#What is the difference between a haori and a kimono?

[y0uc4n7kn0w]

Day 6 of Hotsui Matsuri 2024: Demystifying Japanese Traditional Fashion

Welcome back to our final day of Hotsui Matsuri! I, Star, felt like it was over too fast -cries in shoujo- but it’s all good, we’ll have more content to give you next year too! For now though, we’ll end this year in a fashionable exit as I take you on a short tour of Japan’s traditional fashion trends. From how to wear a Kimono to when to Yukata I got chu! I’m pretty passionate about this subject…

[sandwitchstories]

Kinktober Day 2 Prompt- My Monster - Sukuna x Reader

I found this started in my bog of eternal WIPS earlier today. The horny gremlin living in my brain was able to beat back to writer's block and crank this out. As you all know, True Form Sukuna makes me feel things!

So here, my fellow heathens. Gather round and enjoy some DP with our favorite homocidal maniac!

If you prefer to read on AO3, click here!

Summary: You knew what you were doing when you wore that Kimono. Just like you knew what you were doing with the words you choose. You knew exactly who he was, what you married and what you wanted. And you knew exactly how to get it. WC: 1800+

CW: SMUT, MDNI, AFAB terms used to describe reader's naughty bits, true form Sukuna, DP, Oral sex(f!receiving), breeding kink, creampie, Sukuna and his ability to conjure multiple mouths where he wants, and more.

Divider by: @sweetmelodygraphics

“You knew just what you were doing when you wore that particular kimono, didn’t you?,” Sukuna said before leaning his head down and capturing Y/N’s lips, pinning her smaller frame between him and the wall inside the entryway to his estate.

“Is there something wrong with my attire, my lord?” she asked, looking up at him with absolutely feigned innocence. 

He narrowed his eyes on her. She knew damn well what she was doing. She knew damn well that this kimono always shifted in a way that at his height he would look down into her cleavage everytime he glanced down at her. Which at 2 feet taller than her was every single damn time he spoke to her. MY lord? So she wants to play a little game, huh?

“Currently the only problem with your attire is that you are still wearing it. Take it off.”

Y/N glanced around, obviously concerned that someone may see them. “Ry-”

He put a finger to her lips. She had started this. “How do you address your King?”

She arched an eyebrow at him, challenging him, like she always did. “My lord, someone could come upon us.”

“That’s their problem, isn’t it?” he gave her a sly grin. He was a sadistic fuck and she knew this. She just brought out a different type of sadism in him. “Take. Off. This. Dress. Now.”

She tilted her head back to look into his eyes, “I’ll do anything you want. Anything you say. No arguments. I promise. Just take me to our room first.”

His cock twitched at the implications of her words. He had a very filthy mind and a very beautiful woman who he loved to fuck into a coma. This was worth the momentary delay. He grinned, snatching her up over his shoulder and heading towards their room.

“Put me down! I can walk!” she laughed, trying to keep her voice quiet so as not to wake any of the servants or Uraume.

She yelped when his hand slapped down on her ass, a little bit harder than his usual playful smacks. “You said anything…” he said in a sing-song voice as he took long strides towards their room. 

He had one arm wrapped around her knees, keeping her legs against his chest. He got a  wicked idea. Without slowing his pace, he slid his hand up her thighs under her kimono. He slid it between her legs, grinning when his hands found only her flesh. He ran one finger through her slick before shoving it into her tight cunt and smirking at the whimper she let out. 

“Look at you, such a naughty, perfect little woman for me.” He continued to finger her cunt as he walked. But as promised, she was not arguing or yelling at him for indecency. She was merely clinging to the fabric of his haori, face buried into the material whimpering softly as her pussy got more slick by the second.

Sukuna was too worked up to bother with removing clothing. As soon as they were in their room he sat down on their bed. He moved her quickly off of his shoulder for her to sit on his lap facing away from him. Two large hands moved under her robes to grip her thighs firmly and spread them wide, wide open. 

His third hand shoved under the part in the top of her robe to hungrily and roughly grope at her breast, conjuring a mouth on his hand to hungrily suck and nibble on her nipple. And his fourth sinful hand was at her lips, pressing in to fuck her mouth with them while he sucked hungrily at her neck.

He moved those spit slicked fingers down to her spread open cunt, sliding them up and down her slit before shoving two large, thick fingers into her dripping hole. 

“Oh gods!” she cried out, legs quivering in his hands as he set a hard rough face with the fingers in her cunt. He pressed his palm against her, conjuring yet another mouth on that hand to suck and flick at her clit. The moans and whimpers falling from her throat were vulgar and desperate. Breathy, broken cries. And every single one of them went straight to her cunt, slicking his fingers more and more. 

“Such a good girl for me. You know who you belong to. Who this cunt belongs to. Say it,” he said, thrusting his fingers particularly hard against her for emphasis.

“You! Sukuna! I belong to you!” she whimpered, hips trying to ride his hand in desperate jerky motions.

Just before she was about to cum he pulled his hand away, laughing at her squawk of disapproval. “Take these robes off. Now.”

Y/N did so quickly, she knew better than to keep him waiting when he was already this worked up. He would never harm her, never. But she would rather he did not rip this kimono off of her in his hunger. She was rather fond of it. 

He stripped off the rest of his clothes at the same time, moving to lean back on two of his hands, another cupped and stroked his two cocks at the same time, licking his lips on both of his mouths. “Get over here, woman.”

She grinned as she gingerly moved to straddle him, pressing against him like a cat in heat. She ground against his cocks hungrily. His hands gripped her hips and moved her up his body onto his stomach. He watched her eyes roll back into her head as his stomach mouth's large tongue lapped at her juicy cunt. He could taste her in all of his mouths and it made his cocks twitch. 

She cried out and rocked her hips as he began thrusting his tongue into her cunt.

“That’s it. That’s my hungry little woman. Ride my tongue,” he encouraged. 

He laid back on the bed so she was more upright as her hands braced on his chest and she threw her head back, her hips undulating against the slight appendage thrusting into her without restraint. Her breasts swayed and bounced with her efforts, her soft thighs clutched against his as she moved. She was perfection. And she was his. 

Two hands slid under her thighs, offering support and squeezing before he lifted her up some. The other two hands gripped her ass cheeks firmly spreading them as he moved his tongue from her cunt to her ass. He teased at the tight ring, loving the way she shivered and mewled as he worked his tongue into her ass.

“Lean back with your hands on my thighs,” he instructed, giving him better access to be able to slide his tongue deeper into her tight hole and allow one of his other hands to slide between her legs, sliding three fingers into her cunt and pressing the palm of his hand against her slit, once again conjuring another mouth to suck at her clit. 

He smirked as she cried out. Y/N’s orgasm tore through her violently, causing her to dig nails into his thighs as she creamed on his tongue. He licked his lips as he watched he let her ride out her orgasm, the sight was incredible. 

She started to go limp. He grabbed onto her and rolled her under him, smirking down at her. “Nope, none of that. You’re not done yet, my queen.” he reached between them, gripping his cocks and slapping them against her sensitive cunt. 

“Please. Fuck me, Ryou. Please. I need to feel you inside of me,” Y/N begged, looking up at him with glazed eyes. She already looked so fucked out and they had barely started. “Please.”

“Well, since you asked so nicely,” he grinned. 

He swooped down and kissed her passionately before leaning back and positioning both of his cocks at her entrances, slowly working both of them in. He had no intentions of going easy on her. There was no point. His woman rarely enjoyed that and as much of a monster and a selfish sadist as he was, when it came to Y/N he put her pleasure and happiness before his own. But he would never  hurt her intentionally, and that included feeding his giant cocks into her tight, tiny little holes.

“Look at you, you’re doing so good taking my cocks,” he praised. 

His hands kept her legs spread open at her knees, keeping her hips nice and rolled back so he could split her open with ease. Another roamed her breasts and finally the other settled on her throat. As he picked up the pace with his hips, his hand on her throat tightened just a little.

Y/N’s breath was heavy and pleasure coursed through every fibre of her being as Sukuna fucked into her holes harder and harder with every thrust. He filled her so fully, so perfectly. And when his belly tongue slid out to work between her folds as he thrusted, she was a goner.

Sukuna smirked and groaned as she came calling his name, shaking in his grasp and nails clawing down his chest. 

Y/N’s eyes rolled back into her head and her mouth hung open as she relished feeling every inch of his cocks working her ass and cunt. Sukuna may be a monster, but Gods was he good to her and he was so so good with those cocks. She wanted more, always more. More of him. More of his love. More of his cocks.

She opened her eyes to watch him for a moment before she held his sweaty face in her hands. “I want you to breed me, Ryou,” she said, drunk on his cocks. “Fill me up.”

He let out a feral sounding noise as his hands gripped her tighter. He moved her into a mating press, hands braced about her head and a smirk on her face. “You want me to breed you, huh? You want my cum, huh?”

She nodded and whimpered. He was hitting so deep inside of her she swore she could feel him in her throat. “I do, I do, I do!”

All 4 eyes focused on her from above. His hips picked up speed and soon he was slamming into her. Her cries of pleasure filled the room along with the sounds of her wet cunt devouring him and the slapping of skin. He growled, nails digging into her skin as he pushed the limits of his control. “I’ll breed you alright. I’m going to cum in you and fuck my loads back into you over and over again. You won’t be able to walk tomorrow.”

“Do it!” she said, nails digging into his shoulders. 

“I hope you’re ready, precious one,” he smirked. “Because we’re not stopping until there’s not a drop of cum left in my balls.”

She knew it was a promise. And Sukuna never broke his promises to her. And she couldn’t wait. Couldn’t wait to feel herself bloated with his cum. Couldn’t wait to feel him fucking each load back into her. Couldn’t wait to feel it drip out of her cunt, just so full there was no more room. She knew exactly what she was doing. And she had no regrets. He many be a monster, but he was her monster.

[tanuki-kimono]

Hey, I've got a question about haori collars. Which is the correct way to wear them, folded or unfolded? I've seen both styles. Is there a difference between genders how you're supposed to have them?

Hi! I am not exactly sure what you are refering to:

If you mean: are haori collars crossed like a kimono's (left over right), then the answer is no. Haori are loosely fastened accross the chest via little ties called 羽織紐 haori himo. Other types of coats can have snap fasteners or ties. See pic below, haori is the third from the left:

If you mean: are haori collars large and folded like some women's kimono do, the answer is => all haori I have ever encountered had their collar folded and sewn :)

For reference, those are the three types of kimono collars tailoring:

広衿 hiroeri - kimono collar is large and meant to be folded in two by wearer. Used for women's kimono as it give a lot of leeway/comfort depending on body variations.

撥衿 bachieri - kimono collar is tailored folded and sewn shut, wider at the ends than at the nape. Used for women's kimono as larger ends drapes nicely across the chest.

棒衿 bôeri - kimono collar is tailored folded and sewn shut, with an uniform width; Used for men's and children's kimono.

[hoe-4-the-clones]

Hantengu clones as Hashira swap AU

Background: Old man Hantengu is a single father with identical quadruplet sons. He lived in poverty all his life and he committed crimes to survive.

His crimes and body count significantly increased when the quadruplets were born. Bro had 4 kids to provide for and he didn't have the best relationship with his baby mama. She disappeared under mysterious circumstances when the quadruplets were still toddlers. Don't ask Hantengu what happened to her.

The quadruplets grew up and became swordsmen to pay the bills and their father's bail when he could no longer physically run from authorities like he used to. The Hantengu quadruplet brothers are all the same strength but the have different fighting styles and speed.

Sekido: The weird cycle of problematic dads continues with him. He had Zohakuten with a girl he dated for a while but she left him because of his anger issues. Zohakuten stays with his grandpa while his dad and uncles are on missions. Sekido uses thunder breathing. When fighting demons he's a lot like Sanemi and full on rages at them. The haori he wears on top of his demon slayer uniform is a hand-me-down kimono from Hantengu.

Karaku: He uses wind breathing and he occasionally flirts with demons before killing them. Deadly rizz is real. He's the second fastest after Urogi. He's very skilled but don't send him on missions to the entertainment district. He might get distracted and Hantengu might get a new grandkid 💀. He wears a green leaf pattern haori over his uniform but on warmer days he goes on missions shirtless while the sleeves of his haori are wrapped around his waist.

Aizetsu: Every group of hashiras got at least 1 depressed water breathing user. His sad face often catches demons off guard and mistakes him for a weakling which causes them to target him more. His defenses are pretty good as a water breath user and he easily slashes demons' necks as they come close to him. He wears a blue haori with rainclouds pattern.

Urogi: The man the myth the menace he's the fastest out of all four of them. He created feather breathing, which is derived from wind breathing. Feather breathing is very similar to wind breathing but requires the user to be faster and more flexible. His movements are like a bird as he jumps high and swoops downwards slashing demons necks from above. He goes on missions shirtless no matter the weather. Similar to Inosuke but is more associated with birds instead of boars He wears the uniform pants along with yellow waist beads.

Interactions with the other hashiras (swapped upper moons): Karaku and Urogi would sometimes instigate squabbles between Douma and Hakuji and think it's funny to see the ice hashira and snow hashira argue with each other.

[phyx-m]

Chapter 7: Duality Of A Different Kind

Content warning: wounds, discussion of Sukuna's two cocks

🔗 Songs for this chapter:

Followed The Waves - Melissa Auf Der Maur Medusa - Emma Ruth Rundle

* * * * *

Chapter 6 | Chapter 8

* * * * *

“Where the hell do you think you are going, wife!?” Sukuna’s deep, resounding voice echoes behind you.

You almost shout back, but your thoughts are too muddled to form a coherent response. It was a small miracle you found the sense to remove your sandals before fleeing. 

You had hoped your bare feet would make you faster and more agile, but the gash Sukuna inflicted on your ankle is taking its toll. The wound is deep, splitting further with every stride, forcing you to hobble. Blood drips down between your toes, turning the sole of your foot slick and making each step a challenge.

You need to run faster—much, much faster.

You don’t need to glance back to know he’s coming. His energy sits heavy at your back, revealing his anger. Yet, his footsteps are deliberately unhurried, steady, slow. He’s treating this like a game, savouring every moment.

You know running was stupid, but Sukuna’s cruelty has pushed you beyond your limits. It all spiralled so quickly.

Perhaps this was the consequence of years spent bottling up emotions. The weight of your father’s abuse, the guilt for your own actions, the hurt you could only contain within yourself—these feelings festered, unchecked. Then came the King of Curses, shattering the fragile balance you had managed to maintain. With just a few words, he had unleashed your emotions, breaking them open.

“Stop acting like a scared child, and get back here!” His voice grows louder, closer.

You run faster, limp harder.

The garden’s terrain was easy to traverse. As you reach the treeline at the back of the shrine and burst through it, branches and twigs snap across your face. You raise one hand to shield yourself, clutching the hem of your garment with the other.

Your survival instincts scream at you to keep fleeing, to push deeper into the forest. The faster you run, the denser the trees become, closing in around you.

You have no idea where you are going or what you are even doing anymore. All you know is that you can’t survive out here with him hunting you in this state.

Sukuna is terrifying on his own, but being chased by him is bone-chilling.

You need to find a way to circle back to the shrine and barricade yourself in your chambers. Let him calm the fuck down, and maybe he won’t look at you like he wants to tear you apart. Your goal is to get out of his sight and back to safety.

You dart into a dense thicket, hoping it will provide some cover.

Panting heavily, your breath sounds like it’s everywhere. You cover your mouth to muffle your sharp exhales as you hear him drawing closer—the unmistakable sound of branches and debris snapping underfoot.

Crunch, crunch, crunch.

You huddle inward, trying to make yourself as small as possible, crouching so tightly that your legs tremble with the strain.

With your eyes squeezed shut, you hear footsteps pass by your hiding spot. You wait until the sound fades before you slowly crack your eyes open and carefully crawl out of the undergrowth.

As you emerge, you gather the hem of your kimono and rise. Your injured ankle protests sharply as you shift your weight onto it.

You take three cautious steps toward—

Snap!

A loud crack. Something has given way under heavy pressure to your right.

You run left.

Out of nowhere, Sukuna barrels from behind a tree, launching a sudden ambush.

You let out a startled cry.

Gone is his haori; he now wears only a bone-white hakama. His muscled body is coiled tight, exuding a raw, predatory energy. Seeing him like this, with his chest heaving rhythmically, he seems almost feral—as if he's in the midst of a hunt. And clearly, he is.

His lower arms shoot toward you with force, but by some miracle, you manage to dodge their reach.

You’re running again, pushing your body to its limits, moving so fast that the wound on your ankle tears open further.

“Stop running, you little shit!” Sukuna’s command comes out as a snarl and he quickens his pace, having abandoned toying with you.

He’s closing in fast, the foliage and undergrowth crackling and breaking as he cuts a path toward you.

You run, he runs.

He’s close now, nearly on top of you. 

You never had a chance.

Four powerful arms encircle your waist, and his chest presses against your back. With a forceful lift and pull, your feet leave the ground. Your stomach lurches as he spins and maneuvers you toward an oak tree.

“Let me go, you bastard!” you spit, flailing wildly.

But his grip is unyielding, his arms a vice.

Sukuna leans down.

“What did I tell you about trying to run away from me, hm?” His breath slides against the side of your face, stirring your hair.

He lowers your feet into the undergrowth, making your wound flare with pain. Gripping your shoulder, he forces you to turn and press your back against the tree with a thud—the rough texture of the oak claws and scratches at you.

His lower hands clutch a fistful of your kimono’s skirt while his upper hands seize your forearms tightly.

“W-what are you doing?” Your voice trembles with alarm as he begins to pull back the fabric, revealing more and more of your legs.

Panic surges through you.

Not this, not in this same forest again. You lash out at him, kicking and aiming for his shins, but your strike misses.

“Stop moving!” he barks, adjusting his hold and pressing you harder against the tree. “Be still. This will only last a second.”

Sukuna sinks to one knee. His expression is unreadable as he exposes the bottom of your thighs. You squeeze your eyes shut, bracing yourself for what’s about to come.

One of his hands moves to your leg, sliding down to grip your calf. He pushes against it, lifting your injured foot off the ground and extending it until it rests on the top of his thigh.

Cautiously, you open your eyes.

The cool forest air seeps under your kimono, brushing against your exposed skin. You become acutely aware of your vulnerability and shift uncomfortably.

“Stay. Still,” he commands.

His face is set in intense concentration: a deep furrow between his brow, mouth firm, eyes focused downward.

His upper right hand, which had been gripping your left forearm, withdraws.

He brings your bloodied foot close and cradles it as though it were a delicate creature he might accidentally crush. Then, his hand moves to the wound, touching and pressing it. The painful contact makes you suck in a breath. A dull white light glows, followed by a throbbing pulse through your ankle as a wave of heat spreads across the area.

“What are you—”

“Stop talking,” he snaps.

Asshole.

You bristle at his harshness but fall silent.

The heat from his touch gradually intensifies, starting as an uncomfortable burn and escalating to a searing.

You inhale sharply at the mounting discomfort, doubling over as the pain becomes unbearable. Your gloved hand instinctively reaches out, gripping and digging into his upper shoulder.

At your touch, the King of Curses stiffens. Even through the silk fabric, you can feel the warmth radiating from him.

The fire on the skin of your foot intensifies until it becomes nauseating. Just when you think you can't take it any longer, everything numbs. The intense sensation disappears, replaced by a stillness. The numbness that had been building vanishes as he pulls his hand away. You glance down to find that your ankle is now smooth and unmarred.

He’s healed you.

Sukuna places your foot back to the earth, lets the skirt of your kimono fall back into place and rises to full height. His face is a mix of arrogance and reverie, a smirk playing at his lips.

Your eyes narrow.

“What’s with that look? Am I supposed to be grateful to you for healing the wound you caused?” you snap, your voice thick with sarcasm.

All pretense of civility has long since vanished, though you might have been wiser to maintain it.

He scoffs and places a hand on the tree above your head, towering over you.

“You should be grateful I didn’t just rip you apart,” he retorts, voice lowering dangerously.

“Then why haven’t you?” The words burst out, bitter and harsh.

You are damn tired of this man’s ever-shifting moods. His whims, as your attendants call them, only make him more of an enigma—frustratingly unpredictable, impossible to pin down, like the transition between night and day.

Sukuna tilts his head, his four red eyes fusing onto yours.

The question seems straightforward, but his pensive face suggests there’s more to it.

Why haven’t you killed me?

You are about to ask again when, suddenly, a change overcomes him.

He leans in close, his imposing height and breadth surrounding your field of vision. A few strands of pink hair, previously pushed back, fall forward to brush against his forehead. The scent of smoke and iron fills your nostrils as he closes the distance between you. His hand, which was resting above your head, now slides down beside your face.

Nervousness betrays you at the sudden proximity.

Unable to maintain his intense gaze any longer, you lower your chin, directing your eyes downward. You glance at the maw on his abdomen, lower, to his thighs, and finally to his bare feet, partially obscured by the undergrowth.

He’s a giant of a man—dangerous, a terror, a—

He places two fingers beneath your chin and gently tilts your head upward, forcing your eyes to meet his once more.

The gesture is confusing, and something unwanted stirs within you. You swallow. His eyes drop to your mouth and linger.

For a heartbeat, you both become frozen in sudden awareness of each other.

He opens his mouth to speak but then closes it again. His stillness, his silence, perplexing.

After a moment of contemplation, he breaks the silence.

“Don’t stay out here too long,” he murmurs gruffly.

With that, he releases you, turns, and strides back toward the shrine.

* * * * *

You linger in the forest to gather your thoughts, reluctant to return to the shrine just yet. Not ready to face Sukuna so soon.

As you walk, your feet guide you to a clearing. A field stretches out before you. It’s a vast expanse of tall grass swaying gently in the breeze, accompanied by the soft chirping of insects. The contrast between the verdant, golden field and the boundless blue sky above is striking, amplifying the sense of openness.

You step into the grass, letting it embrace you. You drop to your knees and then flop onto your back, surrendering to the comfort of the earth beneath you.

The sun warms your skin, and you close your eyes, allowing yourself to clear your mind of all thoughts.

“My Lady!” Sayuri’s voice rings out, piercing the calm, calling out from somewhere in the nearby forest.

Your eyes snap open, realizing you must have drifted off. Without bothering to sit up, you raise a gloved hand, letting it protrude from the tall grass.

“I’m here!” you call out, hoping to catch her attention.

You hear footsteps crunching through the grass until Sayuri and Ren appear above you. You shield your eyes from the sun, glancing up to meet their curious expressions.

“Is everything alright, my Lady?” Sayuri asks, crouching beside you with concern.

Sighing, you sit up and gently tap the ground with your hand.

“Please, sit with me,” you request.

Sayuri settles down next to you, while Ren steps forward, smoothing out her robe before joining. The tall blades of grass rise around you, forming a fortress that conceals the three of you from view.

“How did you know I was out here?” you inquire.

Sayuri shrugs slightly.

“Master Sukuna informed us. He asked us to find you.”

“I see,” you murmur, absently picking at a blade of grass. “I need to ask you both something,” you start, trying to keep your voice steady.

“Of course, my Lady,” Sayuri responds.

“Before that, though, could you please refrain from using that title for now?” you request.

Both nod hesitantly.

You nervously swipe up another piece of grass and tear it apart, your thoughts racing.

“I want things to be easier for me,” you begin, keeping your eyes cast downward. “I want to understand how to navigate Lord Sukuna’s expectations better,” you continue, swallowing hard. “I want to know how to please him in the ways that you both seem to.”

Silence.

Silence for too long.

Ren clears her throat.

“We assumed, given your situation, that you wouldn’t want to be intimate with Master Sukuna,” she finally says, referring to the forced nature of your marriage and the obvious lack of mutual affection or desire.

“Yes, that’s true,” you respond softly. “But I’d like my time here to be more manageable. Perhaps understanding his desires could make things easier.”

Easier to kill him.

Ren exchanges a silent, meaningful glance with Sayuri, who remains unusually quiet.

“What would you like to know?” Ren asks in a reassuring tone.

“Everything.” Your voice is barely above a whisper.

For a while, you sit together in the grassy field while Ren describes the King of Curses' desires in detail. Sukuna sounds greedy and rough, preferring to dominate through sheer force. He likes to grab, pin, and pull with all four of his hands. Nothing about it sounds intimate or pleasant, though you have no experience with sex. It seems like Sukuna takes what he wants whenever he wants.

A part of you had anticipated such descriptions, but you were not prepared for what Ren says next.

“I��m sorry, he what?” Your face feels like it’s on fire, the sun’s heat only making it worse.

“He has dual appendages,” Ren repeats matter-of-factly.

You blink, certain this must be some kind of joke. With his dual visage, four arms, and four sets of eyes, why should it be surprising that he might have something unusual about his…

“Two appenda—”

“Cocks,” Sayuri interrupts you. You look at her, and Ren shoots her an irritated glance. “What? If she wants to understand, she must be prepared for this information. You know how he is, Ren.” Sayuri then focuses entirely on you. “He won’t be gentle. He will be rough and harsh. He doesn’t touch to please you. He will use you. It’s a one-sided transaction,” she says, her tone biting as if to dissuade you.

You nod, trying to process the information.

The idea of not being pleasured is fine if it means Sukuna is consumed by his own desires while you remain passive. This way, you might have a better chance of striking while he's distracted. However, the thought of turning him into a pile of flesh while you are engaged in such an act is deeply unsettling. Moreover, could you really go that far—offering yourself to him just to kill him? It’s beginning to seem like it might come to that.

“So, um, are they side by side? How does it work?” you ask, attempting to mask your inexperience. This is something you could never have truly prepared for.

“No, they’re stacked like this,” Ren explains, placing her hands one on top of the other and extending both of her index fingers. “But think bigger. Much, much bigger. Maybe my forearms are a better reference—”

Oh, fuck no.

“All right, all right. I get it,” you say with a huff, face turning impossibly redder with the vivid picture now carved into your mind.

You drag a hand through your hair, then flop back onto the grass, letting out a sigh.

A quiet settles over the three of you.

You glance at each of them in turn.

“Thank you for telling me,” you say, smiling.

“Of course, my Lady,” Ren replies, nodding and returning your smile. You are taken aback by her willingness to share such intimate details—she doesn’t seem like the type, but you are grateful for her candour.

Sayuri remains silent but smiles eventually.

As the sun moves across the sky, the three of you finally get up from the field and head back to the shrine together.

* * * * *

Later that night, you finally crawl into your futon, completely exhausted from the day's events. Although you manage to avoid another encounter with Sukuna, you remain on edge, your body tense and tightly wound. Your muscles stiff and knotted, desperate for relaxation, but nothing seems capable of easing the tension.

You anticipate troubled dreams, and as soon as you lay your head on the pillow and succumb to sleep, your fears materialize.

The same brutal dream that has haunted you for weeks reappears: your mother’s death at your own hands, and then the realization that Sukuna stands just beyond view, watching like a quiet spectator.

In the waking world, you can hear your own cries screaming out. Can hear the desperation in your voice. Can hear the biting guilt and regret.

A particularly piercing cry finally pulls you awake.

You sit up abruptly, the darkness pressing in around you. Sweat beads on your forehead and your chest rises and falls with heavy, ragged breaths.

Deep inhales, stuttering exhales.

It takes a moment, but gradually, you calm, and your eyes adjust to the darkness of the space.

A silhouette starts to come into focus at the edge of your vision. Large feet, black ink-encircling ankles.

You still, unable to move.

Heart pounding, you drag your eyes and look up—up—up—at him.

Sukuna.

Sukuna, leaning against the wall of your chambers, his arms crossed casually over his bare chest. His red eyes glow in the dim light, set intently on you.

* * * * *

🔗 Chapter 8

[hestzhyen]

Hakuri's Layers

Hi internet void... maybe someone out there can commiserate with me on something incredibly stupid? You see, my brain keeps pleasantly short-circuiting when I try to understand Hakuri's design. It's so boyish and adorable. Cute, CUTE, CUTE! But the actual clothes just kind of... don't make sense? (To this fashion-challenged trans guy anyway.)

So hey, the layers. Why so many?

Spoiler: the answer is "trauma".

My son's got a lot going on despite the plain black-white-black layering. On top looks like it might be a haori of some kind that gets tucked in to the waist? It's hard to tell in most shots due to the inking but it's definitely inspired by traditional Japanese clothing in the way it folds over at the middle of the torso. Underneath is a Western-style collared shirt that buttons close at the wrists and fits loosely elsewhere, likely due to being oversized. Then he's got a black turtleneck underneath it all, presumably short-sleeved but it could easily be another long-sleeved layer with how loose the other two are. The top two layers seem very baggy and oversized, while the bottom one could be a normal fit.

It's very different from how his father, siblings, and the estate staff dress. Kyoura wears a Western three-piece suit and tie at all times. The Tou uniform has a tunic on top of a dress shirt featuring open sleeves, bandages/braces on the arms, and a different collar style. Same with the regular Sazanami uniform, the most noticeable difference being the short sleeves. The children and non-combat staff have only been shown in regular kimonos/servant uniforms (except for the one group flashback to Granpa Sazanami's funeral, where all ages wore suits and ties). Mr. Proceeder, estate staff, and kids:

The Tou:

Sazanami Mooks:

Child Hakuri & Tenri feat. Low-Res Background Abuser:

Interestingly, there's a shot of kid Tenri wearing a black turtleneck under a white kimono so I wonder if there are different types of dress for a specific age group/level of training? Hakuri had the same clothing as him during the flashback's time period, so that's what I'm going to assume.

Also, at the start of the Ice Lady chapter Hakuri, is wearing the black haori and a short-sleeved white shirt underneath, no long-sleeved dress shirt or turtleneck in sight. It takes place in August and he wasn't expecting the chill at first, so this makes sense.

This was consistent for the first four pages of the chapter before abruptly shifting to something closer to his usual getup on the fifth page, showing us that at least a day had passed between scenes. He adds the turtleneck in but actually seems to have two different variations to show the passing of time through the chapter. (Note the white shirt...)

I'm gonna hit the image cap at this rate so please believe me that he alternates between these two styles throughout.

So here is the origin of his layered appearance: Hakuri was dressing against Ice Lady's chilly aura that overpowered the summer heat. This leaves me with a continuity question...

Final Meal:

Present Day:

The white dress shirt is slightly different from the one we meet him in so I wonder what happened when Hakuri was tossed out of the estate. In the panel above, it's identical to the ones his siblings in the Tou and Sazanami defense force wear, just rumpled and unbuttoned at the collar. But he's clearly wearing a different style while Current Events are going down. Did he have to return Sazanami uniform pieces before being escorted out? Did he just grab what was at hand before fleeing? Did the process take a few days, so he just left with what he was wearing at the time? Inquiring minds want to know!

It's also interesting to note that the loose suspender straps hanging from his waist aren't present in the Ice Lady flashback sequence.

Same chapter (35) - flashback vs. present. Fun fact: Soya deserves to be fucked with rusty screwdrivers. Since that's part of his design when we first meet him in Ch. 19, and they're consistently present outside of the flashback scenes, Hakuri definitely changed his outfit a bit between receiving a latent trauma buff and meeting Chihiro. I wonder if we'll ever get an explanation... It's probably not a detail that will ever be explained but I have to know about the straps. I love them. They make no functional sense and clearly weren't something included as a permanent part of his design like the hair tie pattern, short boots, haori, and baggy cropped khakis were. Is it his own fashion sense? Something his samurai can use to position him at will? Just added by Hokazono-sensei for aesthetic reasons? I choose option 2 until it's disproven. But yeah, after going through all of this panel by panel, I'm really curious about the time Hakuri spent drifting before he fell in with Team Goldfish. I'm fuzzy on the timeline but basically, he met the Ice Lady in August, spent three weeks with her, was kicked out, then found Chihiro about a week before the Rakuzaichi was held on November 3rd. How long was he on his own for, and where was he staying? He was always nearby if Chihiro needed him, but what about when they were done planning for the day? We didn't see him sleeping at the cafe, Hinao's place, Chihiro's apartment, an alley, a park bench- anywhere. I'm so, so curious about that little part of his life but it's not likely to be explored... I think if it's brought up at all, it'll be as a reason for Chihiro to add him to the goldfish bowl with Char. I'll just have to live with making my own headcanon about it I guess.

Anyway. Most likely, Hakuri was designed to counter-balance Chihiro's straight and narrow look- slim and cool vs. loose and boyish. They're opposites that compliment and complete each other at pretty much every level. I really want a character bible just to see the designs in neutral poses side-by-side to go feral over...

I'll have to ramble about that another time though because I just found out that Tumblr has a 4,096 character limit per block, whatever that means! It won't let me post pictures any more so I guess that's it for now. If you made it through to the end, you're my samurai.

[sanjis-moulinrouge]

Until Dawn: Lips met

Zoro x Sanji | +18

Summary: Zoro and Sanji share their feelings.

a/n: smut for part two. I wanted to write about all the repressed emotions they have for each other inside. Feel free to kindly comment.

Part 1 (AO3) | Part 2 in AO3

When the kiss ended, Sanji touched his own lips, blushing.

“What were you saying about the smell?” Zoro insisted while reaching one of the blond's knees.

“L-Let me… taste… this” Sanji got closer “again”. 

Zoro smiled and leaned in for another kiss, slowly savoring it as the blond slid the swordsman's haori off his shoulders. It fell to the ground along with the hat, Zoro held Sanji's head to linger the kiss.

The cook was marveled, sober or drunk… the feelings were real and he would no longer contain them. He quickly stood up to get closer where Zoro was sitting, his fingers traveled down Zoro's torso deftly opening his nagagi without hesitation, pushing forward one of his legs between the swordsman’s crotch.

“We should play something” Sanji hinted. Zoro traced his fingers along the blond's jaw.

The cook reached out to the wine glass, dipped his fingers into it, and then slid his wet fingers across Zoro's mouth. He approached gradually and kissed his lower lip delicately. He moistened them a few more times, the kisses became more and more passionate, he slowly licked and sucked, alternating their tongues while Zoro started to unbutton Sanji’s shirt.

The cook began to spread small drops of wine along Zoro's shoulder…

“Oh f-fuck” the swordsman slurred as Sanji ran his tongue throughout his neck.

Zoro took the opportunity to sneak his hands under Sanji’s messy shirt. Caressing the smooth warm skin under the fabric, giving himself more access to feel the cook’s waist.

Their eyes met, Sanji bit his lip as he started to grind his knee against Zoro’s bulge. His movements were fluid, Zoro enjoyed the friction thoroughly. As they continued, they let out whines when it felt right until the swordsman stood up to rub their erections together, their hands roamed as Zoro moved to corner Sanji against the wall.

The blond’s face was fully red, thrusting their hips and affected by Zoro’s impulses, he was becoming more vocal.

“Shit, moss head” he moaned with a fiery ardor in his eyes.

“Drink with me” Zoro confessed and suddenly grabbed the wine bottle and tilted it so they both had access to it. The wine spilled over their lips and dripped down their bodies. 

Sanji's chest was much more moistened with reddish tints, Zoro was fascinated watching the drops slide, until he began to glide his tongue in different directions, tasting Sanji’s collarbone and nipples.

“It tastes so good, love cook.” Entranced by Zoro's gaze, Sanji nodded mutely and held Zoro’s face in his hands for a while, kissing him fervently with tongue.

“Prince, you look ridiculously beautiful” wrapping his arms around.

“We should move to my room” Sanji breathed holding Zoro’s hand.

As they closed the door, Sanji leaned into Zoro, taking steps together as if they were dancing, he pushed forward until the swordsman's legs hit the bed. When Zoro fell back, he noticed that his nagagi had already been fully undone by the cook. Smirking, the blond ran a hand through the scar on his chest, brushing his fingers as he climbed onto the bed completely and straddled Zoro, who smiled and watched him, bending and pressing his body against his bare torso as he slid up to him, offering soft kisses.

“take your clothes off” Zoro purred as he saw how Sanji’s erection grew in his pants.

“let me kiss you a bit more” 

As they captured their lips, the swordsman finished removing Sanji’s shirt and tie, unfastened his belt to have full access to his schaft, both removed their underwear briskly so as not to waste time.

“I wanna see your face” Zoro rasped.

“Stay like that then” Sanji was also astonished by the view. The swordsman looked extraordinarily attractive laying in bed with the kimono fabrics spread out on his bed.

Sanji settled on Zoro's legs, making their cocks converge, stroking them slowly as he reached a bottle of lube.

“you…actually plan this, curly?”

“I just… i just think about someone too often” Sanji shyly admitted while contemplating Zoro.

The swordsman sat up and pressed his face into Sanji’s chest and waved their lips together. Zoro traced his tongue along the shell of the blond's ear and neck, then he resumed what Sanji had started.

“Ah f-fuuck” Sanji moaned as Zoro stimulated both erections at the same pace. He brought his other hand up to Sanji’s mouth, who sucked gently on his fingers. He could feel the muscles in the cook’s body tensing.

“I’m gonna c-” The blond felt his heart skip a beat, the swordsman was also close but didn’t want to finish yet, so he released both.

“On your knees, cook, please” 

Sanji rolled his tongue along the tip, placing soft kisses while observing Zoro’s reaction. He whimpered and begged for more. He finally sucked in his cheeks, taking the entirety of Zoro into his mouth over and over, trying different motions. The blond’s small grumbles and soft moans were dangerous sounds for Zoro in that situation, not wanting to climax yet, he interrupted the cook.

“My love” Sanji murmured “I’m going to need you inside me.”

“This is the first time i do this, need some help” 

Zoro nodded and sat closer as Sanji guided him to thrust two lube-slicked fingers into him. Hand jerking, he moved them in and out from a slow to a quick but steady pace. The swordsman's erection twitched as he paid attention to Sanji’s vermilion lips part, his eyes shone. His breathing turned shallow and abrupt.

“Are you ok?” 

“y-yes” Sanji gasped, he was enjoying the feeling.

Both were discovering themselves, Sanji brought Zoro close to him with just his eyes, as if he was under a spell, licking their lips and coming close once again.

“C’mon love” Zoro whispered as they switched places on the bed. “Tell me if it hurts."

[hny-updates]

English Translation of CanCam's article

2.5-dimensional handsome actor Shohei Hashimoto perfectly recreates the role of the “love is too heavy” killer! What is the popular manga “Hotaru no Yomeiri”?

``Firefly's Wedding'' is the latest work by Oreko Tachibana, the author of the manga ``Promise Cinderella,'' which was made into a live-action film by Fumi Nikaido and Atsushi Maeda, and became a hot topic of conversation (currently being serialized in ``Manga One''). In this work, the heroine's partner, the assassin Shinpei, became a hot topic, saying that ``love is too heavy,'' and the first volume was decided to be urgently reprinted as soon as it was released! To commemorate the release of Volume 2, the popular character Shinpei has been perfectly recreated by 2.5D actor Shohei Hashimoto. Mr. Hashimoto has appeared in many Japanese-style productions such as the musical ``Hakuouki'' and the stage play ``Touken Ranbu,'' and is a manga lover who even wrote the original story himself. We will also introduce recommended points of "Firefly's Wedding" as well as photos taken of Shinpei in Japanese clothes ♡

The time is the Meiji era. Satoko Kirigaya, the daughter of a count, is blessed with both her family name and beauty, but it has been declared that she has only a short time left to live, and her only dream is to marry in a way that will benefit her family. Meanwhile, Satoko's life is suddenly targeted by a mysterious killer, and in order to survive, she proposes to the killer, Shinpei Goto, ``Please marry me.'' It was supposed to be a one-off lie, but Shinpei is a man with a lot of love...

Q: ──I'm sure you're used to wearing Japanese clothes on stage, but what did you think of wearing a kimono inspired by Shinpei?

A: It's been a while since I've worn a kimono like this (a kimono without a haori, simply tying an obi), so I was very happy, and there's something exciting about photographing kimonos. This time, I was playing the role of a killer, so I had a lot of fun filming it, thinking that I shouldn't let my excitement show too much.

Q: ──You showed off various facial expressions and postures, but what points did you pay attention to in order to bring out Shinpei's uniqueness?

A: I was struck by the way Shinpei-kun's head is tilted, as if he's relaxed and relaxed, so I kept this atmosphere in mind when designing his stance. The rest is the eyes. In fact, before filming, the author, Tachibana Oreko, gave me this advice to my editor: ``Anyway, I hope you give me dead eyes...''

Q:──Mr. Hashimoto, what impressions did you have when you read “Hotaru no Yomeiri”?

A: I thought it was going to be a girls' manga as a genre, but there are scenes where people are cut with swords and it's surprisingly cruel, so it's different from the girls' manga I had imagined! I was surprised with. Because of the battle scenes, it's very easy to read even for someone like me who came from a youth magazine. Of course, it's about the love story between Satoko and Shinpei, but it also has suspense elements like who orchestrated Satoko's kidnapping in the first place, so I think it's a fun manga to explore.

Q:──What scene in particular captured your heart because of the beauty of the painting?

A: The scene where Shinpei-kun and Satsuko-san watch fireflies together. I especially love the scene in Volume 2 where Shinpei-kun releases fireflies into Satsuko-san's room. Another unforgettable scene is the scene where the two kiss for the first time. There are many people lying around who were killed by Shinpei-kun, and the two figures are reflected in the pool of blood. Although the situation is cruel, it is a very nice expression and I think it is beautiful. It's so fascinating that you can't help but look into every corner of it.

Q: ──Mr. Hashimoto, what kind of character did you think of Shinpei?

A: At first, you get the strong impression that Shinpei-kun is kind of a "dangerous person," but as you read on, you'll find that he's surprisingly cute. I thought this gap made him a really fun character. For example, the scene at the beginning where Satoko is saved from a villain while she is locked up in a prison. He escapes by jumping off a tall building, and I really like his poignant expression. He even makes an expression like this! (laughs) After all, love is heavy! Looking at Shinpei-kun makes me think that love and madness may be a thin line.

Q: Mr. Hashimoto, you sometimes demonstrate your swordsmanship on stage, but what impression did you get of Shinpei's sword technique?

A; This first sword line is depicted in the scene where Shinpei-kun saves Satsuko-san. I really like his style of cutting with his legs wide open. In the case of kimono, there is a style of slashing without showing your legs, but when I played Hajime Saito in ``Hakuoki'', I also slashed with my legs wide open. Also, although Shinpei-kun looks rough, he has a surprisingly delicate expression on his sword. For example, this sword technique that involves returning the sword in a detailed manner. It gives the impression of a mixture of movement and stillness.

Q: ──If ``Hotaru no Yomeiri'' were ever made into a stage play and Mr. Hashimoto was chosen to play Shinpei, how would you like to play him?

A; I want to firmly express Shinpei-kun's dual nature. Shinpei-kun may be saying what he really means, but if you look at him from the outside, you can't see the bottom of his heart. I would like to act with this in mind.

[lemonssavelives]

Before this starts I will like to explain how my headcanon is for Hantengu, the clones, and Zohakuten are. It’s mainly so that people won’t complain on how Zohakuten is a child. (We all have different opinions/au’s on weather he is or isn’t)

How it is Hantengu, Urami, Sekido, Karaku, Aizetsu, Urogi, and Zohakuten are brothers. They became demons around the same time. Hantengu and Urami were 95, The clones were 93, ans Zohakuten was 75. (18-20 year difference)

Yes Zohakuten in this is an adult and if I do write more he’ll be an adult that sometimes acts like a child unless it’s a modern day Au

In the time they were humans Zohakuten married a beautiful woman named Kumi and had 7 kids with her and had 2 on the way but due to an event when he was away he came back to find his family slaughtered. Which sent him into a deep depression which concerned his brothers about his mental and physical health.

So to put it short and simple Zohakuten tends to hear or see his wife and when he does he ends up where she usually is buried at. A reason for this is that he never got over her death and has the thought that she’s still alive.

He shows the wrong emotion for a bit

Zohakuten’s Wife (Angst)

It was a regular night for Zohakuten. He was walking around the forest looking for those pesky demon slayers who dared cut off Hantengu’s head. As he continued his search he saw a black figure before him. “Who goes there?” He questioned the figure. He first thought was to kill the person that stood before him but something was stopping him from doing so. He couldn’t figure out why his arms were betraying him from hitting the drums. “Hi dear” He heard a cheery voice say. As he heard the voice he dropped his bone-like daggers to the ground. The moonlight between the trees shined more revealing his beautiful wife. She wore a long green kimono that fade to pink with a flower pattern on it along with a white haori. Her long black hair blew in the wind with the flower accessory in her hair. She looked like a angel glowing in the moonlight. She smiled at him. Seeing her smile was like butterflies dancing on his heart. Zohakuten rushed towards her and grabbed her hand, tears running down his face. “Y-you have no idea how much I missed you..” As his tears fell to the ground, he continued to say, “It’s been years since I last seen you..why do you keep leaving me?” Kumi looked at him and wiped the tears away from his face. It was obvious she didn’t have a answer. “Just know that I love you” She kissed his forehead before removing her hand from his and walking away which caused Zohakuten to chase after her, forgetting about the battle that was happening and leaving his brothers wondering what has gotten into him all of a sudden. “Kumi you can’t leave me! Not yet! Not again! Come back!” "I'll go see what's up with him."

Aizetsu said to the others who nodded and went back to fighting the slayers.

As Zohakuten came to a stop with his wife turned away from him, she looked at him. "Zohakuten please do me a favor." "Anything! What is it?! I'll do it for you!" She shown a sad expression before saying *I need you to accept the fact l'm dead.." Zohakuten froze, he watched as her body disappeared and appeared her grave. He was silent staring at the grave. Aizetsu came up behind and grabbed his shoulders. Judging by the grave and Zohakuten frozen in place he came to the conclusion that it was another night that he "saw" his wife. "Zohakuten...her soul will never rest easy if you keep this up...you're holding her back..." He caressed his shoulders. "If you'd like....I can stay with you while you finally come to peace with this situation... He sat down with Zohakuten. They did in fact stay there until the sun came up. Zohakuten placed a flower on her grave and looked at Aizetsu. “Let’s go now..” Zohakuten nodded. He finally was at peace with the fact she was no longer living. Aizetsu took him by his hand and walked with him through the forest to the darkest part.

[darkdevasofdestruction]

Chapter 4 - Sutures

The next morning, Katrina woke up weirdly refreshed - All sunshine and daisies, she could say - Which was quite a peculiarity, considering how exhausted she felt all the time. Maybe this fresh air from the old eras is a good remedy to get healthier, considering how polluted and foul the air was in her present time, and how great an impact this terrible thing has on their world. 

Advantages and disadvantages can be found in any era, you just need to look around properly and analyze the situation. After all, the infinite spectrum of Grey can only be done by mixing together different percentages of White and Black. There is nothing 100% good, not 100% bad, just like there is no real altruism or real villainy.

Or perhaps it's just her overthinking and pretending to be some Nietzsche or Freud philosopher in her own mind.

The red haired girl messily braided her hair and put it in a disheveled bun, not bothering to properly brush her long hair as she knew she'd be busy all they and all night, so why bother appearing decent when she'll look like she woke up from the dead 3 years later. Instead of garbing one of those beautiful, rich kimonos, she put on a pair of comfortable blue jeans, chose some thin, light sneakers and a large band Tshirt, putting a haori over her shoulder, in case she got cold. After all, she didn't really want to wear her leather jacket or trench coat in a make-shift hospital where she'd get splurted with blood and hopefully not other bodily fluids.

Grinning mischievously at her small bag, where she found the absent-mindedly thrown instruments she used at the clinic - Courtesy of a habit she took from her University days when she'd have 2 spares of anything in her bag ( except for notebooks, papers, crayons, pens, textbooks and literally anything else she'd actually need ) - And swinging the bag casually over her shoulder, she got one of the maids to guide her to the rooms where the patients were being treated.

She wasn't surprised seeing all those injuries, the blood pooling all over them, or the groans and wails of agony and despair - She was, however, surprised to see Masamune helping out in taking care of the victims.

"Yo, cyclops, how's it going?" Kat smirked at him throwing off the haori and bag in a corner, putting on the latex gloves and taking out the tools, looking around at the helpers. "I need some fire to sterilize my tools. I already have a needle, but I need a lot of threat... Some sake, I guess. Lots of water basins and towels, some marigold ointment... Can we get ice cubes? No, wait, I don't think so, it's too early in the times... Then, I will need constant supply of river-cold water. We'll need sulphur fumigation after this... No matter, I digress. What disinfectant was used so early... Hmm... Alcohol... Alcohol... Ah, yes, vinegar, perfect for open wounds! Yes, you guys, please bring me what I just said, it would help a lot." she instructed the healers who she thought were lackeys. They looked at her skeptically as they started whispering between themselves instead of moving.

"Didn't you hear the Princess? Do as she says! She clearly knows what she's talking!" Masamune's authoritarian voice seemed to make the physicians tremble and run out of the room to do as commanded.

"Uh... Thanks for that. I know I don't have the most authority over people, especially since I've just come here and I didn't earn anyone's respect. To tell you the truth, I only ever treated animals, and even then, we had... Technology and tons of medicaments and modern treatments. Relying on herbs and plants is a huge downgrade and I don't know entirely how potent or fast their effects are. On that note, I will do everything in my power to keep these guys alive. We have a saying in medicine - An oath, you could call it - Primum non nocere. It's Latin, and it means - First of all, do no harm. Basically, as long as you do more good than bad, it's all cool, especially in these times." she crouched down next to the warlord, taking off the blanket covering the man he was attending to, and taking off the armor and top nonchalantly, she saw a nasty gash from one to the other of his abdomen.

"Nobunaga already told us all that story about you being from the future and stuff. By the way you're talking, I can't even imagine doubting you. These tools... They look weird. How do you use them?" the man asked, very curious and intrigued by her words, and in the meantime, the healers came by and brought everything to the girl.

"Well... Watch as I explain everything I'm doing. Oh, and... Don't freak out or something, okay? I heard at some point that these... Western medical practices haven't been accepted in Asia until very, very late... And by that, I mean like, 19th century or something. Relying on praying and plants alone won't solve your problems." she explained as she took a towel and wet it, carefully wiping away all the blood from the gash, and from around, revealing the nasty open flesh wound. "Keep this thread bolt please." Kat handed him the bolt as she took the thread and got it through the needle's ear, and dangled the metal above the small fire the physicians created. "By doing this, I'm sterilizing the metal... It's not the best, but it's as much as I can do. By this, I'm reducing the possibility of bacteria, microorganisms and may other bad, harmful things that we can't see with the normal human eye that can get inside the wound and make it to fester."

"Why would the... Bacteria thingy get inside the wound if nothing except our hands touches it?" he asked, analyzing every move the girl did.

"Bacteria is everywhere. Literally everywhere. It's like dirt. It gets inside, you're screwed. It can get inside even by blowing air on it. I know, difficult to believe such abstract things that you can't see, but that's the truth. First, we disinfect the wound with vinegar, padding the wound with a handkerchief. Now we bring the flesh together... And we do sutures. Stitches. In the shape of the Latin-alphabet X-shaped letter. First with the muscle part inside, and then with the skin outside." she used the forceps to move around the needle with such astonishing dexterity and accuracy that

Masamune's single eyes only gazed, widened and enchanted by the movements, yet the many minuscule knots and the snipping of scissors made it very confusing for him. He couldn't quite grasp why, as she made so many knots, one on top of the other, she'd do different moves, some forwards, some backwards, and... Something?

"He looks like he's sewn like a blanket." the one-eyed dragon stared, stunned, at the sutured wound. His hand went to touch it, but it was slapped away by the girl. 

"Bacteria! Don't touch it with your filthy hands! That's exactly how the wound gets festered!" Masamune's face was bewildered with disbelief, so much that the girl had to look away and laugh lightly. "Okay, sorry, your face was adorable. Anyway, please don't touch wounds, I don't want them to get infected. Now that we're done, I will put some marigold ointment gently over the sewn up wound... Et voila, that's it. It's the best I can do for now. We don't really have antibiotics, I can't do vaccines and stuff... I will forever miss Amoxicillin and Ceftriaxone... But whatever. I will have the other physicians tend to the physiological aspect of it... Give him some medicine soup or something. Until then... We have many more others to take care of, so, if you want, you can help me out... Or maybe you can help bandage them? Whatever you want, it will help either way." smiling at the blue-garbed man, Kat got crawled to the next man, doing the same procedure over several open wounds and cuts around.

"You've got it, lass, leave it to me. I've taken care of my injured men before, I can handle this!" almost as if he got a huge boost of confidence seeing the girl so sure of herself, explaining the procedure and the reasoning behind it, it made him feel reassured that somehow, despite these life-threatening injuries, they will all live.

Despite their best efforts combined, more and more hours passed, yet neither of them seemed to feel any kind of fatigue - Or at least, they didn't let it be seen. One of them was used to such heavy work load in the clinic, while the other was used to fighting day and night tirelessly, so at least for that, the adrenaline rush keeping them focused and steady was doing its job, surging rapidly through their veins with an electrifying speed.

Katrina, despite not being one to speak too much, got used from her clinic time to giving orders to her subordinates to help her or delegate some of the minor work, and thankfully, after Masamune's order, they all followed her instructions to a T. Lovely success, she might say, considering that there was place for a sole woman in a world dominated by narcissistic, egotistical men. And yet, she somehow seemed to gain the... Maybe not outright trust, but at least the respect of the milder warlords, like Masamune and Mitsunari. People like Ieyasu and Hideyoshi were still very suspicious of her, despite everything, and yet, she knew that, with time, she will get through them too. After all, she had no ill-will or bad intentions towards them, and above all, she just wanted to have fun and maybe get through this alive.

Sengoku era was pretty fun, despite all the hardships and non-stop threats upon their lives, but somehow, being surrounded by people and being able to turn to them to have a simple talk or a drink, made her feel less alone than usual. It wasn't like she was an extrovert or overly sociable, but at the same time, her heart suffered greatly whenever she realised how truly alone she was, even surrounded by people, whenever she'd see all the people she was 'friends' with talk to her only out of necessity, or whenever nobody else was available or a hang out. Everyone was either married, had kids, or was at least in a steady relationships, and all the old, lovely friendships quickly vanished, and she was forgotten for the most part.

After all, she was never anyone's first option, and that thought alone truly hurt her.

"Masamune, you idiot, have you been here all day?" a new, sudden voice disrupted the organized chaos that the brownian motion that became their pattern in the room, tending to all the injured people.

"Ieyasu? What are you doing here?" Masamune's lower voice asked, surprised to see the blond warlord there, holding a basket.

"Have you forgotten to eat again? Stupid." the future Tokugawa shogun light-heartedly insulted his friend with a stoic look on his face as he thrusted the food basket in his arms. "Share."

"Thank you for your consideration, Ieyasu." despite saying that, almost robotically, Kat, didn't look up from the procedure she was doing.

"...Masamune? Why are these men patched up like potato sacks?" the man frowned - But Kat's frown was worse, as she suddenly got up, ignoring the dizziness from dehydration and lack of proper nutrition for the day.

"Excuse you? Patched up like potato sacks? I'll have you known my sutures are the peak of beauty! If you insult my magnum opus, I swear I'm going to sew up your mouth and eyes permanently!" she got in his face, her arms crossed, showing how offended she was.

"...Huh?" Ieyasu's eyes grew wide as he made a dumbfound expression, his mouth just slightly agape from the shock of her outburst and the words she used. On the other hand, Masamune's loud, mirthful loud resounded through the room.

"Don't worry, Ieyasu, the lass did a splendid job on these men! She told me all about the importance of disinfectant and these extra small things called bacteria! Ain't that a funny word? Anyway, this sewing thing is said to be a Western practice and keeping the flesh together helps it heal faster!" Masamune went to pat - With a bit too much strength - Ieyasu's shoulder, making him flinch a bit from annoyance.

After muttering some more insults to the cyclops, the blond crouched to one of the man, inspecting his wound. "Interesting..." he hummed, but as soon as he extended his hand to examine and admire the intricate craftmanship that seemed almost like a seamstress's sewing, or an embroidered handkerchief, his wrist was roughly grasped and pulled away.

"Don't touch it." the two shared a look, and begrudgingly, the man took away his hand, making the girl release his hand gingerly. "Sorry about that. It's just... Wounds shouldn't be carelessly touched. You create the risk of infecting the wound and festering from inside, which would really suck." she sighed, speaking in a lower voice.

"I'm half-inclined to say you're speaking non-sense, but at the same time, I'm interested in your knowledge. Masamune, that food is all yours. I want to have a conversation with this one." the blond got on his feet, motioning for the red haired girl to follow him.

"But... The patients... They need constant supervising... And if they spaz out, they risk breaking their stitched and bleeding again." Kat got up, looking worriedly between the sleeping patients and the expecting warlord who looked impatiently at her.

"Don't worry, lass, I've got this covered! Go eat something and rest, you deserve a break." the man's wild grin encouraged her to leave - Albeit still skeptical - Yet a bit more reassured.

The whole way to his home was quiet, except for the crickets and toads singing in tune a beautiful symphony of the night. Thankfully, the way to his place was pretty short. There, as the weather was mighty fine, Ieyasu had his servants put the table and pillows on the porch, lighting up the lanterns so they could see, but the very late dinner was still incredibly awkward and silent, sans the sound of chewing and chopsticks moving. That is until finally, after the leftover food was taken off the table, and the man finally spoke, his green eyes peering into her own green eyes.

"Tell me what you did with the warriors." his harsh voice had an edge to it that was both intrigued yet had an invisible force holding him back from appearing interested in any way.

"And by that, do you want me to medically explain what and why I did what I did?" she raised an eyebrow, questioning for a proper explanation. The man simply said an affirmative answer as a reply, but that alone - Someone actually being interested in her knowledge and skills - It truly made her happy enough to smile.

"Do you believe my time-traveling story?" she asked in a gentle voice.

"Is that relevant?" the man looked away with a roll of his eyes.

"Yes, it very much is." she nodded solemnly.

"Your answer tonight will give me a definitive answer." the girl couldn't help but grin and let out an amused exhale.

"Very well. I asked you because in my time, we don't really use plant-medicine anymore. We use medicaments that are made from various chemical compounds put together into pills, emulsions, ointments, syrups and other liquids for vaccines... That's why, I had a hard time thinking about the proper plants and how to create a proper ointment or treatment based on their wounds. I only know that honey, garlic, ginseng and maybe moldy bread were good to kill bacteria and such, but I'm not sure, and I don't want to risk blindly." she explained briefly the hesitation behind the scarce using of the plants. Except marigold ointment. Marigold ointment is Grandma's famous, legendary treatment. Forever.

"And what is this 'bacteria' that Masamune glamorized so much?" he asked, humming in understanding.

"Bacteria are microscopic living things - It means they are so small you can't see them without a microscope, which is like... A binocular, but you don't look into the distance, but on a strip with a sample... But I digress. Basically, they are quite literally everywhere, and they can cause diseases. That's why they must not make their way into wounds - They can cause festering and necrosis... Basically, the cells and tissues that form the human body... The place afflicted dies, and it turns black because blood doesn't stream through there, so it gets no more oxygen and nutriments, and thus, you have a dead part in your alive body, and this dead body is like the plague - It spreads - Hence why you need to cut it off. However, you can't cut off the torso, can you? If you have necrosis affecting your fingers or limbs, you can successfully amputate them - You cut them off - But... I'm not sure you people would agree to having a limb less, considering you won't be able to fight anymore, but the theory behind still stands. Back then, I didn't necessarily stop you from touching it because it's forbidden, but because you had dirty hands. You have to at least wash your hands with water and soap and then disinfect them with alcohol, like vinegar or... Sake maybe. Did... Any of this make sense?" she asked sheepishly, realising the pondering look he had on his face. Ieyasu nodded his head and grunted an affirmative answer. "We can't quite afford much hygiene measures when at war, but I suppose there are some things we can take care of anyway. I saw a fire inside the room. Was that to kill this... Bacteria?" he pointed out, hesitating as he spoke out loud that foreign word again.

"Yes! Sort of. It's not the most effective method, but it does the trick. Since I used a needle and a thread to sew up the wounds together, you keep the metal in the fire until it colours red, and that kills the bacteria, so you can use the needle on the wound. Thing is, after you clean the wound and you sew it up, people usually do an antibiotic vaccine to prevent getting infections inside." she explained, not realising that she wasn't properly explaining all words, and that people from the past had no idea what she was talking about, and they couldn't possibly corelate so easily foreign words with their roots and meanings.

"Are you going to let me guess what "Antibiotic" and "Vaccine" mean?" the man huffed, kinda frustrated because there was such much to learn, yet things seemed more complicated, as he never heard of these words before, yet this technology and knowledge she held... Ieyasu was craving them.

"Oh! I'm so sorry! Well, 'Antibiotic' is something that kills bacteria. Basically, it's 2 words coming from Greek, and they were put together. 'Anti' means 'Against' and 'Bios' is 'Living'. I find it easier to understand words and medical terminology once I understand the roots of the word and what it means. And a vaccine is... Uhm... A tube with a small, hallow needle. Inside the tube you have a liquid with medicine and you stick the needle... Here, in your vein, and this liquid gets in the bloodstream. The blood uhm... Irrigates the whole body with Oxygen and nutriments and... Since the blood goes everywhere, the medicine goes where it needs to go. I'm pretty sure vaccines weren't allowed in Asia as a proper practice until...About 200 years from now on or something. They were seen as Western barbarian practices and that went against the beliefs of Confucius, Buddha and the ethics and stuff. In my time, vaccines are extremely important and everyone, animals alike, get vaccinated, so they can prevent getting some diseases, especially infectious ones." Kat smiled at the man who could only grunt in understanding again, and... Even agreement, maybe?

"Fear of the unknown makes people afraid of the consequences and don't want to even try to understand, even if the explanation is in front of their very eyes. Most of the time, even the nobles or the educated ones believe in Divine Retribution and the Devil's work when it comes to... "Unorthodox" practices, as a Christian missionary put it. Development, education and technology are the base of a plentiful and rich future, but with how many people still believe in onryos and oni, you can't expect much progress." despite the man being genuine and contemplating, Kat chuckled, very amused.

"Some people called me a Kitsune in my time. Tradition means a lot for this country, and while sure, in the future people don't believe in kami and oni anymore, they still hold the history and culture very close to their heart. On another note... I'm pretty sure I heard Hideyoshi curse Mitsuhide at some point and called him a Kitsune as well." biting her lip in amusement, she twirled around a strand of her hair, resting her jaw on her palm.

"How stupid... But I suppose it's not that far away from the truth anyway." the man rolled his eyes again, scoffing at the ridiculousness of the statement, but he was unable to agree or disagree with it. 

Before he could shoo the girl away, as it was getting dreadfully late, and the tiredness was evidently painted on her face, a quiet, rhythmical trotting sound coming from inside the house, getting out... A small deer, of all things, was revealed. It looked up at the two people sitting on opposite sides of the small, round table. It looked at its owner, and then at the stranger.

"Hello, sweety." the red haired girl slowly extended her hand towards the baby deer, as she carefully sniffed it, and with an unexpected braveness, it jumped in her lap, licking her face, shocking the physician girl. "Wh-Whoa...! I have been blessed!" almost as if scared to touch it, as fawns are fragile and soft and gentle and adorable as hell, her hands carefully went to hug and pet the small critter, sticking her tongue half out as if she was mleming, and the fawn imitated her.

"You're acting like a stupid kid." Ieyasu scoffed, yet his annoyance was a mask for his amusement. "Her name is Wasabi."

"Wasabi...! You're the cutest little baby in the whole entire world! I want to hug you and never let you out of my arms. I love youuuu~!" suddenly, the calm, stoic and collected woman became an overly-affectionate cuddle bug that was spoiling that fawn. In fact, Ieyasu was shocked at such a drastic change in her behaviour, and the sweet voice she was talking in with his pet, but not only that, he also hasn't seen women - Mothers, in particular - Fawn over and spoil a human baby so much as this woman in front of him was practically melting in complete bliss and glee. She truly was peculiar in all the weird sorts of ways. He didn't have the heart to send her home, instead, he just watched the peculiar scene in front of him for as long as it lasted. That is, until he noticed the girl trying to mask out a yawn, only for Wasabi to stick her tongue inside her mouth as she tried to lick up her face. They both retracted their heads backwards, staring at each other in shock with wide, confused eyes. They almost looked as if they were both two baby fawns, so innocent, so pure, and very ignorant of the horrors and dangers of the world around them.

He hated this girl... He hated her so much, but at the same time, he didn't. He hated weakness, and she was nothing more than a frail little snow-drop, like every other woman he's encountered. On the other hand, Wasabi is just as fragile and in need of protection, and he felt the soft and gentle feeling of love and protectiveness. He wouldn't let anyone even look weirdly at the baby fawn, let alone harm her.  Maybe that's why he hated Katrina so much. Not that she was suspicious - She really wasn't. Despite all the stories about kunoichi and how they disguise themselves as maids and maidens that lure men in bed and then kill them, stealing all the important intel and running away to their employers, Katrina was obviously not like that. He prided himself with being a pretty good judge of character... And what the hell would a woman from the future, that simply wants to go back home, want with them, except for protection until she can somehow find a way to go to her rightful time? She even showed them some revolutionary medical practices and have them important intel, so there was no reason to be as suspicious of her as when she first arrived.

Ieyasu wasn't going to go outright and protect her, that would be too much of a bother, and even thought Nobunaga claims she's some kind of lucky charm for him - That's all she is - HIS responsibility, so why should he bother with Nobunaga's fleeting obsessions? On the other hand, he wasn't going to outright let her die that easily - If only for that intriguing and controversial knowledge she has in that head of hers.

Stupid red head.

He could only watch from his seat as she said good night to him and, with one last kiss on Wasabi's wet nose, left to sleep, since she couldn't stay awake anymore from the exhaustion. She thanked him for the meal and the lovely conversation even, even though she was the one who spoke most of the time. What a peculiar woman, as if she has nobody to talk to. Then again, with the way she flinches away from her so-called paramour, and how she tries to stray away from him and how she scolds and glares at him at all time... And how violent he is with her... Maybe she was just fed up with him altogether and with him being the only person she knows, she was getting lonely.

Never mind, why the hell would he care anyway? Wasabi was in his lap, licking his face, and it was a decent night. It was time for him to get some sleep.

Morning came by faster than expected, and the birds chirped with the rising of the sun, yet their beautiful song wasn't enough to wake the girl up. Her sleep were sweet and well-deserved, and she didn't wake up until pretty late into the day, and even then, she was pretty sluggish. It was finally a normal day! And it was pretty much a free day as well!  Technically speaking, she was free to do whatever she wanted, as long as she remained in Azuchi, so she took advantage of it, mixing her time with having fun, exploring and working, all in a perfect imbalance - As usual.

Getting ready, the first thing she did was check up on the patients and make sure they were in good condition, and after she was satisfied with what she was seeing, she went to have a look at the traveling market and maybe even treat herself to some tea and dango.

As she was absent-mindedly admiring the hustle and bustle of the place, and noticing that nobody was really bothering or even looking at her, thankfully, she smiled softly, feeling content and at ease. That all disappeared as soon as a tap on her shoulder woke her up from her trance and her name was called - Looking at the man calling her, she realised the ninja boy who she got to know recently was there, gesturing for her to go somewhere with fewer people and have a chat.

"I'm sorry I left you alone for so long. How is life at Azuchi castle?" he asked as they both sat down on a bench under an umbrella, outside a tea house.

"Oh, it's quite alright. I got to show off my medical skills by sewing up some people... And I played with Ieyasu's pet, which was adorable, considering my profession is a Veterinary doctor. And you? Your profession here is much more dangerous than mine, are you alright?" she asked the man, looking up at the beautiful azure sky.

"I can't complain. I miss home, but at the same time, if I treat this as a history project, then I'm rather excited, despite all death-threatening things I have to do." he smiled as well, ordering tea for the two of them.

Then, another man, dressed in a burgundy kimono, stepped in front of them, his hands on his hips like an upset mother. "There you were, Sasuke! Who is this?" he analyzed the fire-kissed woman from head to toe.

"Hasashi Katrina. My friends call me Kat, so if you don't mind... I'm Sasuke's friend. It's lovely meeting another of his friend!" Kat got up from the bench and bowed lightly at the man before extending her hand for him to shake - But he merely looked weirdly at her hand, then at Sasuke.

"Shake her hand. It's a way of greeting new people and making new friendships." Sasuke encouraged the man, and with a bit of skepticism, he engaged in this foreign act.

"Sanada Yukimura." he muttered, frowning a bit. "I've never heard of this kind of greeting before. Your name, also, is rather unusual... Your hair as well." 

"Well, I am a pretty unusual woman, you could say." she shrugged, carefree, signaling for him to also sit down. "May I call you Yuki? It's only fair to use a nickname as well, don't you think?" despite the friendly tone in her voice, the teasing was pretty obvious, and the man's cheeks reddened, and he could only look away, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "Yuki~? Are you okay? You look feverish." Kat's eyes narrowed slightly from amusement, smiling like a mischievous fox as she stepped in front of him, putting the back of her hand to his forehead, making him even more flustered, hurrying away from her. 

"I-I'm fine, jeez!" he stuttered, unable to look at the girl, as she and Sasuke chuckled at his reactions.

"Ah, look, Kenshin, a Kitsune!" another voice, unfamiliar, chuckled, and as the trio snapped their heads towards the new voice, they saw two men, one extroverted, and one introverted. Perfect friend duo.

"Don't compliment me too much, Mister. I forgot my 9 tails at home." Kat giggled, nodding her head towards the two new-comers as a way of greeted them.

"Ohh, this lovely fox has such a charming smile. Are you trying to trap me under your spell?" this chestnut haired man, very bold and straight-forward, stepped in front of the red haired girl, his hand going to her hair, taking a strand of it and twirling it flirtatiously.

"My, my, aren't you a casanova? It was not my intention to enchant you, however, I cannot say I mind it." her fox-like smirk, playful and full of mischief, made this easy-going man laugh boisterously.

"Why don't we have some tea together? I want to know more about you." he raised the girl's chin gingerly, with his finger, gazing affectuously in her eyes.

"We were just having a cup of tea. You and your friend may join us, if you will. I was thinking of getting some sweets as well." she chuckled gleefully as she gingerly put her hand over his wrist and guiding him to the table so the 5 of them could enjoy some nice tea and dango.

"You're at it again... Honestly, please stop it, Lord Shingen, this flirting is really annoying." Yuki sweat-dropped awkwardly.

"Come on, Yuki, you can't expect me to stay silent when I have the honour of being in the presence of such a charming young lady! Or... Maybe it is that you are jealous and too shy to approach her yourself!" Shingen... Takeda Shingen, the Tiger of Kai, teased the boy cheerfully.

"N-NO! It's nothing like that!" but Shingen could only laugh, his arm around Kat's shoulder, as she was just smiling serenely, as if she had no idea that's Takeda Shingen hugging and flirting with her, while Uesugi Kenshin was glaring into the horizon and Sanada Yukimura was blushing like a green boy because of her teasing.

"If you're shy, just say so, Yuki! There's nothing wrong with that. There are many women who are into the easily-flustered type~!" putting her hand over her mouth to stifle her teasing chuckle, it seemed her Kat and Shingen paired up nicely to fluster up the poor boy.

"That's enough, you two. You are attracting too much attention towards you." Kenshin spoke, devoid of any emotion.

"Katrina, since you are a friend of Sasuke's, I will tell you a secret. There will be a war soon. Go to another country as soon as you can." as he said that, the Sasuke tapped the girl's shoulder, motioning for her to get up from the table and step away, to have a semi-private conversation together.

"The famous Yukimura Sanada is worrying about me while Takeda Shingen flirts with me. I think I hit the warlord jackpot." Kat hummed in amusement, only to see the ninja's serious expression.

"How is Nobunaga treating you? Did you tell him about the time-travel thing and the wormhole that will appear in 3 months?" he asked, pondering.

"Yep. All the warlords know by now. Of course, it's only kept between them, thankfully. And I told him about the portal, he tried to bribe me with a bet, but I refused. I think I've got a pretty decent grasp on his personality, he's not as impossible to predict as I first thought... And yet, he still surprises." she tilted her head leisurely to explain the situation.

"I don't mean to scare you, but just in case, you should have a way to protect yourself from Nobunaga or any warlord that may imprison you or put you in danger. I'm sure you know that if you miss the next wormhole, you might never be able to go back to the present again... Which is why... If you think anything's going to happen, use these to escape."  and thus, Sasuke handed her some smoke bombs and ground spikes he manufactured himself by watching online tutorials, which was super cool and made Kat grin, remembering the cosplay costumes he worked so hard on, especially the Temari one, from Naruto. Oh, how she loved Temari and wanted to find a Shikamaru for herself... "Always think of protecting yourself, Kat. The Dragon of Echigo and the Tiger of Kai are after Lord Nobunaga. What I'm saying is... Don't get deeply involved with the people of this time. And before I forget... Watch out for a demon dressed as a monk." as he said that, Kat's emerald eyes widened in realisation.

"Sasuke... The guy who tried to assassinate Nobunaga as Honno-Ji... Was that this guy you're warning me about?" she gasped, only for him to give her a solemn look.

"Unless he delegated, then most-likely, yes." he grunted softly.

"Hey, Sasuke, I wouldn't mind revealing my identity now. I am the Lord of Echigo's Kasugayama Castle, Uesugi Kenshin. Do me a favour and tell people that you have seen us here in Azuchi. I am ready to take on everyone willing to face me in battle." the winter-aesthetic man drew his sword fearlessly, a certain frozen smile on his face.

"That was a brave affirmation of war. Is this how all warlords are, or is it just you two?" Kat asked, hoping to keep things light-hearted and non-violent, at least when she was around.

"Don't let yourself be fooled by this one." Shingen pushed Kenshin away, getting the spotlight. "Kenshin and I have been fighting Nobunaga for years. My name is Takeda Shingen. People call me the Tiger of Kai... But unlike Kenshin here, I don't draw my sword freely, especially now that I've met such a beautiful woman like you." as he said that, he grinned confidently, dazzling, as his hand caressed her hair.

"You're really flattering me, Shingen... Ah, pardon my familiar addressing, I couldn't help myself." she chuckled playfully, feeling less intimidated now as the flirty man was in her aura, not the ice-man anymore.

"How foolish... It's like you need to flirt with women just to survive, Shingen." Kenshin scolded the warlord who could only grin at him.

"You're just jealous this one likes me, and not you." Shingen playfully attacked Kenshin, only for the platinated man to turn away with no reaction, disappointed the chestnut haired one.

"You seem like really close friends~!" Kat chirped, despite knowing very well they were mortal enemies for a long time... Or at least history said so!

However, before Shingen could reply, an obnoxiously annoying voice called out her name, destroying her zen immediately, and Shingen could see the angry and fed up grimace on her face as she recognized the voice's owner.

The man stomped to the girl's side and snatched her roughly by the wrist, in his embrace, glaring at the Takeda lord, who could only watch the scene with passiveness and slight irritation at having that nice moment interrupted.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, flirting with other men when you have me!" Drew yelled in her face, grasping her shoulders harshly, making her flinch from the loud noise right in her ears.

"I have no idea what you're talking about. We were merely having a decent, pleasant conversation about this fine weather. Is that a crime?" Kat sneered at him, lying through her teeth as she pushed away the obnoxious brat.

"His hand was on your hair, and you two were sharing bedroom eyes, undressing each other in your minds, and you really think that such a stupid, obvious lie will fool me?!" yell more and the whole Japan will hear you.

"You're overreacting and being dramatic again. If you have confidence issues, go ahead and solve them, but I have nothing to do with them. Then again... With how painfully annoying and disrespectful you're being to me, I wouldn't mind throwing you to the piranhas and running away with Lord Shingen." Kat started mockingly laughing in his face.

"I wouldn't mind that either, lovely fox~." Shingen, from the back, chuckled as well.

"ENOUGH!" and, shocking everyone, Kat found herself with the blade of a small dagger at her neck. "ENOUGH! STOP CHEATING ON ME, YOU STUPID, DUMB WHORE! I'M FED UP WITH YOU AND THE SHIT YOU DO TO ME! IT HURTS ME TOO, YOU KNOW?!" Drew had tears of frustration in his eyes as he dug the blade deeper into the girl's skin, enough to draw a little bit of blood.

"Are you done?" Kat sighed, rolling her eyes at his childishness.

"...What?!" he gasped, his hand trembling on the dagger handle.

"I said - Are you done? You're wailing like a cat in distress, what the hell is wrong with you? If you want to be a man, you gotta start acting like one and earn some respect. Look at you. You're nothing more than an entitled, whiny brat who wallows in self-pity and sobs to his mummy over the smallest things. You can't even hold that dagger without shaking like a leaf. You couldn't take a life, even if your own life was in danger. What the hell are you good for, anyway? You disgust me. You truly piss me off." Kat's sweet and cheerful voice became dark and threatening, spreading a miasma of freezing poison that made Drew grit his teeth and shake even more.

He knew... She wasn't one to get angry, hence why he took her for granted and would behave any way he wanted to... But he hasn't seen her this wrathful is so long, it slipped his mind that she had such a vengeful side of her. Without the least bit of fear, the red haired girl brought her hand up to the blade, pulling it away from her neck, and as an affirmation of her dominance and strength, she gripped it tightly, enough to draw blood and paint the metal crimson. She titled her head menacingly, the way she saw Michael Myers do in the Halloween movies, but then, she smirked, seeing the man cower in fear and let go of the blade - And she hit him over the head with the handle with all her strength, making him fall to the ground, screaming for mercy - The display was so pathetic and disgusting that Kat couldn't help herself and stomped down on him.

"You know you messed up bad enough if you got me angry. Now you suffer the consequences. You are not a man, you're just a pathetic excuse of a waste of breath who thinks the whole world owes him. Next time you decide to piss me off, remember that you are the one who offered me this dagger, and unlike you... I'm not afraid of using it." and with one more kick in the back, Drew finally became enough of a coward to pick himself up and run the hell away from there, making the girl sigh in annoyance, not wanting to look back at the men staring at her, feeling the burning rage in her heart turn into quick embarrassment.

However, that silence was filled with a single set of steps that walked in front of her, and she found herself being faced with a smiling Shingen, who carefully took her hand in his own, kissed the back of it, then wrapped it up in a handkerchief, before using the sleeve of his own kimono to wipe away the faint necklace of crimson dribble from her neck. "I don't think I've ever seen a woman as brave and firey as you are. Are you sure you're not a Kitsune?"

"...I never said I wasn't, did I?" after a few seconds, the ghost of a half-smile appeared on her face, continuing the playful back and forth with him.

"Sure you don't want to run away with me?" he chuckled, caressing her face, a bright, gigolo smile gracing his features.

"Ask me that after our 3rd date, Shingen. Until then... I'll see you around, maybe?" she mused, earning yet another mirthful laugh from him, as booming as always.

"I love confident, cheeky women like you, yet I have to say, I haven't met anyone to direct and straightforward like you! I'm looking forward to having having that date with you, lovely fox~!" and with that, the 4 men departed back to their castles, leaving the red haired girl to chuckle softly to herself, walking back to Azuchi.

"If only you didn't have cancer, Shingen... You're the only man who ever made me feel like a woman." despite the sorrow in her voice, she still smiled, albeit it was bittersweet.

She was ready to turn in for the night and just chill around in her room, however, one of the men who serves under Nobunaga told her she must attend a war council - She was surprised, sure, but at the same time, pretty excited about being allowed to seat through more of these.

As Kat announced her presence and got inside the room, she noticed the warlords were already there... And Drew as well, was trembling still, sitting next to Mitsunari. However as soon as he noticed the red haired girl, he let out a distressed wail and stormed out of there, making everyone look after him with wide eyes. Sighing and rolling her eyes, Kat turned around to close the sliding door, as he didn't even have the audacity to something so easy. Idiot.

"What was that about?" Hideyoshi asked, very confused.

"It seems our little fire fox came from an altercation with a few scratches on." Mitsuhide pointed out, alarming the other warlords.

"Ah...Well, when a dog is bad and misbehaves, you punish him. You may get bitten in the meantime, but as long as you assert your dominance and authority over it, then it's all good." she chuckled venomously, only to see the silver haired fox smirk at her.

"My, my, what a cunning fox we have here. You're not about to bite our noses while we sleep, are you?" Mitsuhide teased her, as she sat down next to Ieyasu.

"Not at all. In the end, I am no dog owner. That stupid mutt was just greedy and thought he could eat me. It's his fault for being stupid and getting suffocated with my fur. Besides... Noses are dirty with mucus. The neck, however... I can confirm, they are very... Delicious." the fox girl made such a bold implication that made Masamune laugh, while Mitsuhide and Nobunaga only smirked in amusement, while the other three either gasped and blushed at her rudeness, or looked innocently confused.

"Very well, enough of that. Since you've been working so hard, and more, as you've saved my people, I will have you rewarded personally. Until then, let us begin our discussion." Nobunaga smirked from his far away seat of honour, as the main warlord.

But she was not surprised in the least that such a topic of discussion was brought upon, and yet, rumours sure fly fast around the castle - She wondered, for a stupid second, weather social media was as fast as all these spies and gossips around. What a silly thought.

The Dragon of Echigo is still alive and he's sheltering the Tiger of Kai

What a lovely metaphor for such lovely people.

Oh, this was going to be one very fun war council indeed.

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[anotheruseronthissite]

Demon Slayer Role Swap - Tanjiro and Nezuko

Plot Points:

Tanjiro and Nezuko and raised by Tanjuro and Kei Kamado along with their siblings.

Most of the canon backstory happens, but Nezuko does not become a demon. Both Tanjiro and Nezuko become demon slayers and pillars.

Nezuko gains an inferiority complex because Tanjiro's skills with a sword and invention of breathing styles are much better than hers and she wishes to be able to fight equally alongside him.

Muzan uses this to his advantage and turns Nezuko into a demon, manipulating her memeories to twist that inferiority into resentment.

Tanjiro encounters Muzan and nearly kills him, but Muzan gets away. Tanjiro lets Kanae and Shinobu live.

Tanjiro is kicked out from the Corp. He proceeds to have a family with Kanao, who was also appart of the Corp his time.

Nezuko ends up confronting an old Tanjiro, a while after Kanao died. What happens between Kokushibo and Yoriichi occurs.

Character Info - Tanjiro

Status - deceased

Appearance - short red and black hair tied into a very small ponytail along with dark red eyes. He wears a black and green checkered haori over a white robe and black pants. He also wears a pair of hanafuda earings gifted to him by his father and has a flame like mark running from the corner of his forehead.

Weapon - Black Nichiren Sword

Breathing Style - Sun Breathing

Slayer Mark? - Yes

Species - Human

Additional Information -

Tanjiro was not born with the slayer mark.

Tanjiro invented Sun Breathing based off the Hinokami Kagura dance performed by his family. ( The dance came before the breathing style in this AU. Tanjiro later retranslates the breathing style into a dance )

Kanao was still like how she was by the end of canon.

Tanjiro is the ancestor to Sumiyoshi and the Tsugikuni twin's mother.

Tanjiro's earings are gifted to Yoriichi by Yoriichi's mother.

Character Info - Nezuko

Age - 400+

Appearance - Long black hair that fades into a flame orange along with dull pink eyes that have the Kanji for Upper Moon 1 etched into them. Nezuko has a long white horn protruding out of a corner of her forehead and crack like and red and green vine like markings on her skin. She's tall and wears a light pink Kimono with a hemp leaf pattern and a dark-brown haori along with a pair of zori, white tabi socks, and kyahan. She also has a cresent moon shaped mark on her cheek. Nezuko also has a worn and ripped pink ribbon in her hair, a gift from Tanjiro.

Weapon(s) - Red Nichiren Sword + Legs (for kicking)

Breathing Style - Moon Breathing

Demon Art - Combusting Blood (can harm humans and melt Nichiren Swords)

Slayer Mark? - Yes

Species - Demon

Additional Information

Nezuko incorporated powerful kicks and punches into her combat.

Unintentionally, Nezuko's physicall combat becomes apart of a different breathing style.

Nezuko commonly takes on a toddler like form, mainly to blend in/hide away when she doesn't want to fight.

Nezuko has an even more demoinic form. ( Basically Kokushibo's monsterous form)

Nezuko does not recover her full memories until facing off against Yoriichi

[yostresswritinggirl]

If we go with Kouta, the dusk bird will be puppet reader and Scara's firstborn, lol. Really nice contrast between puppet reader (immortal) with dusk bird (mortal) and Tighnari (mortal) with Karkata (immortal). And slightly sad and hopeful implication that puppet reader will take in Karkata after Tighnari's eventual passing. A more tragic thought is puppet reader succumbing to erosion and everyone, all the friends they have made with Scara, have to take them out. And then puppet reader dying with a smile on their face. About to ask Kaeya for a favor and freeze puppet reader and Scara together so they'll be with each other for eternity even after death. *insert Modern AU*

Scara also ordering new clothes with their household seal/family crest embroidered on it to show that puppet reader is his spouse so watch it. But I imagine he enjoys it when they leave marks on him during their bedroom waltz for similar reasons. Others can see it and know that they are a couple. Also, I can't unsee him leaving hickies on puppet reader and it looks like flowers blooming on kintsugi branches.

That Vocaloid song Kokoro really scratches an itch in my brain when thinking more about the creation of artificial life in Genshin. But Albedo taking an interest in Scara and puppet reader due to their similar stories would be funny given how it happened twice in Inazuma. Susbedo, though. A thrilling side quest.

https://youtu.be/7IoseIkhAg0

Bloom anon

Firstborn sksksks except for the obvious fact that only reader send letters, or Scara rarely uses it - and nooo please don't bring that thought after I've been obsessing over Karkata and Tighnari art again skdbeikw

And the erosion hnghhhh sorry to ruin your moment but it's not Kaeya that's doing the deed it's actually Zhongli sealing them in amber/cor lapiz just like Qiqi and Azhdaha ywy just them curled up inside amber half-buried next to their oldest Sakura tree which at one point wraps its roots around the golden coffin, it was done like that to honor their existence and became a forest legend, and omayghad Modern au? Fuck yeah, Ouroboros this shit until it chokes in its own tail

And yes, now I can imagine it! I've always been pondering of puppet reader's supposed redesign now that they moved on with Scaramouche, and the house seal being their motif is a goodie! The back of their kimono has the house seal, and their veil (the one from Kuni) is turned into a transparent haori to replace the old one. Or they keep it as a veil still but with a Sumeru hat over it. Hot take on the lovebites, maybe they leave marks on him when he's leaving with Traveler and the others again but the more bites means the more they miss him

Wait cute shit, Nahida drawing flowers on their kintsugi as branches using henna? That would be a beautiful surprise for Scara's return perhaps (I dunno why I thought of this but I feel like there would be a personality change to puppet reader after Scara became Wanderer, like they're not so innocent or naive like before, more confident and maybe giving a bit of that dom energy nagging mother vibe everytime Scara turns into a lil shit)

And don't remind me of that song again aofbwonwmd I think the artificial life gang should meet up (susbedo and reader meeting up and him seeing the kintsugi tho hmm) (did i mention that albedo did meet puppet reader back in Mond during 1.1?) and poke around, see what makes each other different and similar and all that

Oh hey that's four of them, they can make up a whole team hahaha

[searchingsomewhere]

Wolf and Flower, Part 2

Part 1

I'm so glad to finally update this. I love Giyu so much.

Giyu x OC

"Huh?!" Mitsuri wailed, standing up on her knees from the low table. "That's so sweet, Mr. Tomioka! Gosh, that sounds like how you'd meet your soulmate!"

Giyu sipped from his cup, ignoring her.

The nine Hashira sat around the table. He had begrudgingly brought up the rescue, unable to skirt around his sudden interest in such a small village. Giyu thought it important to mention the girl's village so scouts could be sent out. She wouldn't be able to defend it for much longer.

The pink haired Love Hashira was bouncing around, prattling along about how romantic their 'fated meeting' was. He averted his gaze from her. There was nothing romantic about it.

"As if this guy even knows the meaning of 'romantic'," Obanai muttered, barely discernable through the wraps around his mouth. The snake on his shoulder watched Giyu.

"It certainly was heroic of you to save her, Tomioka," Shinobu chirped sweetly, raising her cup to sip from, "I'm sure she appreciates you walking her home as well."

"Don't give him a bigger head than he already has," Sanemi snapped. His eyes were almost as wild as his hair.

"Quiet, please. Let's continue the meeting," Gyomei rumbled. He loomed over the rest of them, hands folded politely.

Giyu inwardly sighed. Despite his attempts to listen to the conversation at hand, his mind wandered. The white haired woman had seemed so fragile in his arms, a stark difference from the formidable force he had seen in the village. She wasn't a swordsman by any means. But the way in which she had swung her butcher knife, the speed and strength behind every strike, was impressive. Either she had some skill, or serious anger issues.

He found himself thinking back to her often, even months after the incident.

"If you're in town and ever need anything, please come find me," she said, giving him a slip of paper with an address.

While out on patrol, he found himself standing outside a familiar looking village. He was just passing through, but the village sign made him hesitate. Fatigue was settling in and he rubbed his face with one hand. His stomach made a noise. As if on cue, the sun had begun to set. Better to rest while he could.

Giyu pulled the paper from his pocket. His destination was still miles away. Who knew when he could stop again.

---

"Emiko! There's a man at the door for you!"

What? Emiko frowned, setting down her platter on the table. Now that the main family was settling for dinner, it was about time for her to leave. The family she worked for was small, but wealthy, with a large western manor. She had been honored to work there as a maid, much less live so close by. The last thing she needed was admirers to come by and bother the family.

"Are you sure he's not asking for Kimiko?" she laughed.

The head maid rolled her eyes. "No, he asked for you, specifically. Said there was a white haired woman named Emiko he needed to see."

Emiko tilted her head in confusion, weaving between the girls crowded around the window. "Did he say who he was?"

"Nope," the head maid said, "He's a quiet one."

"He's so cute!" The girls whispered amongst themselves, "Look at those eyes!"

"So handsome!"

Curiosity peaked her interest and Emiko leaned by the window to look out. Outside the manor stood a young man, with dark hair and a split patterned haori. Emiko's eyes widened and her mouth dropped. It was him.

"Who is he? Who is he?" The other maids clucked.

"That's the swordsman that saved me a few months ago!" Emiko said excitedly, already moving to the stairs.

She smoothed out her kimono and tucked her hair behind her ear. Her heart was beating out of her chest. The last time he had seen her, she was a mess, dying and feverish. Now her hair was styled into a low bun at the nape of her neck, neat like her dark kimono. He was incredibly handsome. Hopefully she was in a more presentable state. She took a quick breath and opened the door.

The Hashira stood politely on the other side. He had dark circles under his eyes, and his shoulders sagged, weary from traveling. He simply nodded to her.

"You look well," he said. His voice was softer than she expected.

"I- I am," she said, bowing her head, "And you?"

"Fine."

The two stood in silence for some time. Emiko glanced back at the window. The other maids all ducked down below the sill.

"Um, Mr..."

"Tomioka," he said, "Giyu Tomioka."

"Mr. Tomioka... Did you need something?"

He looked back to the manor, lips pursed in thought. Emiko followed his gaze. His silence clicked in her head like a puzzle piece.

"Oh, do you need a place to stay tonight?"

He nodded.

"You can't stay here, but I'd be more than happy to have you stay with me," Emiko said quickly. She smiled at him, dropping her gaze to the ground when he looked back her. His deep eyes were almost unnerving.

"If it's no burden," he said.

He really isn't one for conversation. "None at all! I was about to go home anyway. It's the least I can do to say 'thank you'."

Emiko excused herself for just a moment to gather her things. As soon as she came inside, the flurry of maids were fluttering about her.

"What'd he want? What'd he want? Is he your boyfriend?" They bombarded her. The head maid shook her head and shooed them away.

"He just wants to walk me home, that's all," Emiko said sheepishly. It wasn't totally a lie, but she wasn't interested in starting rumors.

"Be careful, Emiko," the head maid warned, "You can't trust those swordsmen."

"I will," Emiko said, bowing to her as she grabbed her bag.

Outside, Giyu was looking off into the distance. He turned to her as she approached.

"Now it's my turn to lead you," she said, smiling.

Part 1

[saiakv]

After a late night working on dismantling the cursed spirit's barrier on Gojo family lands, the two young sorcerers were spared an early morning wakeup. The sun was still making a lazy journey towards its zenith when a bubbly servant girl their age knocked on on the door of Suguru's guest chambers, presenting a tray full of food smelling fresh from the kitchen, two big bowls of rice with multiple dishes between them. "Good morning Geto-sama! You must be Satoru-kun's friend? He said he'll join you shortly."

Ten minutes later Satoru arrived, slamming the sliding door open with a huff and a flustered expression. "Not a word," he grumbled half-heartedly as he made his way towards his friend and the breakfast he'd had sent here for the both of them.

The boy looked like a completely different person. His hair combed back and somehow tamed from its usual chaos, and he wore a dark blue haori draped over light grey kimono, held together with a simple blue knotted himo. Every piece was simple and solid in colour, etched only with the most subtle of patterns along the edges of his obi and the symbol of the clan woven into the pattern of the cloth itself, visible in the refracting of light.

This is what he gets for not packing his own outfits for the week.

During his initial attempts to catch some shut-eye, there were vivid flashes of a blaring explosion. A putrid smell like rotten eggs; the chirping of birds silenced; suddenly his mind could accurately piece together why that curse was a grade one with the ability to perform complex barriers. Entrapment. He'd felt it inside the mountain they had been dropped off at by the appointed clan window, that the time-locked element of the barriers was connected to the curse's nature. And now it made sense, under new light. Miners would only have so long to run outside after gas had been detected. Although... there had been no evidence of an actual mining facility, which was the one thing that did not match everything else; a question that had been dangling from his tongue for hours on the ride back, alongside the pungent taste of orange, held back by the echo of Satoru's voice telling him about clans being more insidious than you'd think with their political games.

So, by the time the sun was well amidst its course, Suguru hadn't slept. But he had still made the most of his afforded rest, browsing over the dusty library books for information on curse manipulation. A thoughtful wrinkle was still creasing his brow as his fingerpad trailed down a line, free hand translating the kanji, as per usual. It made more sense of sorcery books to be written in such, for conceptualization purposes. Sometimes a vivid image could suffice for a sorcerer to grasp onto an ability they were previously unaware of — and the same had happened in his case. Except, from the conception of that idea to its execution, there awaited an arduous journey filled with relentless practice.

His eye narrowed over the picture diagrams following the 'merge' of two flyhead curses into a bigger curse. The author suggested starting small, with types that are similar to each other and working one's way up to higher grades and more complicated weaving techniques. Pen had been idly caught between his teeth, he had been pondering on the advantages and disadvantages of this technique development. 'Merging' would mean exchanging the versatility of his technique for raw power that could probably rival someone with similarly high cursed energy levels to his own. Though, apart from Satoru, there wasn't really anyone else like that.

The thought painted a small crease to his cheek — it was factual, yet still followed by a pang of guilt that maybe he was being arrogant. But then again, look at this place. The luxury surrounding him, the beautiful vantage of the compound from the guest room window, the feel of cursed energy in this place that was so pure and clean — like going from the tap water that was Tokyo's buzz of putrid cursed energy to a clear and filtered stream. If this visit to the Gojo clan had helped solidify one thing, it was his place among the strong.

So, it wasn't arrogant. With Satoru by his side, there was nothing they could not accomplish. The short work they made of this curse, earning mixed reactions from his clan, was definitive proof of it, if any. For once, Suguru felt it was okay to acknowledge his own sense of self-importance; if only in the quietude of the Gojo clan guestrooms.

After dunking his head in cold water to help with the puffiness around dark eyes, he took a long moment to press the provided towel into his skin and relish in the luxurious feeling. The comb had still been running through his hair, mind mulling over the thought of what might happen if he managed to weave all his curses into one using that method. There had been no mentions of sorcerers with his technique managing to do as much; but then again, all of them had disappeared from literary references quite young. Lost in his thoughts, his shoulders jumped with the knock, hair-tie slipping from between his teeth and all his hard work to slick his hair back undone. Hair was still slipping from the half-fastened bun when he answered with an inquisitive tone that soon turned to an affiliative smile. Satoru-kun, huh.

This girl must know him personally.

She would have made the perfect target to pry embarassing childhood stories from, if she had been a little older. Oddly enough, Satoru had never mentioned any friendly characters from his clan before; he certainly came off like he was very inexperienced around friendships when theirs had first blossomed. And — last but not least, he was not ... the easiest person to be around. But the exchange was kept brief ( 'Good morning. Ah, is that so... I will have to hope he does not take too long, then.' Bow. Smile. ' Thank you very much for the meal.' ) and Suguru was left with more inquiries and the delicious aroma of miso soup, rice and salmon to compensate for them.

Chopsticks clashed as his mouth watered over the idea of starting without his host — the second bowl of rice glaring at him every time he was tempted to pinch a bit of that melty-fluffy looking salmon. He had been on the cusp of giving into his desires when the door slid open a second time, with characteristic abrasiveness, and violet eyes stilled over the intruder.

Thick lashes fluttered as if struggling to comprehend just what he was looking at; vaguely familiar yet so different. He'd never really seen Satoru dress up before — his outfits prioritized comfort over style a lot of the time. But this ensemble was regal, from the fine stitching on the hems to the detailed patterns and the feel of luxury in the way fabric sat over his shoulders, accentuating his height and the curvature of his form. Satoru was brazenly handsome; but to see him donning elegance so naturally was a stark reminder of the fact that this boy used to have a life before Tokyo Tech — a very different one from the rest of their friend gruop. Though, his hair did remind Suguru of that one time when Kōryu licked his face and gave him a cowlick.

❝ — pft. Pft-hee-heee-hee-ha-haha! ❞

In either case, he could not remember a time when he reached for his phone faster than now; within seconds the camera had snapped once, twice— thrice to make sure. Oh, Shoko was going to love this. His eating utensils had to be placed aside in favor of holding onto himself as he folded over laughing.

❝ Satoru-kuuuun, please be careful not to get stains on your kimono! ❞

This was more rewarding than any generous breakfast or monetary compensation could hope to be. And as their morning together would progress ( with a lengthy intermission for rough-housing after this, no doubt ) Suguru came to realize that, for once, he did not mind the post-mission fatigue... or the fact this salmon tasted like oranges.

[crazyapplekiss]

Demon in a Red Kimono - part 2

Eyes wide in shock, Himiko could only stare up at the ceiling  in what was to become her new home, unable to deny the sense of whimsy it carried, and the mysterious pull it had on her soul. Unfortunately, those wondrous feelings soon soured as she was reminded why she was here in the first place, a secret part of her wishing she were here for any other reason.

She was not a treasured guest after all, but a prisoner .

Though her offer had been fuelled by panic and fear for her friend and her own life, she did not regret it’s outcome, even if she had been surprised by the demon slayers’ easy acceptance. By now she knew damn well the tales about demons demon slayers were real, just as she knew that the slayers would never have bothered trying to take her back with them unless they got something out of it, after they had so callously raised their swords at her.

In the end, offering herself in exchange for Yua’s safety, had seemed the only choice, as she knew they would have denied her request to leave her be.

Looking surprised and mystified by her offer, the girl in the butterfly haori had accepted rather easily, and whilst that in itself was strange enough, the actions of the two that followed, seemed to grow stranger and stranger still.

Himiko had spent over two weeks in the care of the butterfly girl,  Shinobu , as she had learned and throughout that time she had her blood drawn and analysed and was still reeling from the process of removing Muzan’s curse from her. One week of sleeping to recover and another trying to adjust to being a demon. Most nights she was restless and her body felt tired and weak. The hunger twisting tight in her belly had dulled some but had never truly gone away no matter how much she tried not to think of it.

There were people guarding her room at all times if she even so much had thought of walking out without a guide. They were scared and uneasy around her and she couldn’t find it in her to blame them. She wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if a monster lurked through the halls either.

Yua had been by her bedside more than once. Fretting over her every need, even if she no longer needed her to worry about her health or if she would die in her sleep, she stayed as much as she could, even if it was just to talk. Even with the exhaustion and dull ache under her ribcage she enjoyed the company.

There were few nights, when she tried to sleep again to keep her energy up and she found herself stuck somewhere in between memories and a nightmare. The images her mind conjured up were occasionally bathed in blood and grime and the bodies of her house mates. Sometimes it was bright and sunny with the cherry blossom trees in full bloom and the sound of wind chimes echoed through, despite the carnage and sometimes the image was dull and she couldn’t see their faces or hear their voices or even remember their names.    

This night, however, she saw a girl with pale hair sitting in the moonlight singing a gentle song. She remembers that the sound of a child singing would bring her nothing but joy. Right now though, the sound filled her with pure terror.

The sweet little voice was at odds with the horrifically twisted lyrics that the “Child” was singing, the soft occasional giggle only serving to chill her to the bone. Though they wore the skin of a human child for the moment, she knew the truth was very very different.

The child wore a red kimono with pink flowers scattered on the cloth. Her voice was soft and sweet and never changed pitch as she approached cautiously as she tested the waters or even when she kneeled in front of her to try and see her face. For sometime she sat and listened to the song, trying hard to figure out why the melody had reminded her of bits and pieces of something.

Shinobu had told her that her memory would be affected but the medicine to remove the curse would help her without fail even if she forgot the people she loved and who she was. Still, it made her a little frustrated when she would to try to grab the memories and hold them tight only to have them slip away like sand.

The little girl had stopped singing abruptly and more than doubled in size. Himiko startled as the dream? Nightmare? Began shifting. Her hair grew out and fell down in waves almost shining when the moonlight coming through the windows hit it and her fair skin had turned very pale. She was whispering something too soft for Himiko to hear and when she reached out to grab her hand, Himiko saw one rest on top of her head.

Looking up at who it was attached to, she was overcome with fear and panic. The man looking down at her was not human; she was sure. The red piercing eyes and cold stare he gave made her freeze and she barely registered the dull feeling of something resting on her head.

What was this? Who was this? He gripped the girl’s head tighter and sunk his claws in, staining her white hair red and Himiko felt the ache bloom into terrible pain. The walls and floors began to change around her too, going back to it’s bloodstained horror filled glory. She could hear screaming and she wasn’t sure if it was her or the girl but when she forced herself to look up their eyes met.

Her face was bloody and streaked with tears and her eyes were a vibrant gold with her pupils long and slit shaped like a cat’s, with the whites of them red and a pair of long fangs protruding from her mouth when she bared her teeth, gritting them in pain.

Himiko realized it wasn’t some random child or memory she was seeing.

It was her own reflection.

The man pressed harder and the dream collapsed with a spray of red and wilting cherry blossoms.

[roscgcld]

RYOMEN SUKUNA || my little flower

anime: jujutsu kaisen

characters: ryomen sukuna

pronouns: she/her 

notes: historical!sukuna x reader, slightly sexual (no smexy time involved lol - maybe another day ;)), quite fluffy towards the end

also - I’ve been reading so many sukuna hcs and imagines of him when he’s in his prime or during the historical era - so like excuse me as I politely simp for the man that is ryomen sukuna >< thank you 

references: https://www.japanese-wiki-corpus.org/literature/Ryomen-sukuna.html 

Sukuna leans back into the futon with a tired sigh, two of his arms folded behind his head while the other two held you against him securely. His ruby red eyes glanced away from the ceiling to look down at the woman curled up in his embrace, sleeping peacefully against him whilst her own soft arms were wrapped around his muscular torso. He admired your peaceful features at first, but soon his eyes started to travel down your delicate neck and cleavage, your soft skin marked by dark splotches where he had marked you up for the world to see.

Just the sight of the hickeys and bite marks caused Sukuna to smirk once more, the feeling of pride traveling through him at the sight of the hickeys, both new and old, marring your skin. It was a sight he would never get bored of seeing, since it was a constant reminder to you that you were his and no one else’s. 

Many would question just how did this happen - how did a simple human manage to ‘tame’ the infamous Sukuna - the King of Curses, who spreads chaos and bloodshed in his wake? How did you, a mere human woman who looked far too kind hearted and warm, ended up with such a fearsome man? 

Well, how this came to be was actually a cute story.

You grew up in a small village in Hida province, where many cities treated Sukuna as their patron deity. He was what people would call quite a cold ruler - one who would not hesitate to bring terror and bloodshed down on a town that had angered him. But at the same time, he was quite the generous man as well. He protects the people of the Hida and Mino Provinces, and many towns had florish and grow under his careful guidance.

Your town was one of the may towns that worshipped the Cursed Spirit, preparing offerings on special celebrations and always paying your respects whenever you go up to the ichinomiya on the weekends with your parents. It was because of one of these special celebrations that drew Sukusa to you.

It was one of the many days where offerings were given to him by townspeople, in hopes that they will still continue to get some form of protection from the unknown. He was their patron deity, after all. Even though many times he does all the things he does for his own benefit, it was nice to know that there are some who are gullible enough to think he does it for them. But he it’s one to complain - many of the offerings are things he does not mind indulging in. The best crops from the harvest, women for his ever growing harem, beautifully crafted weapons and clothes are the few he can keep in mind

Many times, he does not care to go through the offerings himself - Uraume goes through all of them and then gives him a general overview of everything. However, as he was walking past one of the neat piles of offerings, a particular garment box caught his eye; causing him to pause before he unwraps it curiously. 

Sitting inside the carefully wrapped package was a beautiful dark blue kinomo made of the finest silk, the fabric so smooth that it almost felt like water slipping through his fingers. Packed along with the kinomo was a beautifully crafted haori, a simple yet beautiful crane woven into the haori in white, the details done so carefully that when worn, the crane moves with the shifting of the fabric. The packet also came with a matching hakama made from the luxurious fabric, and a beautiful kaku obi made from navy blue, white and silver carefully weaved together into in a beautiful talent.

It was because of the level of craftsman ship that had Sukuna curious - who was the mastermind of something so beautiful?

He had went to the town where the garment was from and after some digging about, discovered about you. A daughter to a family of tailors, you were quite well known for your talents in embroidery and your mastery of the loom. Having gotten such talents, you crafted many beautiful pieces, and one of them was gifted to Sukuna himself recently. 

When he first saw you, he was struck by your beauty; how you had such a warm smile no matter who you were referring to. How your movements were graceful yet swift, your needle and threat embroidering the most beautiful depections of animals and flowers without a single mistake. How your voice was so sweet and calming that he can physically feel the tension from his body starting to unwind ever so slightly. If he could, he’d love to listen to your voice forever - which was what he intended to do. 

The first time you two met was actually in the dead of the night; you had stayed up later then usual, carefully embroidering a water lily onto a long fabric for a personal tapestry you wanted to hang in your room. A candle was burning by your work table, casting the engawa of your home in a soft but comforting glow; enough for you to do your work without straining too much. You were so fucsed on your work that you didn’t notice how the flames of your candle started to flicker in the glass holder; even though there was the air was still. Your eyes didn’t trail up from your tapestry even as a large figure quietly entered the hallway you were in; only pausing when you felt a huge presence looming over you.

Your bright eyes flickered upwards and met with four pairs of ruby red ones staring right back at you; all four of them shining in amusement. “You are quite oblivious, little one.” Sukuna hummed out with a soft grin, to which you just gave him a confused look as you tilted your head ever so slightly. “How did you get into my house?” You asked quietly, not even acknowledging how the man before you looked very different from what you’re used to; from the four muscular arms sprouting out from underneath the dark blue haori, the very same one that you had made for him. to the extra pair of eyes he sported on his face. Or how the top of his head was clearly brushing against the simple weed roofing of your family home.

“Is that really the first thing you’re going to ask, little one?”

From that day onwards, things definitely went a lot smoother then Sukuna could have imagined. At first the lack of reaction from you confused him, but he found it quite amusing nonetheless. Even after finding out that he was the same deity that you had heard stories of since you were in diapers, you acted no differently around him. You still talked and laughed with him like he was any other human. which for some reason made his heart feel warm and fuzzy. It makes him want to gather you up in his arms, protecting you from the horrors of the world.

The two of you will continue to meet up in the night like secret lovers; many nights he’d just lean against one of the pillars of your family home, with you perched in his lap as you work on different projects every night; talking about things that happen that day, or the funny stories that the townsfolk would share with you whenever they drop by to mend and purchase clothes, or when they dropped off freshly dyed fabrics. During a few of these nights Sukuna had suggested if you can help him mend a few of his kimonos, which you agreed to without hesitation. Some days you’d ever create new kimonos for him as well, which he would wear quite proudly. 

Soon these innocent nights of talking and laughter, him watching you do your work under the moonlight, to having you gasping and crying out for him as he took you over and over again in his grand bedroom; watching quite gleefully as he corrupted your innocence, ruining you for any other man. Ever since the first night you two shared in his bed, he knew that there was no turning back - there was no one else for him but you. 

And there was no way he was going to let some puny human even try to get in between the both of you.

With that he whisked you away from the somewhat mundane and boring life in your town, making you his entire world. He showered you with the finest gifts and opened the more human side of him to you; one that he thought he had lost the moment he had decided to go down the path he did. But you pulled these emotions out from him with ease, making him realise that he can chase all the power he want till the end of time and that will never satisfy him completely. 

All he needed was you, and everything feels right in the world.

“I’ve lost you again, haven’t I?”

Sukuna’s eyes snapped towards the direction of your sleepy voice, watching how you gave him the most beautiful yet sleepy smile as you carefully shifted your body so it was pressed against his. He marveled how your naked bodies clicked together seamlessly, even with the clear size difference between the two of you. “You will always have my attention, flower.”

The sound of the simple nickname cause a small smile tug against the corner of your lips, remembering how that nickname came about. You have always love studying flowers, since you enjoyed embroidering different sorts of flora and fauna onto different tapestries that now adorned the walls of the home you two share. You had once told him about your love of flowers, and because of that, you had came home one day to the courtyard in your shared home turned into your private garden; with flowers from all across the country planted at every nook and cranny. 

When you had asked Sukuna about it, he just shrugs and gave you an indulge smile - as if asking were you really shocked by his gift to you. When he realised just how deep your love for nature was, he had started to call you ‘his flower’, and the name has stuck since then. “What a sweet talker.”

A chuckle rumbled deep within his chest as one of his hands found purchase along your back, starting to massage what he was sure were your sore muscles; watching in satisfaction as you melted more into his chest. “Only for you.” He admitted quietly, to which you just gave him a loving smile as you rest your cheek against his chest once more; a soft finger started to trace along the tattoos on his skin. This action caused him to relax further into the futon, sighing softly in content. “Sukuna? Can we take a bath?”

“I’m lazy.” Sukuna stated with a soft groan as he glanced down at you once more, only to be met by the soft pout that you just know gets him to give in. This caused him to scowl as he cupped your face in one of his hands, gently squishing your cheeks between his fingers as he pushes himself up into a seated position. “You little minx.” He growls playfully whilst you just gave him a teasing smile, straddling his lap with your legs on either side of his whilst one of your hands wrapped around his wrist; causing him to loosen his grip on you whilst letting out a loud sigh. “How annoying.”

His arms suddenly wrapped around you before he got up from the comfort of the warm futon, causing you to giggle as you wrap your arms around his neck. “Let’s go, flower.” He sighs dramatically before he walked you both to the bathroom, causing you to perk up before you lean over to press a loving kiss against his cheek; ignoring his soft eyeroll at your act of affection. As if he didn’t enjoy it whenever you do so. “I love you.”

“Of course you do.” He teases before he started to walk you two towards the bathroom, one of his hands skimming down to the small of your pack where a beautiful black tattoo rested against your soft skin; a tattoo that looks similar to the black lines that adorned his own skin. “You’re mine, after all.” He stated simply, causing you to roll your eyes at him playfully as he carefully sat you down on the wooden steps leading to the opening of the ofuro; watching as Sukuna started to prepare the bath for the both of you. “Wouldn’t it kill for you to just be a little nicer to me?”

Your teasing tone clearly didn’t win any points with him, who narrowed his eyes at you and before you know it you were suddenly pinned down against the wooden steps. A soft giggle left your lips at the narrowed eyes that stared back at you, causing Sukuna to scowl softly at your reaction. “Now you’re just asking for it, flower.” He growled before diving down to meet your lips in a passionate kiss; not being able to mask his smile at the sound of your soft laughter just as you wrapped your arms around him once more.

"My little flower..”

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