Well, that was unexpected

Third degree burns

As an apology for being gone for the past two months, please accept this painting I made of Tobirama. Explanation for why I've been gone so long at the end of chapter, since I've had a bunch of people messaging me about updates these past few weeks.

After nearly two hours training, Tobirama finally acknowledged his audience. It seemed that Madara was angry with his brother for something, as usual, and the two of them were mid-argument when Tobirama interrupted ("how dare you eat my dango? I trusted you!").

"You two are awfully lively over there," he shouted. Raising his voice was the only way to ensure he was heard over both the rushing water of the garden's stream, as well as the boys' bickering. It seemed they had reached the level of volume only attainable by bickering siblings. Behind him, with a hand bunched in the loose fabric of his training pants, Tohru laughed.

"What else should you expect," came Madara's indignant cry. "When your brother is as inconsiderate as Izuna? A man's dango is sacred, and he has violated the most basic principles of trust and respect for one's dango!" It was hard enough to take Madara's dramatics seriously without his arms flailing around him wildly, but he couldn't seem to control himself in his despair. While Madara threw his temper tantrum, Izuna was the picture of calm smugness. He was laid back in the grass, arms crossed beneath his head and on his face the smirk he reserved for taunting his elder brother.

Tobirama could do nothing but shake his head at their antics. With no idea how to respond, he instead took his newest ward by the hand and lead her back toward the house. She followed along obediently, chattering about how much fun she'd had training (being called Tobirama-sensei was something he never expected to enjoy so much). It took Tobirama by surprise when he felt a sharp pain in his hand, followed by a deep burning sensation. He was even more shocked when Tohru cried out as well and pulled away from his grasp. His right hand was glowing white with heat, and poor Tohru had been unlucky enough to get burned. His experience as a medical shinobi told him that tending to injuries earlier was most effective, so he instantly dropped to a knee and took hold of the child's wrist in his unaffected hand. Healing her was harder without the use of both hands, but he would not risk furthering her injuries when he was still unsure if his right hand was safe.

"Tobirama! What happened?" Madara eyes darted frantically between the two of them, unsure which to be more worried for. His heart screamed at him to check on his lover's hand, but his mind screamed at him Tohru's well-being was of utmost importance.

"Quiet!" Tobirama sent him a stern glare over his shoulder before turning back to Tohru. She was obviously in pain, but the Uchiha had raised her well to be one of them. Despite the skin on her hand being burned to crisps, she did not shed a single tear. The healing process was longer without the use of his right hand, and it took him nearly thirty minutes to repair all of the damaged flesh. As he wrapped her hand in clean bandages (with the help of one worried Izuna), he could feel Madara's questioning eyes burning into the back of his head. For the first time, he spared a glance at his glowing hand. A seal mark burned fiercely and blindingly white on his skin, and he felt his heart drop when he realized what that meant. He forced some chakra into the seal and closed his eyes, sensing within the Senju compound through it. Within moments, it faded away into nothing more than a grey outline on his skin.

With Madara now kneeling at his side, he reached a hand out to caress Tohru's hair. She was still shaken and trying desperately to hide it, a true Uchiha warrior even at such a young age. "Are you alright, child?" he asked.

With a weak smile, she nodded. "Yes, sensei." Unable to control himself, Tobirama pulled her into his arms. She had been so sweet to him, and he had hurt her. Releasing a shuddering breath, he pushed her back into Izuna's chest and told him to take her inside. With them gone, only Madara remained by his side.

"Tobirama?" For a moment, Tobirama wrapped his arms around himself. He didn't want Madara to see how upset he was, so he tried his best to pull himself together. But when he felt cool fingers on the back of his neck and sliding into his hair, he lost his composure. Before Madara knew what was happening, he was on his back in the grass with Tobirama on top of him, face pressed into his yukata and shaking. "Oh, Tobi," he sighed. They laid there a long while, arms wrapped around each other until Tobirama pulled away sharply. Though he was facing away, Madara could tell he was struggling to hold back tears. He moved to hold around Tobirama's waist and press kisses into his neck, but was alarmed when that only seemed to make the shaking more violent. Not knowing what else to do, he stood and pulled Tobirama up with him. "Come on," he said. "Let's get you insi-"

"No!" Tobirama pulled his hand away sharply and cradled it to his chest in shame. "Not yet. Please."

Madara seated himself back in the grass, and wrapped his arms back around that thin waist. It was not often Tobirama reached out to him the way he had, and it was heartbreaking to see just how upset he was. "I am sure that Tohru will be alright, Tobirama. After all, it was you who tended to her wounds." He moved to press a reassuring kiss against his hair, but Tobirama only shook his head.

"It is not only about her," he said shakily. "Of course I am worried, and I never wanted to hurt the poor child. But it's less about hurting her, and more about what this means." The outline of the seal was still a faint outline on his right hand, and Madara traced it lightly with his fingers. When Tobirama tried to pull away, he only held on tighter and pressed his lips to the marking. With his eyes, he begged to know what was troubling that delicate heart he loved so dearly. It was painful when Tobirama looked away from him and refused to meet his eyes.

"This seal functioned as the security to my office. When activated, it functions as a sensory link between myself and the compound, so that I can tell exactly who entered and what it is they are looking for." As clan head, Madara understood the dangers that an information leak could pose for the Senju clan, but the worry on Tobirama's face did not seem to be for the lives of his clan. Though he did not understand why his lover cared so deeply for such a cruel clan, he knew Tobirama would have been home in an instant if he believed their lives were at stake. If whoever entered posed no danger, that only left one option to make Tobirama this upset. He had shaken the same way before when Madara's wrath reminded him too closely of him.

"Hashirama now knows I am long gone. It will not be long now before I am found and dragged back home." Finally, he turned to stare into Madara's face, crimson eyes filled with tears. Though Madara could not tell if he was crying because he did not want to leave, or if he was afraid to return to his brother's grasp. He could do nothing but hold Tobirama close, heart breaking each time he felt him tremble.

I know I was updating pretty often when this story first started so I'm super sorry for disappearing! I had surgery on my finger back in May so I couldn't type for a few weeks without it being painful, and it just took me a while to get back into the habit. Since I've been gone so long I forgot where this book was supposed to be going in the upcoming chapters (I had about five planned ahead of time before my surgery), so now I'm trying to remake this entire book into a better story. Before there was no real plan for the plot line, which is what I'm working to plan out now, so bear with me please! I wasn't going to post this chapter yet, but there's a few people commenting and sending me DM's about it so figured I owed you guys an explanation on why I kind of vanished.