Hashirama and Madara exchanged glances as they stood on opposite sides of the river, their faces filled with worry. Their forced smiles were nothing more than thin masks hiding their anxiety and fear.
Then each of them took out a stone and pretended to play a game of skipping stones across the water. When each of them caught the stone thrown by the other, they noticed that there was writing on it.
"Run."
Madara read the word written on his stone and felt his heart tighten, because he knew that Hashirama had not been joking and that the warning was real. He then raised his eyes and looked at Hashirama, who had done the same. Their eyes carried the same meaning.
Then they smiled as they said goodbye to each other, and before each of them could flee the place at full speed, what they had feared happened. Figures shot out from among the trees at incredible speed, passed them like the wind, and continued beyond them before stopping above the waters of the small river, facing one another.
"I didn't expect you to show up, Tobirama."
A child bearing the Uchiha clan crest on his back spoke, his eyes carrying a sharp gaze as he pointed his weapon at another child standing before him. The latter had snow-white hair and serious features, making him look older than his age.
"Izuna Uchiha."
Tobirama replied in a cold voice.
"Butsuma Senju. I didn't expect you to have the same idea."
The patriarch of the Uchiha clan spoke to his opponent and sworn enemy, the patriarch of the Senju clan, his tone carrying a hint of mockery.
Then, after a brief moment of silence, the four figures vanished from their positions and clashed with tremendous force, their swords colliding and sending metallic sparks through the air as the river water trembled from the force of the impact. It was a duel between two pairs, each facing his traditional opponent: Tobirama Senju against Izuna Uchiha, both the same age and fighting with skill far beyond their years.
As for the patriarch of the Uchiha clan, Tajima, he was fighting the patriarch of the Senju clan, Butsuma, in an encounter that was far from unfamiliar to either of them. They had been fighting each other for decades, and every battle between them ended without a decisive result, as though fate wanted them to continue this endless cycle of violence.
In the background, Madara and Hashirama stood there, shock filling their faces along with the shifting emotions of fear and deep sorrow within the two children, because they had never expected things to reach this point, nor that each of them would find himself facing enemies from the other clan.
They were not afraid only for themselves. They were also afraid for their younger brothers and their families, remembering everything they had heard from their teacher Leon, whose words still echoed in their ears.
Then, as if the two patriarchs had realized the best way to break the stalemate, each of them aimed his weapon at the other's child. The moment one of them intervened to save his child, he would create an opportunity for the other to deliver a decisive strike.
"Trriiiing."
Two stones shot through the air with great force and struck the two weapons that were aimed at Tobirama and Izuna, changing their trajectories. Then Hashirama appeared in front of his brother Tobirama, standing between him and danger. Madara did the same, appearing in front of Izuna and standing like a shield.
"I won't allow anyone to hurt my brother, Izuna."
Madara spoke in a sharp voice. His voice trembled from the intensity of his emotions, but it carried an unyielding determination.
Hashirama replied, his voice carrying the same determination and resolve:
"And I won't allow anyone to hurt my brother, Tobirama."
At the same time, the two children looked at each other, their gazes carrying seriousness, sadness, and acceptance of what the situation had become. At the same time, they carried a deep understanding of their intertwined fate.
------------
If you are enjoying this work , My P*atreo*n is more than 70 chapters ahead.
P*atreo*n :Aaron4dicard
Thank you to everyone who reads and supports the work .