back from the grave... It's... it's pointless!!"

Madara saw everything with that sharingan, and it was why he could react.

He was not certain why he reacted this way either... what even pushed him to do this.
He kicked his little brother's blade away, knowing the younger had little chance to stop himself, and then, then.. there was the matter of the Senju...

Tobirama was going to strike down the Uchiha. There was no hesitation as he plunged his blade... but then.. then it pierced something he did not foresee. How had he gotten here so fast?
Madara had shoved Itachi out of the way, blocking the strike that would have pierced through skin, inbetween ribs and reached his heart from the back.
Instead, the blade was there, having gone right through Madara's arm. The boy, sharingan filled with something almost demonic, had gripped the end of the blade with his free hand, effectively stopping the Senju from taking out his sword. All he could do now was leave his weapon if he wanted to run.

No Senju hurts his clan. None of them...

Hashirama was beside himself. He didn't know whether to grab his brother and run or whether to try and help his friend. That sword had gone straight through his arm! The wound itself wasn't fatal, but he'd seen enough of his clan die from infected wounds. He knew the battleground wasn't the only cause of death among shinobi.

"Niisan!"

"Madara!" Itachi spun around, forearms and knees scraped from where he'd slid across the rocks. The fact that he would have died didn't bother him as much as the fact that the boy had just sacrificed himself.

Finally, he had to realize that there were more than enough Uchiha to take care of Madara. And a few moments from now, there was an angry Izuna charging after his younger brother. (Both of them were such hot-heads!)

"Tobi, we gotta go..." he hesitantly stepped back. "Come on, leave your sword, we gotta go..."

Madara had hardly sacrificed himself. Everything looked calculated. He had not even flinched when he took the hint. It was as if he was registering no pain at all.

For Tobirama, it was as if time stopped. This made no sense. No one could do such a thing... and yet here the Uchiha was, standing his ground after stopping his attack, and even more: not letting him run away.
"How about you go and wait for me in hell, Senju?" Madara stared, knowing he had him pinned. He did not even need the fully awakened sharingan or illusions. It was all real, his deed and his pain were real, and the other's disbelief and fear were something magnificent. "You went and got yourself a demon with his sights set on you."

Of course he meant his little brother.
Nearly a second too late, Tobirama snapped out of it. He let go of his blade and blocked Izuna's strike before finally retreating.

Hashirama weaved his signs on the move, putting a wooden wall between Izuna and his retreating brother. As they left, Hashirama's voice could still be heard - "Not a word to Father! Please... Not a word!"

Itachi was also shouting, though his voice didn't carry nearly as far. "Izuna... let them go! It's over... let them go..."

The wood wall burned with Izuna's rage, but he didn't have much of a choice once they started running. Madara couldn't keep fighting with his arm like that. And this other Uchiha, who he didn't even recognize, didn't look like he could fight at all. Their three against two advantage had turned into a two against one disadvantage if he pursued.

Tobirama argued that there was no way he could come up with an excuse believable enough to have lost his primary weapon. He would be ashamed for the next three decades, to need a sword forged gain...

Meanwhile, back on the other side of the wooden wall, Madara gave a groan, falling to the ground as he tried to work the sword out. "Izuna... stop hacking at that stupid wood and---" he was about to ask to come help him, but... "WOOD!?"

Any flare of pain was forgotten as he crawled closer to the slowly burning wood. "Stop that fire! We need a sample! Did you ever see a wood jutsu!? Father won't believe us!"
Not only would they bring back an enemy's weapon, they would also bring information on their techniques. "The Uchiha can't lose with this!" he turned to Itachi then, finally starting to try and remove the blade once more. "Now that it's you and me, how about you tell me what's even goin on with you? Father doesn't take kindly to deserters..."

There was a good part of Itachi that wished they could simply leave the sword behind - a peace offering from the Uchiha to the Senju. But he knew that wouldn't happen. He wasn't a mednin, but he knew that pulling that blade out could cause just as much damage as the actual attack. And in a world like this...

"Stop... Stop, Madara... Don't... Don't pull it out..." He hastily pulled the bandages from around one of the child's leg, and tried to wrap them around the wound. He was no medic, but he did know basic first aid from his time as an active duty shinobi. "Keep your arm still... Izuna. Stop gathering things to use against them... Help your brother hold this stable... How far... is your settlement? Are there medics there?"

That was the first priority, of course.

"As for... who I am... I'll explain on the way..."

One might wonder if this was not part of the reason Uchiha wore bandages. They could use then to dress wounds on the fly provided they were not too dirty. Thanks to this, most of the blood was kept from escaping further.

The boy was strong... but his limits were showing. This might be the first time he has had that grave of a wound, and the manner in which he stares at it, there are some things he cannot comprehend.
Instead of answering or giving directions, his dark eyes slide over to the oldest among them. "...that 'nother test?" he asks, eyebrows slightly creased.

Of course, Izuna will give the approximation, at least an hour's walk. They could run faster though. They do have Ren-san at the settlement, an apt medic.

Itachi struggled to get up himself, and then tried to help Madara, holding that katana steady. At least it was only a child's blade - lighter, shorter than an adult's full-sized weapon. It would be easier to hold onto.

"Can you make it... an hour... more... like that?" The question left Izuna wondering whether the asker could answer it himself. This strange Uchiha looked like he could break after one punch or maybe a strong gust of wind. And he was talking like he was completely out of breath. It didn't add up.

"We're walking." Izuna muttered, helping his big brother keep his arm steady.

As they started on the path, the boys leading the way, Itachi broke a stick from a nearby tree for additional support. There was silence for a few minutes, and then, Itachi finally answered them.

"I'm... from a shinobi village called Konohagakure... I guess you could say... that it's a lot farther away than I thought it would be... from here..."

"I could make it a day if I had to!" the boy snapped. The only important thing was that his little brother was safe. "This thing hasn't hit anything vital, see? I can still move my fingers down there."

As they walked and the other's provenance was revealed, he frowned. "So you came from... somewhere not the settlement?" he was starting to need to fight against pain, even if the weapon was kept from moving too much. "You better hope Father remembers you, or that you've got a really really convincing story for him. An Uchiha from the outside, with a sharingan? Try and live more than five seconds..." Tajima Uchiha was a ruthless leader... and this one Itachi... hardly seemed strong in anything but the mind. Even a strategist, however, needed to be able to fight.

Itachi questioned whether he should reveal that it was a different time he was from, not merely a different place. It might be too fantastic of a story, even for children.

"It's... very different than this place." he added instead. "It's why I was so interested... in your plans... You see... I come from a village... made up of multiple clans... living, working, fighting together. Your dream, his dream... it's possible. I've lived it."

Madara remained silent for a long while. In the end, there was a light mutter. "..good for em then." His father would never agree to it... There was no way it would work. Besides, Hashirama was a Senju. "If you grew up with peace then, that means no one's been taken away by anyone else before they reached ten years of age." that was why he couldn't understand his hatred towards the Senju.

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