Sarutobi Hiruzen was pleasantly surprised, to say the least, when he saw the two founder clan heirs interacting with little hostility. Sarutobi had always been worried with the Uchiha heiress's mental state, her reclusive nature and her unwillingness to associate with anybody and only concentrated on her hate and revenge on her older brother.
His surprise was bordering on shock when Satsuki actually invited the boy to her house—well, not like normal people, but from her actions, it was as good as a welcome translating from Uchiha-speak—and didn't seem hellbent on getting rid of him and his corpse anytime soon.
Sarutobi smiled slightly at the orb where he used to spy on his villagers. He'd been trying to find his grandson Konohamaru who'd run after the Senju after their brief confrontation, but he decided that finding the Senju was easier first since Konohamaru will be looking for him anyway—and when his grandson set his sights on a goal, he was never giving up.
To his surprise however, he'd found the boy hanging out with the Uchiha heiress—it was both a pleasant and unpleasant development. The latter especially so once the council found out about how they were willing to tolerate one another. Toleration—that was how the clan heirs responded to one another even though Haruto had reached out to Satsuki, it would take a very, very long time before Satsuki would place her trust in Haruto and extend a hand for companionship.
But with the council pushing for an arranged marriage between two extinct clans, the budding friendship would be destroyed. And even if both clan scions were interested in one another that way, the Hyuuga Clan head had already called dibs on the two; Senju married his older daughter, Uchiha married his nephew—a Hyuuga Branch Member. Sarutobi nearly snorted at Hiashi's arrogance—what made him think Satsuki would marry a Hyuuga, much less a Branch Member?
The arranged marriage had been what Sarutobi had wanted to tell Haruto—and Satsuki but he decided to break the news separately in case both of them go berserk at the same time. Sarutobi knew she could easily refuse it since she was her on guardian but Haruto was to be engaged until his mother's say-so. Tsunade didn't particularly like the Hyuugas but even Sarutobi agree that Hinata was a sweet girl and someone the blonde woman would like as her daughter-in-law. Besides, Sarutobi already a crush the Hyuuga girl had for the Senju boy. It would be perfect, unless of course, Haruto liked Satsuki better.
From what Sarutobi can gather from his mentors—Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama—the older Senju brother actually enjoyed Uchiha Madara's company. Haruto seemed to have inherited his altruistic genes and his fondness for Uchihas that are considered a lost cause.
Sarutobi waved his hand over the orb, distorting the image of Satsuki and Haruto, bickering about something trivial. For the sake of Satsuki and the extinct clans, he wished that the Senju-Uchiha marriage will go through, that way, Satsuki would not leave the village and would have more reason to stay in the village, protecting it instead of destroying it.
He just knew she would once she learned of the truth of the Uchiha Massacre. He just hoped it wouldn't come down to that.
It had to be him, the father of the child.
***
The moment Uzumaki Kushina laid eyes on the fleeing Senju—who'd been the talk of the town—a flash of red streaking across the rooftops followed by a horde of fangirls, a familiar scene that sent Kushina careening into the past. She'd gasped, and had immediately ditched her company to follow the young Senju.
She was an ANBU, thus, making it easy for her to conceal herself from the two clan heirs when she was spying on them. Their interaction reminded her strongly of her best friend, Mikoto, and her cousin, Arashi. Kushina knew the two had been past lovers before Mikoto was married off to Fugaku and she came to steal Arashi's heart away.
Arashi's heart was easy to steal, Kushina grumbled, recalling how Arashi had broken to her that he was a soon-to-be-father. She'd punched him and said they were over—before he could even explain his reason—and had stormed off. She gave him the cold shoulder, or cold and harsh words.
What Kushina wouldn't give to turn back time and wished she'd been more considerate and more accepting of his situation. If she'd known Arashi would die in the months she ignored him and hated him, she wouldn't have said such harsh words to him. When he died, she vowed to make it up to the love of her life by treating his child better but she found no trace of the mysterious child.
And besides, Arashi and his child had relieved her of the burden of Kyubi.
Arashi's death had been her fault, she recalled, her hand cradling her abdomen where the nine tails once imprisoned. She'd let her guard down and let the enemy capture her, and had tried extracting the Kyuubi and had succeeded in unleashing it on a rampage on Konoha.
But then Arashi had appeared, told her he'd seal the monster in his infant son and disappeared in a flash of red as she passed out. Then when she'd wake, she was only told he was dead and so was the infant, unable to take the burden of the Kyuubi. Yeah, right, like she believed such crap. If the child was Arashi's, it wouldn't be real if he suddenly dropped dead from being a jailer.
Look up the word persistent, Arashi's face would be printed there. She snorted softly, gazing down at where Haruto waved goodbye at his 'friend' even when she slammed the door shut in his face, she muttered something which was muffled to Kushina by the distance and the wooden walls but Haruto heard her clearly and responded with a cheery goodnight. Somehow, from her past experiences with Uchihas, Kushina knew the girl hadn't actually said goodnight.
She shrugged, her job wasn't over yet. She still had the job of testing the genins, see whether their jounin instructors were right and that they were ready for the Chunin Exams. She pulled her white mask over her face and flared some of her chakra, slightly just to see which one of them was alert/skilled enough to notice her.
She noticed how subtly the Senju had tensed, he hesitated before darting back to the house, calling loudly in farce, "Oi, Uchiha, I left my kunai pouch there, can I come in? I can't possibly go home unarmed." There was strong emphasis at the last word; Kushina didn't fall for it but her kouhai did. She let out an agitated hiss when he darted forward, ignoring her signals.
Kurama Ryu was arrogant and snobbish, just because he made it into ANBU younger than the average (but not as young as Itachi), he found it right to flaunt his talents around and go on blatantly ignoring his superior's orders, subtly of course and before the Hokage, he was as obedient as a dog.
Ryu launched a hail of kunais and senbons the same time Kushina face-palmed, resigning herself to just watch and drag the severely injured to the hospital. The door slid open, Kushina watched as the Uchiha pulled the Senju into her house, counter-attacking with a hail of kunais of her own. Each, precisely, caught Ryu's and intercepted them. The metal weapons clattered to the cobble-stoned ground, useless as Ryu landed on the tree branch behind Kushina.
"Well, Hisoka?" Ryu snapped, elbowing the sole chunin in the group of trees harshly, his voice taunting and jeering. "What do your All-seeing eyes see?"
Hisoka scowled heavily behind his mask but did nothing to retaliate against his superior officer, thin lipped, he stated, "They're gone." He stopped, realizing the heavy implication of his own statement.
"Where?" Kushina asked, warily as she hadn't notice their moving.
Hisoka scanned the area: up, left, right, everywhere, nil result. "I think they ran," he said and even to his own ears, it sounded unlikely that either Senju or Uchiha would run—the former was too challenging of a person and the latter would not take a wounded pride back home, especially dealt from someone who intruded her home.
Abruptly, the Hyuga Branch Member felt the branch he was on shifting, moving like a wave. His reflexes kicked in and he jumped off the tree, landing on the ground. He heard his female commander call out a warning before he felt something clamping down on his legs and pulling with him down. Hisoka didn't think he'd face such capable genin—especially those of that useless Hinata's generation—so he'd let his guard down, believing nothing could pass his Byakugan. There was his fatal mistake because red eyes—the Sharingan, his mind supplied numbly—on a pale pretty face bore down on him.
She curled a brow when she saw his eyes—he wondered if the Uchiha was going to claw his eyes out. Fortunately for him, she didn't because that was when Ryu lunged at her. The Kurama clan member didn't get a chance to hurt her because roots shot out from the ground, catching his ankle and pulling him back.
"Now!"
Uchiha lashed out, her blows and kicks rapid and powerful before the root the Senju was manipulating sent him crashing into trees that encased him. Hisoka couldn't believe they were outdoned by genins—but that was because they had the element of surprise and their assailant had severely underestimated them. Hisoka cursed himself; he swore to not be like Ryu, underestimating everybody every single fucking time and make someone feel so damn insignificant, but wasn't he doing the same now with the clan heirs? He thought that without a clan to back them up, they'd be like Ryu—heads in the clouds because their advantages were bestowed upon them just because of their clan name—all talk, nothing to prove themselves.
What was he dreaming about? Of course the Uchiha and Senju Clan had been stronger than the Hyuuga Clan—especially members of a Branch Member. Countless times, Hisoka, as a child and even now as an adult, he wished he wasn't born a Hyuuga. He could do without the prestigious reputation and—Shit, he was getting distracted, off track—and by no means was he jealous of the other clans's strength. First, to get out of there and help his thrashing teammate and commander who was dodging every attack from the clan heirs swiftly. At least Kushina was skilled, she wasn't underestimating the genins unlike her team—who were currently decapitated.
Haruto exchanged a brief glance with Satsuki, the message was clear: confrontation time. Because this chick and her lackeys were obviously from Konoha, unless they slipped in and dressed themselves as one of them. Before the redhead can say anything, he gasped at the number of enemies, multiplying, why hadn't he noticed them earlier hiding in the forest surrounding the Uchiha Compound?
Stupid, he cursed himself, now he'd endangered Satsuki and himself with his carelessness and despair clutched his chest, fear's grip unrelenting and maybe he should just give up and resign himself to fate after all what's the point of fighting the inevitable they couldn't possibly win—
"Senju—oi, moron!" A hand clamped onto his shoulder, expelling the foreign chakra on him, inserting instead her fiery yet soothing chakra into his woodwind smell. Haruto blinked, dazed and stared at Satsuki for explanation. "You're under her genjutsu. You suck badly, that was a low level genjutsu and you couldn't even handle it?" she sounded skeptical herself, as if she thought he was playing a joke on her.
"Sorry," he muttered distractedly, gazing around. "Where's—"
"Gone. She left with her lackeys. I threatened his life, in exchange for his life, they'd leave us alone."
"That much passed in a second?" Now it was his turn to sound skeptical.
Satsuki scowled heavily, standing up walking away even as he scrambled up to his feet. "You were out for five minutes, idiot. I had to take care of you—do you know how fucking it is out here?" And she was gone, into her own house after slamming the door shut. Just as the sky cracked open and rain poured onto him.
Haruto approached the door, and in the most whiney voice he could muster—which wasn't hard since he'd been such a failure and passed out from just a minor genjutsu and leaving his teammate to deal with the enemy alone- and called out, "Um, let me in. Can I stay for one night?"
No answer but he heard some shuffling sounds.
He knew sounds—constant and mundane and annoying—made her tick so he started moaning, groaning and complaining. It rained harder. Just as he was about to increase the volume to annoy her, the door was slammed open, revealing a disheveled and enraged Satsuki. "Get in. Dry yourself. Shut up. Sleep. Get out."
Haruto bounced on the soles of his feet. "Sure!" he agreed cheerily even as Satsuki threw a towel at him, the force of the slap stinging his cheek but he didn't complain. Allowing him to sleepover was already bordering on kindness for her—and he wasn't really in the mood to go back to his apartment with its leaky ceilings, and many inappropriate noises from the neighborhood (which was the red light district).
Haruto was about to slump on the couch after drying his hair and stripping till his boxers when he saw a yukata thrown haphazardly on it. He slid into it easily, comfortable as he threw himself down on the couch, eyes already drooping though he told his plants to be on the guard just in case some intruders decided to pay them a visit again.
His attempts to keep his guard up was futile as he was already snoring away the next second.
Satsuki scowled down unhappily at her guest—unwillingly on her part but he did help her garden back to tiptop shape and it was an important memento from her mother and her parents had raised her up to be grateful and never be in anyone's debt if you could help it—who was wearing her yukata. She didn't even think it would fit him. She had laid it out for her to change into but he'd taken it. Stupid Senju.
She huffed, deciding that waking him up was a lost cause—involving more noises and whines and generally less sleep—and walked up the stairs.
"Sat'ski." The pale girl stopped by the third step, gaping disbelievingly at the slumbering Senju. What and why on earth was he dreaming about her? Or was he actually awake and was teasing her? She scowled, stomping up the stairs now, but even the rain and her own footsteps wasn't enough to drown out his next words. "G'night."
"Unpleasant night, idiot," she returned as she closed her door. Never would she admit the strange fluttering feelings in her stomach.