☆HashiMada OneShots☆

Deep Water

“Say, I thought you could heal your wounds really quickly.”

“I can!”

Madara poked the bruise on Hashirama’s cheek, making him frown and bend away.

“Then what is this doing here? Did you run out of juice?”

Hashirama swatted Madara’s extended finger away.

“It doesn’t hurt. Why would I waste chakra to heal it, if it doesn’t even hurt?”

He stuck his nose up at Madara and walked up the side of a tree. His hair hung to one side when he looked down from a few feet up.

“Are you coming or what?”

“You’re sure touchy today.”

Madara walked up the tree after him, meeting Hashirama on the topmost branch. He sat next to him. The forest that day was pleasantly breezy, the sky clear and blue. It was unusually hot for the season; perhaps they were in for an early summer.

“I’m not touchy; I’m just excited to get in the water.”

“Do you think this is high enough?”

They both looked down over the cliff the tree they were sitting in was perched on. It hung over the river slightly, its blue-black water swirling gently before evening out into a wider, deeper body. It was a pond of sorts, a sizable punctuation before the river continued down the landscape. Their usual stomping grounds were too shallow for diving, but this would be perfect, they’d decided.

“Yeah, this is high enough.”

Pausing and staring downward at the water, the wind ruffled their hair nearly seventy feet up. Madara looked at Hashirama, and he looked back. They cracked wild grins.

“This was a great idea.”

“I know.”

Madara was the first to jump; he wasn’t about to let Hashirama beat him to it, and further, the sun was only getting hotter. The speed of his descent reminded him of being in battle, but the wind in his hair, knowing Hashirama would be coming right after him… This was freer. There was no danger here. No pressure or anyone he had to protect. Izuna was safe at home, and he could be here with his friend. Madara laughed in elation before he splashed down.

Under the water, it was cool and quiet, pleasant enough- but the sudden change was a bit shocking, and he wondered if Hashirama had taken the leap yet, so he hurried to the surface. About the time he broke through, Hashirama dropped into the water directly next to him, washing Madara in a wave. When he came back up, Madara was shaking his head and spitting water out. Hashirama laughed.

“I almost fell right into you!”

Madara snorted and laughed too.

“Yeah, well, you still splashed me good. C’mon, let’s go again!”

Hashirama pulled himself to the surface water, running across it to the shore quickly.

“Race you to the top!”

“Hey, that’s cheating! You got a head start!”

The rest of the afternoon was spent that way. They raced up the cliff and to the top of the tree. They dove and took breaks to swim. Madara would throw Hashirama into the water when he asked and when he didn’t. They played tag on the surface of the lake, bobbing under when they were cornered. They skipped stones and took turns swimming to the bottom and retrieving heavier and heavier rocks. They tried diving together, hand-in-hand. Madara couldn’t think of a moment he felt more peaceful than when he opened his eyes beneath the water to see Hashirama looking back at him with a smile, hair floating around his head like a sunflower. It made him wonder if this was what life was supposed to be like, when war did not exist. Was this what they were fighting for? This effortless happiness?