Tobirama/Kakashi - 5.3
(Dear Tobi,
You're my only hope. Please fix the mess the other Tobi left my brain in?
Thanks, you're a sweetheart.)
Hashirama did not hesitate. "Leave us," he commanded his bodyguard squad.
All at once, four ANBU materialised in the corners of the room and filed out the door with rhythmic footsteps. Once there was no one else left in the office but his brother, the Hokage stood to place one final defensive measure in place. After executing a string of well-practiced handseals, their eardrums popped, indicating the successful creation of a sound barrier around the walls. He then sat and faced Tobirama once again.
"Madara Uchiha," were the unexpected words that came out of his younger brother's mouth. Despite knowing that the old Uchiha clan leader was dead, they still sent a chill down his spine.
"He's gone. I killed him myself." Hashirama's tone was emotionless, but one of his hands instinctively rose to cover the ribs on his left side as he spoke. The battle between the Hokage and Madara had been fierce and the scars he had gotten from it still troubled him sometimes. More importantly, however, the scars that had been left on their newly-formed village and the ninjas' trust in their leader were still raw and bleeding.
"Well, you didn't kill him soon enough," Tobirama lamented. "Mind you, all I heard were a few whispers among the civilian population, but they were enough to bother me. All the ninja were quiet and even your contact there knew nothing of this, which explains why he never mentioned anything in his reports."
"What did you hear, then, and why are you putting so much stock into it?"
"These whispers... they sounded exactly like something Madara would say. And if he was never around Taki, then why the hell would his name be floating around the mouths of civilians who know very little of ninja affairs?" Tobirama shook his head, confident in his logic. "No, he had to have been there, all right. Or at least he was close enough that someone carried his words there. Either way, when I tried to probe the ruling council of elders on the subject, they suddenly became all tight-lipped. Well... not exactly. Their reactions weren't outright suspicious in any way, but my gut told me they were trying to hide something. That's what really set off the alarm bells in my head."
Tobirama paused before saying anything else. Hashirama knew he was giving him a chance to shoot down the train of speculation before it built up to a point where it would make even the wildest conspiracy theories sound like the truth. He was perhaps expecting his older brother to tell him that it was all in his head, but Hashirama would do no such thing. Tobi was smart and his instincts were sharper than his own, because his brother's senses were always fine-tuned to what was rather than what might be, like himself. If his younger brother felt his worry was justified, then Hashirama could do nothing but trust his judgement.
"Go on."
The younger ninja looked weary upon hearing the request. Hashirama thought to himself that Tobi must have been hoping for him to wave aside his talk about vague impressions in favour of the hard facts their contact in Taki had supplied them with. These facts had consistently assured them that the establishment of the new ninja village of Takigakure was going as smoothly as possible.
"From what I've been able to puzzle out, they're as worried about us as we are about them. They are unsure of our intentions and are feeling threatened by the kind of power that Konoha possesses, now that the Senju and the Uchiha are allied. The fact that so many other clans are joining us doesn't help either. They believe that we are only looking to restart the old wars, as soon as we have enough clans following our lead."
"You think you can fool me?" Hashirama recalled Madara's biting shouts, echoing in the valley their own destructive techniques had gouged open. Even the roars of the waterfall had not been able to drown them out. "These eyes of mine have no difficulty seeing through your lies, Senju! You mean to kill my clansmen and destroy the Uchiha! You'll build your peace over the foundation of their corpses!"
The accusation still rung in his ears. He could understand why Tobirama had taken the whispers to heart. One thing, however, was for a handful of inconsequential civilians to be repeating those hateful words. Another entirely was for them to reach the ears of Takigakure's elders and infect their thoughts.
"Do you think they will act on it?"
Tobirama groaned and scratched his shaggy white hair as he thought over his answer. When he lifted his head to meet Hashirama's eyes again, he was visibly torn. "I don't know. Everything else about the mission went extremely well. All I have to back up my claims is my instinct and it has been insistent that I do not forget about this. I... I don't know, Hashi..."
"We should not ignore it, then. Peace is still tenuous and there's no need to take unnecessary risks. I'll take the necessary precautions."
Tobirama's shoulders sagged and Hashirama was suddenly struck by the knowledge that his brother had been away from home for the past three months with a team of genin under his responsibility. He could not imagine that there had been many opportunities for him to actually rest while in Taki and here he was, drilling him on a debriefing that could wait a few more hours.
"Thank you, Tobi. You've given me your warnings and I will take them to heart."
Performing a few more handseals, the sound barrier was released and the atmosphere in the room became lighter. He gave his brother a fond smile.
"Go home and get some sleep, little brother. I will hear about the rest from you later."
Continue...
You're my only hope. Please fix the mess the other Tobi left my brain in?
Thanks, you're a sweetheart.)
Hashirama did not hesitate. "Leave us," he commanded his bodyguard squad.
All at once, four ANBU materialised in the corners of the room and filed out the door with rhythmic footsteps. Once there was no one else left in the office but his brother, the Hokage stood to place one final defensive measure in place. After executing a string of well-practiced handseals, their eardrums popped, indicating the successful creation of a sound barrier around the walls. He then sat and faced Tobirama once again.
"Madara Uchiha," were the unexpected words that came out of his younger brother's mouth. Despite knowing that the old Uchiha clan leader was dead, they still sent a chill down his spine.
"He's gone. I killed him myself." Hashirama's tone was emotionless, but one of his hands instinctively rose to cover the ribs on his left side as he spoke. The battle between the Hokage and Madara had been fierce and the scars he had gotten from it still troubled him sometimes. More importantly, however, the scars that had been left on their newly-formed village and the ninjas' trust in their leader were still raw and bleeding.
"Well, you didn't kill him soon enough," Tobirama lamented. "Mind you, all I heard were a few whispers among the civilian population, but they were enough to bother me. All the ninja were quiet and even your contact there knew nothing of this, which explains why he never mentioned anything in his reports."
"What did you hear, then, and why are you putting so much stock into it?"
"These whispers... they sounded exactly like something Madara would say. And if he was never around Taki, then why the hell would his name be floating around the mouths of civilians who know very little of ninja affairs?" Tobirama shook his head, confident in his logic. "No, he had to have been there, all right. Or at least he was close enough that someone carried his words there. Either way, when I tried to probe the ruling council of elders on the subject, they suddenly became all tight-lipped. Well... not exactly. Their reactions weren't outright suspicious in any way, but my gut told me they were trying to hide something. That's what really set off the alarm bells in my head."
Tobirama paused before saying anything else. Hashirama knew he was giving him a chance to shoot down the train of speculation before it built up to a point where it would make even the wildest conspiracy theories sound like the truth. He was perhaps expecting his older brother to tell him that it was all in his head, but Hashirama would do no such thing. Tobi was smart and his instincts were sharper than his own, because his brother's senses were always fine-tuned to what was rather than what might be, like himself. If his younger brother felt his worry was justified, then Hashirama could do nothing but trust his judgement.
"Go on."
The younger ninja looked weary upon hearing the request. Hashirama thought to himself that Tobi must have been hoping for him to wave aside his talk about vague impressions in favour of the hard facts their contact in Taki had supplied them with. These facts had consistently assured them that the establishment of the new ninja village of Takigakure was going as smoothly as possible.
"From what I've been able to puzzle out, they're as worried about us as we are about them. They are unsure of our intentions and are feeling threatened by the kind of power that Konoha possesses, now that the Senju and the Uchiha are allied. The fact that so many other clans are joining us doesn't help either. They believe that we are only looking to restart the old wars, as soon as we have enough clans following our lead."
"You think you can fool me?" Hashirama recalled Madara's biting shouts, echoing in the valley their own destructive techniques had gouged open. Even the roars of the waterfall had not been able to drown them out. "These eyes of mine have no difficulty seeing through your lies, Senju! You mean to kill my clansmen and destroy the Uchiha! You'll build your peace over the foundation of their corpses!"
The accusation still rung in his ears. He could understand why Tobirama had taken the whispers to heart. One thing, however, was for a handful of inconsequential civilians to be repeating those hateful words. Another entirely was for them to reach the ears of Takigakure's elders and infect their thoughts.
"Do you think they will act on it?"
Tobirama groaned and scratched his shaggy white hair as he thought over his answer. When he lifted his head to meet Hashirama's eyes again, he was visibly torn. "I don't know. Everything else about the mission went extremely well. All I have to back up my claims is my instinct and it has been insistent that I do not forget about this. I... I don't know, Hashi..."
"We should not ignore it, then. Peace is still tenuous and there's no need to take unnecessary risks. I'll take the necessary precautions."
Tobirama's shoulders sagged and Hashirama was suddenly struck by the knowledge that his brother had been away from home for the past three months with a team of genin under his responsibility. He could not imagine that there had been many opportunities for him to actually rest while in Taki and here he was, drilling him on a debriefing that could wait a few more hours.
"Thank you, Tobi. You've given me your warnings and I will take them to heart."
Performing a few more handseals, the sound barrier was released and the atmosphere in the room became lighter. He gave his brother a fond smile.
"Go home and get some sleep, little brother. I will hear about the rest from you later."
Continue...