Naruto : Uchiha : Chapter 68

He himself was alright, all due to his Senju genes empowering his physical resistance to those toxins. But Sasuke hadn't had that privilege with him. Even with all his experience, the man could have done only so much.

They were well past their primes after all…

And by Kami did he know - oh he did know - that if not for his chain smoking friend - he would be six feet under right now.

...

But this did give him the time to think. Each beep of those pulsing machines gave him a sign of remembrance of all that had taken place. To devise several presumptions about what had taken place, and how those events could be twisted in the most glorified way possible so that they came out on top.

Years of manipulating a complete village full of shinobi, and being called a master manipulator throughout the elemental nations did add onto the fact.

But the first thing that had made him a bit relieved was that they had come out of that hell alive and kicking. Even after all the cards being stacked against them, they had come out on top - again.

Survival was a win in his eyes each time he went into battle.

Surely, Kumogakure would be in turmoil right now. They would be absolutely furious - livid, even.

But what if they weren't?

What if they hadn't known what the Raikage had planned due to the scarce of information being leaked on that certain ambush?

It was certainly a scarce shot, that too by a long-shot. But it could pay off…

And it was possible, which made way for endless possibilities for him to manipulate and turn the tide in their favor. If they really didn't know, then maybe - just maybe - he could stall the villages before they went against each other. It would give the Leaf village just enough time to prepare for what was to come.

Heedlessly going into combat on the scale of a war between nations was not going to happen - not on his watch that is. And falling prey to an enemy trap had already almost costed his companion and most trusted shinobi's life.

But for now, if his assumptions…more like gamble of sorts were true enough to pay off. It would be a ripe fruit prepared for their taking.

And the key point what made it all possible was that all the Raikage's men were dead. He was sure of that. That left no evidence of what would have happened for the Cloud to scrape out.

They were brought back to the Leaf's custody by Sasuke's summons no doubt about it, the monkey clan had been with them enough to know that the spoils of war were always to be reaped.

So the Leaf right now possessed all the victim bodies they had killed off in their battle royal.

All but those two baboons with jewelry coated hair.

And just the thought of those two - the key to this particular chain of manipulations - made him smirk. A smirk, a simple smirk that would have made even the Shinigami shy away from his face with just a mere glance right now.

As far as he could remember, their names were Kinkaku and Ginkaku. The Gold and Silver brothers, now he remembered those no named B-ranked shinobis in the bingo books.

But they were nothing like what their profiles spoke off. They were easily S-rank to begin with, without the fact that their blood was far too valuable than anyone who wasn't a royal Senju or Uchiha to him.

To think that the Raikage had kept those gems hidden from everyone in the world. And to do that, he would have had to keep their existences a secret from his own village too.

For the fear of his own people leaking out the news of his trump cards wasn't something the Raikage would chance enough to take.

And that is where lay the crack in their walls that he would exploit to it's fullest potential - to make a whole damn funnel out of it for the Leaf to invade.

Now what would a Kage do…no scratch that. What would a village…now with their Kage MIA, do in such a situation?

A village whose Kage had gone off to meet with another one at neutral grounds would surely send a missive to the Leaf for answers, when everything they could investigate would finally come to a naught.

It would come to a naught.

Answers that would determine the fate of the Leaf in the coming few years now lay in his palms. He couldn't help but loathe the emotions that played deep within his heart at the thoughts that were now running rampant within his mind.

He loved it, he absolutely loved it. Just the thought of manipulating everyone made him almost turn giddy on the inside. How he could manipulate those with a lesser conscience than his own - that made up most of the damn world to do his own bidding just made each and every nerve he possessed tingle in delight.

All the while, them never even realizing what they had fallen prey to before they were far too deep into it to get out.

Just those looks when he was standing on top of their fallen forms, with them just realizing his plans to the fullest while the shine of life left their eyes.

That was what made him feel truly alive.

There was a reason even his elder brother was truly scared of him…no not him. It was his mind, the weapon he had far too much skill and knowledge to use that even scared the man revered as the 'God of Shinobi' out of his wits.

Even Hashirama Senju knew that after Madara Uchiha, the only person who had the power and mind to spark a whole war or to dampen it's flames to his own will, was his little brother.

Tobirama Senju himself.

And today he would do just that.

The plan was set in his mind, he just had to lay the pieces now. And then…

Let the actions unfold right before his very eyes…

The gentle click and creaking of the door made his neck snap to in the direction of said outlet. His own form slumping seeing his sister-in-law step in the room in her usual kimono but with a small clipboard - no doubt their medical reports - in her palm.

He just watched her come closer to him and averted his eyes down to his lap, his earlier thoughts all but lay forgotten now. He wouldn't - more like he couldn't bare to look at her.

Anything she did…slap him, punch him or even outright stab a kunai straight through his heart; he would take it without even hesitating…

"I'm glad you're alright Tobirama…" her arms wrapped around his head and pulled him close into her chest. Her warm embrace served nothing but to make himself feel even worse than before.

The fact that she just didn't have the soul to hate him, made him hate himself even more so than before.

Mito could see his troubled eyes, for Tobirama Senju never was one to look away from a person's gaze. His pride was too great to avert his eyes from someone and he always met one's gaze with his own almost diligently each time.

But just the fact that he did so with her, told her just how much he was suffering on the inside.

She could comfort him, he was after all the only one she had left other than her two babies back home. Even though being his sister-in-law, she had always treated him like a mother of sorts.

Chastising him for every little thing and making fun of each little mistake he made - which were far too scarce for her liking so she did learn to relish in those moments as much as she could.

He had always been strong for them, for everyone. He was the pillar that everyone looked up to, but she knew no one ever saw the troubled man within that shell.

And she was the only one who ever broke past his shell that way other than the people he allowed to get close to him.

All other than one person who wasn't with them anymore…

Those people could be counted on one's fingertips, and still have some remaining…

"It's alright…" her soft whisper cooed him, running her fingers through his shaggy white hair gently. She could feel her kimono get a bit damp, but his shoulders never quivered or he let out even a small sound of emotions.

But she knew he was crying, this was as close you would get to seeing Tobirama Senju in pain.

He always cried silently out of everyone's eyesight.

"I'm sorry Mito…" he rasped out, the ventilator pipe chocked within his throat making it almost impossible to speak a full sentence. "…I'm so so sorry." he didn't ask for forgiveness. There was no forgiveness for this failure…

There would only be retribution.

"Shh…" the lady hushed him up, continuing on keeping him in the embrace for as long as he needed it. And when he clutched the back of her kimono in his fist and curled up slightly in her arms - she smiled.

"I'm so sorry, forgive me…" he asked for her forgiveness. He needed it, the thought of his own family hating him was just too much to bear - even for him.

Even if she lied and didn't mean it, just the words alone would give him enough to go on doing his work just as before. Until he had completed all of his responsibilities.

"There's nothing to forgive, you did all that you could. You are human too Tobirama, no one is perfect. Don't try to be one, it never ends well." She whispered wisely, making him - Tobirama Senju … the man hailed as the smartest person in the world right now - feel like a child in his mother's arms.

She always was the wiser one of the two when it came to moments like these. And she had the biggest heart out of all the Uzumaki's -( and that was saying something )- in his mind.

...

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