Before Me & You (Madara x Oc)

#15.

Amaya paced in the room restlessly. Lately, her dreams were getting more and more dreadful. The once fearless and proud princess was afraid. Afraid she would lose it all again. Just when she found happiness, it will all be taken away from her. Before she was afraid to fall in love. And now she is afraid to lose the man who made her feel safe and loved. Those foreboding words smeared in blood, the dreams that followed it were too much. She needs to get it out of her head otherwise she wont be able to think straight. She has to find a way to make these dreadful visions stop. And for that she needs to get out of here. Only one person can help her to find answers. The Sage of the Six Paths, Hogoromo Otsusuki.

***

All the arrangements for their departure were made. Hashirama looked at his first-born again. The little innocent boy in his arms held onto his big, rough finger. His hands were tiny compared to the Senju leader. Oh, my little boy. I wish you never grow up to see the cruelty of this world. Our world is soaked in the blood of our own. But I promise you, I will try everything in my might to give you a better place to grow up in. As if understanding the somber mood of his father, the baby held onto his finger tighter and giggled. Seeing this a small smile came upon his face as he rocked him gently.

Tora perched on the branch outside his window. Sighing uneasy, he put the baby back in his crib and turned to her, "Any news of my brother?"

"No luck there. But we found his happuri hanging on the tree branch not to far from the Ryuuketsuki fortress. My guess is he almost made it to the destination before suddenly disappearing. I think that he's taken hostage at will or whoever had taken him is really good at covering up his tracks because there was no sign of a fight or struggle. Do you think it was the Uchihas who did it, to get an upperhand on negotiation?"

"No. Even if it sounds plausible, Tobirama wouldnt give up that easy to Uchiha scums as he calls them. And to be honest, I dont think that asking for kidnapping ransom is Madaras style. He's too proud for something that puny. He would rather have sent me Tobiramas dead body by now if he had that chance." Hashirama snorted.

"Heh, who knew Hashirama Senju had such a dark sense of humour. You sometimes surprise me, dear husband." Mito chuckled coming into the room.

"I will keep looking for him." Tora bowed and left.

"You sure Madara is going to listen to you?" Mito asked with worry etched in his face.

"To be honest Im not so sure myself."

"Hmm." Mito nodded taking a seat. "What about you previous suspicion? About somebody else being behind all of this ruckus?"

"I still don't have anything to confirm it. I don't even have an idea who it could be. But one thing that I am sure of is that it is about Amaya hime. Somebody obviously is using her as a bait to start a war between all of the great Shinobi clans."

"All of them?" Mito asked a bit shocked.

"Apparently so. You see, the Ryuuketsueki might be a weakened clan. But it is still one of the strongest bloodline. The bloodline with a direct royal claim. The dragons once ruled over all the Shinobi nations. They were so strong, everyother clan below them started feeling threatened. Soon, the conspiracies began and the numbers of Ryuuketsueki house decreased. Right upto a point that they are now considered an extinct bloodline." Hashirama explained. "The Senju clan always stood by them, we promised to help them in the time of their need, to keep whatever legacy they still had safe. But even our greed took the best of us in due time."

"What do you mean?" Mito asked seeing the sullen, outstretched expression on her husband.

Hashirama sighed as his shoulders drooped. "My father and grandfather, they wanted to take advantage of the sheer power that runs through the blood of dragons. The animosity of this neverending war between everyone grew and grew. And they looked at our friendship with the dragon clan as a shortcut to assert dominance. They forced the Ryuuketsueki clan into accepting a marriage proposal in our family if they ever had a daughter. The moment Amaya hime was born, she got sold of and kept aside for one of us. She was raised as a lamb for slaughter. And, the worst part of it is that she doesn't even know it."