Imma give you guys a nosebleed >w> XD Bwahahahaha!! Enjoy Madara sama's hotness!
This chapter is dedicated to _Shiroh_! Happy reading!
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Akina pov:
Upon hearing a groan, I turned my attention away from the herbs I was grinding to the injured man lying on one of the mattresses. I left the herbs as they were, semi grinded, and hurried over to the man. I sat on my knees next to him and reached out to touch his forehead gently. I removed the cold cloth I had placed there and checked his pulse at the base of his neck.
"W-what happened?" He asked in a hoarse voice.
"You were unconscious for three days, sir. You were poisoned." I explained gently. "How do you feel now?"
"Like shit."
I flinched at his choice of words but I didn't say anything in return. Instead, I dipped the cloth in water, wrung it and put it back on his forehead.
"This Senju b*******! They think they're so great! I'm going to – hrrkk!"
He was cut short of his complaining when he tensed his body too much. He gasped at the pain he felt and I couldn't help but let out a soft sigh.
"You shouldn't try to get up or stress your body, sir. You need to rest." I said with a smile which I hoped he returned.
"Ah yes. Thank you, Akina." He responded, the smile heard in his voice.
I gave him a nod, still smiling, and got up so I could get back to preparing fresh medicine.
More than two weeks have passed in a flash since I began to treat the ailing and injured in the Uchiha Compound. The days have been really busy because there are usually at least six to seven shinobi coming in every day at different times for treatment. Most of the shinobi who come in are those who are poisoned or are suffering from wounds that cannot be healed by the medical nins. If I had to cater to all the shinobi injured in the fights, I'm sure I would have more patients than what I can manage.
Hiro and I were shifted to another room closer to the infirmary and closer to a bigger herb garden once we began treating shinobi as the Uchiha Clan's official healers. One of the rooms in the infirmary was assigned specifically for patients who would come to us for healing while the other rooms were left for the medical nins to patch up less serious wounds.
In the time I have been here, I have come to understand more about the Uchiha. They're a lot more powerful than the shinobi I have treated before besides a few from the Senju Clan and they have a lot of stamina and endurance when it comes to pain. They have a lot of brute strength, which I unfortunately got a chance to experience and ended up with a painful bruising on my upper arm that lasted for four days, and are rough when talking. When they interact with me, they don't bother with the honorifics and merely call me by my name. But I make sure that Hiro and I speak to them respectfully, always using sama and san when required.
As far as I have seen, I don't think Madara sama is the only one with a short temper. All of the shinobi I've attended to till now have very short tempers, especially when they talk about the Senju Clan – the Uchiha seem to hate the Senju with a passion so strong. They're also very impatient and expect things to happen in the bat of an eye lid. It's a little tiring to deal with on a daily basis but I've learnt not to poke my nose in their matters unless really required. If they ask me for an explanation on my treatment procedure, I explain it as simply as possible and if they ask me for my opinion on any clan's behavior, I pass it off by saying I am mostly unaware of the details.
Most of the shinobi were friendly though and our stay here wasn't as bad as we thought it would be. Madara sama and Izuna sama too were quite friendly and usually came to us for treatment – even if their wounds were just surface scratches or painful bruises that could be taken care of easily by a medical nin. Izuna sama was especially kind and Madara sama, despite being rough and sort of intimidating, was an absolute gentleman.
I'm not going to comment on how he is while fighting or during meetings he had with his clan though because I had never seen him in that kind of circumstance.
"Akina."
I stopped what I was doing and turned around upon hearing Madara sama's voice. I heard his footsteps and sensed his chakra vaguely as he walked to where I was standing and came to a stop a few feet from me. I gave a respectful bow but wondered why Izuna sama wasn't with him. They were always together so having Madara sama visit me alone was odd.
"Welcome back, Madara sama. Is there something I can help you with?" I asked with a smile, hoping that he didn't have any serious wounds from the fight he had just returned from.
"Hn, the usual." He said.
It was an obvious indication that I had to take care of the scratches and bruises he had on his body. I smiled and nodded, once again leaving the semi grinded herbs as they were, and walked with him towards the room Hiro and I slept in. For some odd reason, Madara sama preferred to have his and Izuna sama's wounds treated in private and not in the infirmary where the other shinobi usually get their treatment.
"Hiro? Can you look after the people here? I'm going to go to our room and give Madara sama his treatment." I smiled gently at Hiro while placing a hand on his head.
"Okay, I'll take care of everything, Onee chan!" He chimed cheerily making my smile widen.
Surprisingly, Hiro too had become comfortable around all the Uchiha members and didn't get nervous even when they yelled or complained or cursed while receiving treatment. He was still a little nervous around Madara sama though.
"Alright, I'll leave them in your care." I said and walked out of the infirmary and to our room along with Madara sama.
While I gathered all the things I needed to treat Madara sama's injuries, he took a seat on one of the pillows on the floor and waited. When I had everything I needed, I sat on my knees in front of him and proceeded with placing my hand on his chest to first sense all the abnormalities in his chakra flow. I could tell that he had a moderately deep cut on the side of his right calf and a mild bruising on his left collar bone besides light scratches here and there. It wasn't as bad as the injuries he and Izuna sama usually came in with.
Knowing what I had to deal with, I reached out for the wash cloth to clean the wound on his leg first. He tensed at the first touch, feeling the painful sting, but relaxed soon after. We sat in silence while I worked and after a while, I began to feel a little uncomfortable. But I didn't interrupt the silence and put all my concentration in wrapping up the wound on his leg and applying a surface salve on the bruise on his collar bone.
When I was done, I pushed all of the things away from me and looked forward at where Madara sama was sitting. His presence was strong but I had a feeling that he wasn't looking at me and that mentally he wasn't here.
"Madara sama?" I asked softly when he didn't move. The minute those words left my lips, I could feel his penetrating gaze on me. "Are you alright? You are very silent today."
"You have no reason to be concerned about my silence." He said flatly yet with a hint of gentleness.
"Of course." I responded with a chase bow.
We sat in silence once again and since Madara sama showed no signs of leaving, I too couldn't bring myself to leave. After a few more minutes, the curiosity that had been building up inside me since the past few days began to make me feel restless. With Madara sama in such close proximity, I couldn't help but want to reach out and trace his features to know what he looked like. That's how I always tried to get a vague idea on the appearance of a person and I had been feeling an overwhelming desire to know what Madara sama looked like too.
"Um, Madara sama?" I spoke up while summoning some courage.
"What is it?"
"Would it be alright if....if I could feel what you look like?" I asked, my voice soft and hesitant. "I'm fine if you aren't comfortable with it though."
I felt a little uncomfortable when he didn't respond to my request. I was sure he was watching me and I resisted from squirming or showing any sign of being uncomfortable under his gaze.
"Do what you wish." He finally said and it brought a smile upon my face.
I shifted closer to him and reached out with both hands. I hesitated just before I touched him but I took a deep breath and finally placed my hands on his chest. He stiffened under my touch and it caused me to tense a little too. But I didn't pull away.
Moving my hands away from his hard chest, I touched his muscular arms. I ran my hands up till his shoulders and realized that he was quite broad. In fact, he was almost twice as broad as me. I suppose it wasn't very surprising though because he's a full grown man and a powerful shinobi – it was obvious that he would be well built with strong toned body.
I proceeded to lift my hands and cup his face to feel his features. He had his eyes closed as I gently ran my thumbs over them, even feeling the slight bags under them that seemed to be a result of stress and strain. I then traced his perfectly straight nose, his high cheekbones, his defined jaw and finally his lips. He parted them under my touch and I could feel his warm breath on my fingers. My hand also came in contact with his soft hair and it made my skin tingle.
I had always known that he had long hair reaching till his waist. He kept it out of the way whenever I had to heal him and this was the first time I had touched it properly. Still cupping is face with one hand, I reached out to touch the strands that fell over his shoulder and even comb through it with my fingers. I couldn't help but smile at how nice it felt to do this.
"Madara sama? What color are you eyes and hair?" I asked, still running my hand through his hair. I also moved the longer fringe on the right side of his face behind his ear.
"What color? Why do you bother asking when you've never seen colors? You won't be able to picture them anyway." He replied with a slight scoff.
I smiled though and pulled my hands away from him and pushed a few strands of my hair behind my ears. "I wasn't born blind, Madara sama. I could see everything around me until I was five years old. I still vaguely remember colors and the appearance of certain objects around me."
"Is that so?" He mused and fell silent once again.
Taking the liberty to continue, I reached out for his hands this time. Holding one of his hands in mine, I touched his palm. It was rough and callused, very different from mine and Hiro's. His hand was large too and I felt oddly warmed – this hand, this rough yet warm hand, was what was guiding and protecting the Uchiha Clan. This hand was what was protecting me and Hiro.
I suppose it sounded odd when I put it like that. We were brought here against our will and forced to serve only the Uchiha Clan but we were being kept safe, away from the possible harm Hiro and I could have faced from the violence of war and fighting. We were given a wonderful room to stay in, healthy food three times a day and the reassurance of facing absolutely no danger. And most of it was thanks to Madara sama.
"Black." Madara sama said suddenly and broke me from my thoughts.
"Huh?" I asked confused while looking up.
"My hair and eyes. They're black. The characteristic trait of the Uchiha Clan is their black hair and black eyes. Our kekkei genkai when activated caused our eyes to turn red." He explained.
"I see." I said with a smile and let go of his hand to rest my hands on my lap. "I can tell that you're a very handsome man, Madara sama. Thank you for allowing my childish curiosity to be quenched."
I'm sure I had a light blush dusting my cheeks now. I felt mildly embarrassed for all that I had done but thankfully, Madara sama merely chuckled.
"You're a strange girl." He commented while getting up.
I too stood up and my ears twitched as I heard the ruffle of clothing. Madara sama put on his shirt and picked up his weapons pouch before walking towards the door with me following close behind. Just before we could go our separate ways, with me into the infirmary and Madara sama to wherever he had to go, I reached out and tugged on his sleeve to get him to stop. He turned to face me and I let go of his sleeve once again feeling mildly embarrassed.
"Madara sama, I had a favor to ask of you." I said while shifting on my feet with my head slightly down. "Could you give Hiro and me permission to go to the forest a bit to collect herbs? We're running short on some of them."
"Go to the forest to collect herbs? You have the herb garden so why do you need to go to the forest?" He asked, his voice now sounding sharp and suspicious.
I cringed slightly, feeling nervous at the sudden change in his demeanor. I took a step back involuntarily and fidgeted under his overpowering presence.
"T-the thing is, Madara sama, some herbs can only grow in their natural habitat. They require specific soil conditions and climatic conditions in order to grow." I explained. "Hiro and I used go to the forest every fifteen days and collect as much herbs as we could, dry them and store them so we could use them as and when required. We're almost out of four of the six that we usually have stored and we need them to prepare several antidotes as well as tonics. So I wanted to know if it would be possible to go to the forest for a bit."
"Very well, Izuna and I will accompany you since you say it's so important. Be ready in two hours." He said sternly before walking off without another word.
I looked up in the direction he had left, feeling anxiousness settle over me. He didn't sound very happy about my request to leave the Uchiha Compound. Perhaps he was thinking that I was using this reason to try and escape. Well, I wouldn't be able to get far even if I tried to escape – there was no way I could get away from a shinobi, let alone the leader of one of the strongest clans in existence. I wasn't lying about the herbs and our reducing stock and I'm sure they would understand and trust me when they saw it for themselves.
Heaving a soft sigh, I walked into the infirmary to check up on a few of the men and women resting. After rewrapping some of their wounds and giving them medicines to drink, I walked to where Hiro was sitting and completing the medicine I had pushed aside halfway. I crouched next to him and ruffled his head affectionately.
"Guess what, Hiro? Madara sama and Izuna sama said they're going to take us to the forest so we can pick the herbs we're running short of." I said and he perked up instantly.
"Really?!! We're going outside?!" He sounded ecstatic.
"That's right. We'll be leaving in a little while so you should wash up and get ready. I'll get the baskets ready." I said with a laugh.
"Okay!! I'll get ready quickly!" He chimed and worked even harder with grinding the herbs and extracting its juice.
I brought a fist to my lips and giggled. Giving him another ruffle, I got up and walked to the shelves to get out two big woven baskets that we could use to collect the herbs. Hiro and I spent the rest of the time we had sitting in the hallway and just basking in the sun. Hiro was weaving something with the grass that grew along with the herbs in the garden and he kept having me feel it as he progressed. We also shared some fruit that was kindly brought in by Taiki san.
Just as Madara sama had said, about two hours after we had gone our separate ways, he returned with Izuna sama, Tatsuo san and Ren san. The atmosphere around them was tense and Hiro had cowered behind me when we set off together to the forest to collect herbs.
The walk was uncomfortably silent. It was as if the light moment I had spent with Madara sama had never happened. The aura he gave off now was harsh and overwhelming that even I was finding it hard to walk next to him comfortably. This outing that I was looking forward to had suddenly turned to something I wanted to get over with as quickly as possible.
"Um, M-Madara sama?" I spoke up, finally unable to hold out under the pressure.
"What?" He spat, making me flinch.
"I-if we could stop for a moment, I-I can locate the herbs we need. If it's not t-too much trouble for you." I said while rubbing soothing circles on the back of Hiro's trembling hand that I was holding in mine.
"How will you locate them?" Izuna sama asked gently, easing out our nervousness just a bit.
"I can usually pick up the scent of the herbs. Most of them need the same climatic conditions so they will be abundantly available in the same place. We won't have to search for long."
"Hn, hurry up then." Madara sama said curtly.
I gave a nod and closed my eyes so I could concentrate better on the scents that filled my nostrils. I took a deep inhale while turning to different directions to feel the air currents and better find the herbs. It took me a few minute and the men waited patiently. When I could tell where we had to go in order to find the special herbs, I told them the way and we resumed our walk.
A few minutes later, we made it to a clearing where the scent of the herbs was concentrated. It brought a smile on my face and I walked forward without waiting for the others and felt the plants with my hands. I recognized most of them instantly and when I reached the possible center of the clearing, I sat down on my knees while placing the woven basket next to me. Hiro too sat next to me and reached out to touch the plants.
"Onee chan! These are really fresh!" He said, quite happy to see the good quality of the plants. "It's even better than the ones we used to get just outside the village!"
"It is, isn't it?" I said and plucked some of the leaves and caressed my cheeks with it. I also held it close to my nose and took in its unique aroma.
"They all look the same to me."
"Eek!" I jumped in surprise when I heard Izuna sama's voice right next to my ear. While Hiro and I were busy admiring the plants, Izuna sama had come to sit right next to me, quite close even, and I hadn't even realized it!
"I-Izuna sama! Y-you surprised me!" I said with a hand on my racing heart.
He chuckled and took the leaves that I had in my free hand. I assume he was looking at it and trying to figure out how it was different from the other plants around us.
"Would you like me to show you the difference?" I offered.
"Yeah! That would be nice!" Izuna sama said quite delighted.
"Tatsuo, Ren, I want you two to spread out and scout the area to make sure we don't have any unwanted company." Madara sama informed the two of them and they walked away after a word of acknowledgment.
Madara sama took a seat on the ground in front of me and Hiro just as Izuna sama had and spoke. "Since you've volunteered to tell Izuna about these plants, I'm quite interested to see how you differentiate them too. Enlighten us."
I gave a half hearted smile unsure of how to start. His mood seemed to have lightened up now but I was a little wary, nervous that he might get angry if I said something out of line. But Hiro saved me from embarrassing myself while stuttering out incoherent words by speaking up first.
"They look, feel and smell different!" He said and I heard him shuffle with plants in his hands. "See these two? The shape of the leaves are different! And they're used for different medicines!"
"Anyone can see that." Madara sama said amused. "Why don't you tell us about these two then?"
I think Madara sama held out two plants and Hiro looked over them. I was curious too so I reached out to Madara sama's hands and touched the two plants he was holding out. He had picked the Gingerfog plant and the Plumweed plant. They were very similar in terms of the roots, the shape of the leaves and probably even in color. But the smaller details were what made them so much more different from each other.
"Um these.....they're different by....um, I d-don't know...." Hiro finally confessed in a small voice.
"I'll tell you." I said with a laugh. "And Hiro? You should listen well too. You have to remember this."
I held up the Gingerfog plant first and plucked one of the leaves. Holding it flat on my palm, I held it out so all three people sitting around me could see it. I ran my finger from the stem of the leaf till the tip and smiled feeling the slightly rough hairs of the leaf caress my skin.
"This leaf is of the Gingerfog plant and is a very important ingredient in preparing antidotes for poisons from level eight to twelve. It suppresses the pain caused by the poison and helps with regenerating damaged cells." I explained and then reached out to the leaf of the Plumweed plant. "This is the leaf of the Plumweed plant used to prepare the salve that encourages the body to close up wounds overnight. It is a part of the salve that I used on Ren san to help close the wound on his chest."
"How do you tell the difference?" Izuna sama asked curiously.
"If you observe closely, the hairs on the leaves of the Gingerfog plant run from the stem till the tip while that of the Plumweed runs from the tip to the stem. They also smell different from each other. Gingerfog gives off a mildly bitter smell but Plumweed is sweet. Why don't you try smelling them?" I held out the leaves with one in each palm.
I didn't really feel anything when Hiro and Izuna sama bent close to my hand to inhale the scent of the herbs but when Madara sama took a hold of my hands one after the other in his gloved one and lifted them close to his face so he could smell them, my eyes went wide and my heart skipped a beat. I was reminded of how I had been so close to him before coming here – touching his face and his muscular body and being able to tell that he was a very handsome man. I felt embarrassed again and I had lowered my head to make sure that the redness of my face from the blood rush wasn't visible to him.
"That's quite something! I've never taken the time to observe such small details. You're really good at differentiating the herbs because you can do it without having to feel them like we did!" Izuna sama chimed.
"W-well, I have been doing for almost all my life." I said with a smile, having recovered slightly from Madara sama's gesture.
"As much as this is interesting, we don't have time to dawdle all day. You should collect all you need quickly and we should leave before any other clan tries to attack us." Madara sama said and stood up along with Izuna sama. "Izuna and I will be right here while keeping watch so hurry up."
"I understand, Madara sama." I said smiling and ushered Hiro to collect the herbs that he was familiar with.
Not wanting to cause Madara sama, Izuna sama, Tatsuo san and Ren san unnecessary trouble, I went ahead with collecting my share of herbs alongside Hiro while humming a soft tune to myself in content.
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Did your heart go doki doki at the moment between Madara and Akina?? Isn't he being so sweet with her?! >////< Although, Akina seems to be the only one flustered XD Madara finds her strange XD
But it's nice to see a different side of Madara, isn't it? He can be scary when he needs to but casual and rather playful when he's in a good mood. I assume that's how Madara would have remained if Izuna didn't die :'( Well, in this story, Madara still has Izuna by his side along with a strange girl XD so let's see how things progress, shall we?
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