𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐒𝐓 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 | madara/izuna uchiha

[hachi]

[Name] and Madara bid Tajima goodbye and left the room, [Name] still carrying Haruka in her arms. By now, a small frown creased her delicate features, and her mind went haywire as she internalised her predicament. She absentmindedly followed Madara through the empty hallways of Tajima's home, and didn't say a word right up until they made it to the front door. There, they were met by a puffed looking Izuna, who nearly bowled over Madara as he came flying through the front door.

"Ji-chan!" cheered Haruka as his uncle straightened himself up, grinning at the three with a hand behind his head.

"Hey!" he said. "Did you already meet up with otou-sama?"

[Name]'s frown increased and Madara merely grimaced at his younger brother. Izuna's smile faltered, and he shot [Name] a sympathetic look.

"How bad was it?" he asked. [Name] sighed and rolled her eyes, stepping out of the house. The two brothers followed suit, Izuna shooting Madara and [Name] worried looks. They ended up walking down the main road of the compound, where children continually swamped them to the point where they lost sight of [Name]. By the time they emerged from the sea of children, [Name] had vanished, along with Haruka. Izuna craned his neck to look around, and sighed as he realised that [Name] was gone. Once the children had all dispatched, and Izuna made sure that Miya was completely gone from the scene, he turned to his brother, who had begun to walk back to their home.

"H-Hey! Madara, wait!" he called, rushing after his brother. "What happened? Did father not accept Haru?"

Silence.

"Oh, he accepted him, all right," said Madara a while later, a bitter tone in his voice. "Just with his own little twist."

Izuna raised an eyebrow at his older brother.

"Which was...?"

Madara let out a poisonous laugh, his smile obviously wrought with scorn.

"According to him, Haruka can't be accepted into the clan until his mother becomes an Uchiha," he said with contempt in his voice. Izuna froze, and stared blankly at Madara.

"So you... and [Name]...?" His voice trailed off as his thoughts consumed him; it hadn't even been a day since he'd declared he'd never lose to his brother, and now, he'd already lost.

"Oh now, Izuna, don't look so forlorn!" said Madara, slapping his brother's back. Izuna looked up at him, confused as they continued to trudge along the road. Completely bypassing their home, the two brothers subconsciously began to head in the direction of the dango shop just down the road.

"What do you mean? You and [Name] have to get married before otou-sama accepts Haruka into the clan, right?" said Izuna in a defeated tone, hanging his head. Madara gave him a little smile.

"Not exactly..." he said. "Well, it's up to [Name] who she wants to marry, really. And there's no doubt in my mind she's already got a list of suitable candidates she's ready to go and ask."

"What do you mean?" repeated Izuna, looking more confused than ever. Madara sighed, and stopped in his tracks, halting his brother along with him.

"Izuna, before father can accept Haruka as his grandchild and my rightful heir, he's making [Name] marry into the clan," he said in an explanatory tone. "But, he's letting her choose any man from the clan she wishes to marry, and judging by how I've treated her in the past, I have a feeling I'm not at the top of her list."

Izuna let out a low whistle. Ouch.

"So you see, Izuna, the odds are more in your favour than they ever were before," continued Madara in his bitter tone. Izuna frowned; his brother sounded... serious.

"Wait. Madara, why did you come back to Konoha?" asked Izuna, a theory beginning to formulate in his mind. Before he could speculate, however, he decided to make sure his theory was correct. Madara laughed yet again.

"I came back for [Name], Izuna. I come back for her, and then this gets thrown at me," he said in a taut voice. "I came back for [Name], Izuna, and now every chance I had left with her is blown. Every. Single. One. I know for a fact that [Name] would never choose me for this ridiculous proposal, and I know that father knows this. It's unfair, really- I haven't even had a chance to begin making it up to her, and already, she's out of my reach."

Izuna bit his lip, wondering whether he should speak his mind or not.

"Well, Madara... maybe father was right in setting this up," he said slowly, carefully watching his brother for any sign of anger against him. "Even he saw the wrongness of your actions, brother. Maybe he's just trying not to let [Name] get hurt again. The last time was pretty agonising in itself, and I know for a fact that [Name] and father barely got along well."

"Are you trying to say I don't deserve another chance with [Name]?"

Izuna clenched his jaw.

"No," he say stiffly. "I'm saying [Name] deserves a chance with someone better."

"Such as yourself, then?"

"I'd be honoured if [Name] asked me to marry her. Even though it should be the other way around."

"Tch. So be it. It's [Name]'s decision, and for all we know, she might not even choose either of us."

Izuna scowled as Madara ruffled the top of his head and began sauntering off, hands in the pockets of his yukata.

"So be it, Madara. So be it."