The Whisper || FullbusterFic » vonlane

Chapter 6: Separating

Madara's skilled hands calmly wrapped around Minato's, taking with them the black strip of cloth he had ripped from the sleeve of his jacket. A faint groan from Minato came to his ears, but he didn't stop wrapping the wound that would soon stop bleeding. The more time he spent with that blond, the more Madara realized he was letting his guard down; he was an enemy, they were competing against each other and, however, he couldn't stop helping him without understanding the reason why.

Upon raising his gaze towards that face of innocent looks and traits, he realized. He was attracted to him. The Namikaze had something to them that managed to attract the rest of the ninjas but Madara never thought he'd stoop like the rest. He wouldn't fall so low as to threaten him or try to take him by force; that boy only needed a bit of patience and tenderness in his life— something almost impossible to find in this cruel world of fights and ninja assassinations.

For an instant, their gazes met, stopping time around them. The breeze continued flowing, moving the weak branches of the tree canopies and letting fall green leaves over them but to them, it didn't matter; they hadn't even noticed it. One had lost themselves in the other's eyes— a blue so profound drowning in that darkness that was a characteristic of the Uchiha. Not until Minato felt a blush on his cheeks did he break apart from that tense ambient that both had made appear.

"I... we have to move." Minato said as he got up, slipping on one of the wet rocks near the river and being grabbed by Madara before falling to the water.

"Be careful, these rocks are very slippery."

"Sorry. I'm a bit clumsy." Minato smiled.

This didn't go unnoticed by the Uchiha. He had seen Minato's speed first hand. He had seen his kindness when Minato had stopped that attack back then, his appreciation for being saved at the beginning of the race. He wasn't clumsy, he was nervous and he had gotten nervous with that profound look they had both shared.

Madara placed a boot on one of the rocks to get out of the small creek when suddenly, he felt something... his partner had become immobile and then, he realized that the breeze had stopped flowing, the trees no longer moved, and the song of the birds had disappeared. Night was falling and visibility was thinning. He felt Minato's hand hitting him hard against his chest, pushing him back— throwing him into the river— while the blond fled to the opposite side as a kunai with an explosive tag crossed through the empty space Minato had left between them and dug itself on a tree trunk behind them and exploding instantly.

"Minato!" Madara shouted, realizing that the explosion could've reached him.

Sitting in the creek, Madara tried to get up despite feeling soaked and his chest hurting from where Minato had pushed. A gesture of pain was on his face, surely because Minato had used chakra in his palm to push him farther away from the explosion.

"Fuck," He complained and almost cursed himself for having let his guard down at that moment. Looking out for Minato was costing him dearly. This was the second time that that boy had taken notice of danger before him and had protected him. "Sharingan." He whispered, activating the natural-born ability of his clan.

He could see Minato's chakra just between the fire. It was most probable that he was surrounded upon having thrown himself at the opposite direction. He seemed to be looking for something— surely his weapons— but he wouldn't find them; Madara had already seen them on the floor before him. They had fallen off of him when he had roughly pushed him.

Madara released a few seals and lifted a part of the earth near him to throw it against the fire, taking out a part of it so that Minato could walk out in his direction. He didn't have to tell him anything as he then saw him walking towards him, coughing from the smoke he had inhaled.