Chapter Text
Today is Tobirama’s day off.
Izuna sits with him on the couch in the living room while they wait for Fuma Rin to arrive. She should be here in about an hour.
The apartment is quiet. Too quiet, almost. Tobirama sits beside him with a tablet resting on his knee. He looks relaxed at first glance, but Izuna notices he has not actually read the same page for the last several minutes.
Tobirama glances over eventually. “Have you thought about what you want to do once you recover?”
Izuna looks up from the book he is pretending to read.
“You could return to law school,” Tobirama continues. “If you still want to. I will cover the costs.”
Izuna’s chest tightens immediately. He does want to go back. He thinks about it more often than he probably should. But the thought feels selfish. So he only shrugs.
Tobirama exhales quietly. “If this is about money, stop worrying. Law school is not that expensive.”
“I do not want the debt I owe you to become even bigger. You already paid for my surgery. You saved Nii-san’s life. You are paying his hospital bills.” Izuna lowers his gaze to the book again. “Kagami’s school fees. Our clothes. Kagami’s room. You are letting us stay here indefinitely.”
Tobirama sets the tablet aside. “Izuna. You do not owe me anything.”
Izuna looks at him for a long moment. Nobody spends this much money for nothing. Nobody does all this without wanting something in return.
“You must want something,” Izuna says quietly. “Maybe you do not expect me to pay the money back, but people do not do this for free.”
Tobirama holds his gaze. “I want you back on your feet.”
Izuna notices the wording immediately. It’s not a denial. A bad feeling settles heavily in his stomach.
Then another memory pushes forward. Izuna’s fingers tighten slightly around the book. “Is it me you want?”
Tobirama flinches. Not obviously, just the slightest tightening around his eyes and a small hitch in his breathing.
If Izuna had not already been watching for it, he would have missed it completely.
Tobirama sighs softly and leans back against the couch. “I will not lie to you,” he says after a moment. “And I will not pretend I do not want you.”
Izuna’s pulse quickens.
“But not in the way you think.”
That only confuses Izuna more.
Tobirama rubs a hand over his face before continuing. “What I want from you is something you currently cannot give me. And you will not be able to give it until you have healed and are standing on your own feet again.”
Izuna frowns. “What does that even mean?”
“I want you to fall in love with me,” he says simply. “Not with my money. Not with the protection I can offer you. Not with my connections.” His mouth tightens faintly. “I want you to love me as a person.”
Izuna does not know what to do with that answer. The honesty of it catches him off guard more than anything else.
Tobirama continues before Izuna can respond. “Answer me honestly. In your current situation, are you capable of making an uninfluenced decision about dating me?”
Izuna opens his mouth automatically. Yes. The word is already there.
But Tobirama speaks first. “No, you are not.”
Izuna blinks at him.
“Right now you are worried about Madara. About Kagami. About housing. Food. Safety.” Tobirama’s voice sharpens slightly. “If I asked you now, you would say yes because you think you have to. Because you think I might stop paying the hospital bills otherwise. Or stop paying Kagami’s tuition. Or make you leave.”
Izuna feels heat crawl up his neck because part of that is true.
“That is exactly what I do not want,” Tobirama adds, more heated now. “I would rather remain your friend forever than have you agree to something because you feel cornered into it.”
Izuna swallows. He genuinely does not know what to say to that.
Tobirama exhales through his nose, visibly forcing himself to calm down. “My help is not entirely without conditions. You are not going to sit around doing nothing forever. Once you recover more, you will start rebuilding your life.”
Izuna listens quietly.
“You can return to law school. Get a job. Study something else entirely if you want.” Tobirama looks at him steadily. “But you are absolutely not going back to selling your body.”
Izuna stares at him. Those conditions do not even sound unreasonable to him. They sound like basic human decency. He never planned to sit around all day anyway. And honestly, he can understand why Tobirama dislikes the idea of Izuna sleeping with other people for money.
Tobirama’s voice softens again. “Only once you no longer need me, can you make a truly uninfluenced decision about whether or not you want to date me.”
Izuna’s throat feels strangely tight. He would have answered something.
He is not sure what. But he would have said something.
Then the intercom rings.
Tobirama stands. “That should be Fuma Rin.” He walks over to the intercom panel near the entrance and presses the button.
Izuna cannot hear the receptionist’s voice on the other end, but Tobirama replies with, “Send her up.”
Tobirama opens the door and invites Fuma Rin into the penthouse while Izuna watches from the couch.
Rin steps inside and pauses near the entrance to take off her coat. She hangs it carefully onto the wardrobe, then accepts the guest slippers Tobirama offers her and changes out of her shoes.
Izuna has not seen her in more than three years, but at first glance she barely looks different. She still dresses modestly and prefers neutral colors. Simple blouse. Dark skirt. Her hair is tied into the same neat bun she always wore when she worked for his father.
There is more gray in it now.
His gaze lingers briefly on the necklace around her neck. The pendant is unusually large and flashy compared to the rest of her appearance. It does not really suit her.
Rin walks into the living room and sits down opposite him.
“Would you like water, tea, or coffee?” Tobirama asks.
“Tea would be nice,” Rin replies politely.
Tobirama nods and disappears into the kitchen.
The room grows quiet after he leaves. Izuna does not want her to feel uncomfortable, especially because she already seems slightly tense. Most people probably would not notice it, but her shoulders are a little stiff and she keeps adjusting the sleeve of her blouse for no real reason.
“Did you get here without any trouble?” Izuna asks.
Rin nods quickly. “Yes. I found the building without problems.”
“That’s good.”
A short silence settles over the room.
“How have you been?” Izuna asks.
“Fine,” Rin replies almost immediately. Then she tilts her head slightly. “And you?”
“I’m alright.”
The answer comes out automatically. Izuna can tell from the small pause afterward that she does not really believe him, but she lets it go.
Rin folds her hands in her lap. “What have you been doing these past three years?”
“I left law school,” Izuna explains. “Then I got a job that allowed me to look after Kagami.”
At the mention of Kagami, Rin’s expression softens. “How is he doing?”
“He’s fine. He’s at school right now.”
Before the conversation can stall again, Tobirama returns from the kitchen carrying a tray with tea and a plate of cookies. He sets the tea in front of Rin first before setting the rest down on the table, then sits beside Izuna.
“Thank you for coming and taking this case,” Tobirama tells her. “I know you usually handle smaller cases, but we need someone we can trust.”
Rin smiles faintly. “Izuna is like a grandson to me. Of course I’ll help him.”
Warmth spreads through Izuna’s chest at that. She sounds exactly like she used to back when she worked for his father.
Tobirama places the notice with the court date onto the low table between them. “We do not have much time. Konoha East appears to have bribed officials for an earlier court date. Unfortunately there is not much we can do about that.”
Rin’s mouth tightens slightly as she picks up the notice. “That appears to be the case.”
“They’re afraid,” Izuna says quietly. “That’s why they’re trying to rush us.”
“That certainly seems likely.” Rin nods slowly while looking over the document. Then she raises her eyes toward Izuna. “So what is your plan?”
Izuna shifts slightly against the couch cushions, careful not to pull at his still healing stomach. “There obviously is not enough time for a handwriting expert,” he explains. “That is probably exactly what Konoha East intended. We could try to find someone willing to make room for us on such short notice, but the chances of finding a decent expert that quickly are pretty low.”
Rin taps one finger lightly against the edge of her teacup. “Then how are you planning to prove you did not sign the forms?”
Izuna pauses. A strange feeling creeps into his stomach. He is almost certain they never told her that detail. Tobirama only told her it was a case against Konoha East regarding Madara. At least Izuna thinks that is all he said.
Maybe Tobirama mentioned the forged signature and simply forgot to tell Izuna about it? Maybe Rin guessed?
Izuna glances toward Tobirama. Tobirama’s expression remains calm, but there is a faint tension around his eyes now, like he noticed the same thing.
Izuna looks back at Rin.
Her fingers brush over the pendant again. The movement looks casual at first glance, but she keeps doing it. And the necklace itself still feels wrong.
It is too flashy for her. Too noticeable compared to the rest of her clothes. The pendant also seems thicker than normal jewelry should be.
Cold realization settles heavily in Izuna’s chest.
Before he fully thinks the decision through, he leans forward across the table. Pain shoots through his abdomen from the sudden movement, but he ignores it.
Rin startles when he grabs the pendant. “Izuna, what are you—”
He turns the pendant over in his hand. A tiny red light flashes on the back.
Izuna’s pulse spikes instantly. Without hesitation, he yanks the necklace hard enough to snap the chain apart.
Rin gasps and instinctively raises a hand to her neck.
Izuna looks up at Tobirama, breathing harder now. “Call the police.”