Chapter 3 - 2

Mio and Shinomori-san always insisted that he just leave all the chores around the house to them. While he only did chores to clean up after himself such as dishes and raking the leaves in the backyard before and after practices, there was one thing that they wouldn't fret about. The plants along the pathway of the estate.

Gardening was, unexpectedly, one of Giyuu's hobbies other than playing shogi. He didn't know he had the skill for it until he did it himself, because there was no way he was going to leave the dried and long gone plants lingering around the estate after years of vacancy in the spot for a water hashira.

The storm a fortnight ago had caused some damage to the garden. The path heading to the entrance was stained with dirt and some of the plants had unfortunately fallen off and was beyond saving. Giyuu didn't have the time to fix everything with patrols and missions in the last two weeks. He came back alive but not unscathed, two broken ribs plus lacerations on his legs and torso. Kochou had strictly told him to rest, but the garden needed tending to do and it wasn't hurting all that bad. He had experienced worse and probably will later on in the uncertain future.

Giyuu thought that a few days of rest would be alright for him to move again, but as he bent down to reach for the watering can, pain jolted up his side, sudden and unwelcomed. He let out a small painful gasp. He didn't expect the pain to that extent, if anything it actually felt worse than when he first fractured but it was thanks to adrenaline and battle pressure. Concentration breathing had helped a little, but bending over was a new level of pain in a whole. Despite this, he still shoveled the dirt, tidied the edges and trimmed the bent branches of the plants. Only stopping once or twice when it had hurt too much.

While he was crouching to trim some of the dried leaves, he heard a set of footsteps crept up behind him. Immediately he twisted his body and looked up to see who it was, which he regretted instantly, as pain pricked him on his side.

"You're gardening?" The familiar man with his cloud-patterned kimono and red tengu mask spoke, making his presence known.

Giyuu had to hold his face from wincing at the sight of him. "...Yes?"

"Never thought you had it in you, kid." Urokodaki-sensei chuckled lightly. Giyuu just shrugged at him with a deadpan expression. "Do you need help with anything?"

"Umm, it's alright, I'm almost finished anyway." Giyuu replied.

His teacher scanned around the area for anything that he could do. Eventually he walked off towards the other side of the flower beds and bent down to observe the flowers. Once he had faced his back to Giyuu, he carefully and gently, twisted back his body to avoid stacking even more pain to his throbbing side.

"Have you watered this side, Giyuu?" Urokodaki-sensei suddenly questioned.

"It's fine, I'll-"

"You're not talking me out of this one." His teacher picked himself up and grabbed the watering can that Giyuu set aside and started to pour rain over the thirsty plants.

Giyuu sighed defeatedly at that. Once he had willed to do something there was no convincing the man otherwise, especially if it was to help the people he cared about. Urokodaki-sensei was just kind-hearted like that, maybe it was also the fact that Giyuu was still his student in his eyes, even though he was technically already his successor.

By the end, Giyuu relented and let the man help him. He wasn't supposed to, this was his responsibility and Urokodaki-sensei didn't have to help him (not that the help was unwanted). At first Giyuu was restless about the idea, but something about the silence, with only the sound of snips and sweeps brought something akin to nostalgia that washed over him. He remembered how he used to help around Urokodaki-sensei's house. The vibe was similar to then.

Once they were finished, both of them stood by the entrance of the estate, marveling at their work. They got it done within half of the time if Giyuu were to work on his own.

"Good work. It looks clean now." Urokodaki-sensei uttered as he rubbed his palms together in motion to get any dirt off of the crevices of his palms.

"Thank you for helping." Giyuu returned

"Don't mind it. Let's go inside, it's a hot day today."

Maybe Giyuu should've worked without his top on, but he was slightly grateful that he kept the thin fabric on, otherwise his teacher would've started fretting over his injuries. If he carefully minded his movements, he'll slip through him somehow. He had done it before and he was confident that he'll pull through this one once again.

This was the second time that Urokodki-sensei had visited him personally. Giyuu will need to return the favor one day and visit him when he can. He wasn't as stiff and awkward as his first visit and the tension between them had dissipated, which was pleasant.

As they walked through the hallway, Mio suddenly appeared, peeking her head from one of the many rooms in the estate. "Oh, Tomioka-san— and umm…"

"Urokodaki Sakonji." The thick gruff voice introduced himself.

Mio stepped out of the room and bowed her head in respect, the man did the same in retrospect. "Nice to meet you, Urokodaki-san."

"Should I make tea, Tomioka-san?" She offered, now fully standing out of the room, fixing her wrinkled apron that she wore over her demon slayer uniform.

"Yes, please— thank you." Giyuu awkwardly replied, tripping over his words.

Mio nodded before excusing herself to prepare a pot of tea. When she had disappeared from the corridor, Urokodaki-sensei suddenly let out a low huff. Giyuu thought he was scoffing, but then another one escaped from his lips and he brought his hand up to stifle another one. Giyuu rotated his head to the side, glancing at his teacher.

"...What?"

"I remember teaching you to be a swordsman, but I don't remember telling you to be awkward socially." He mentioned, which made Giyuu a little self-conscious about it.

With his deadpan expression, Giyuu took his time to study him, although there really wasn't a lot to study of him with his mask on really. "Did I say something wrong?"

Urokodaki-sensei took a deep breath before replying, composing himself and refraining from excessive reaction.

"No, I just didn't expect to still see you as awkward as you were back then. Some things never change huh?"

I guess not…

Giyuu shrugged at that in response. He had offered that they sit by the engawa, but the other insisted on sitting in the dining area which his teacher seemed to have a preference for than the other rooms available. Giyuu didn't mind, anywhere would do.

Even as the tension between them had faded, Giyuu's inability to find a topic remained. It served as a reminder of how little he knew about his teacher, because of years of cowardice. He could start with the cliché "how have you been?" But knowing Urokodaki-sensei, he was still as fit as an adolescent to be able to trek down that mountain to visit him, regardless of his white hairs.

Kochou had always told him to speak more, be a little more of a stream than a depressed evaporated river. How could he speak when the words don't even form in his head? Maybe Giyuu was just meant to be the outlier from the norm. Every society always had their own, and in this little group of Oyakata-sama's foremost swordsmen he was that anomaly. One day, there would be someone to take his place and they would be more apt than Giyuu would ever be, both skill and social wise. Maybe that would be the blissful ending for him—

"What's on your mind, Giyuu?" Urokodaki-sensei started the conversation, breaking his train of thoughts.

He hated how his mind shifted to those thoughts with ease. When his sister and Sabito were around, life felt alright despite the vortex that pulled him under again and again.

"Nothing." Giyuu replied briefly, avoiding his face.

His teacher sighed, sounding slightly exasperated. "Some things never change, and that face you made when you have something in mind is one of them."

"I don't make faces."

"You do." Urokodaki-sensei immediately slandered his denies firmly. "You're not a puppet you know."

Giyuu was struck speechless at that, trying to find the words to dissect that statement. He knew he wasn't a lifeless puppet, why did his teacher say that? Unsettling mixture of disbelief and disorientation balled up inside of his heart.

"Sorry, I could have phrased it better. I'm just worried, Giyuu. Have you been talking to others?" Urokodaki-sensei said and Giyuu calmed, forcing his shoulder to ease, sagging from the tension.

"Talking…?" Of course he had.

"Just talking to others in general, having conversations like this."

"Yes? Mio and Shinomori-san." Giyuu offered.

"... What about your colleagues?"

Giyuu paused at that. In all honesty he didn't remember ever having a decent light hearted conversation with any of them. He's quiet most of the time, because he was bad with small talks. Pep talking wasn't his virtue nor was socializing his mastery. However, he would talk to Kochou and Kanroji every once in a while and each time it was them who started the conversation.

Recently though he had only been talking with Tokitou, which in all honesty he didn't expect them to be on talking terms for long. But the last time he had exchanged words with him was two weeks ago, the day the storm hit.

Urokodaki-sensei was still expecting an answer, and he got nothing better than his odd little bond with him.

"The mist pillar comes by quite frequently these days- We talk yes, if that's your concern." Giyuu answered. The man hummed as a reply, acknowledging his answer. Giyuu didn't know whether that satisfied his question or not.

Around the time the topic died down, Mio came into their space with the teapot and cups on a tray in hand. She left seconds after pouring the steaming black tea into their respective cups. Giyuu's mistake was forgetting to ask her to make green tea instead of black tea, because Urokodaki-sensei prefers them better. This would do for now.

The conversation eventually meandered, Urokodaki-sensei asking him about the things that had changed within the hashira operations since his generation. They exchanged thoughts and experiences on how their respective leaders rule at their own times. Previous leaders were definitely more strict than Ubuyashiki Kagaya, but in comparison, he was more compassionate and Giyuu preferred his leading style better than Urokodaki-sensei's leader at the time.

"His strategies do sound to be more structured and careful. It might also be caused by the decreasing amount of slayers passing the final selections." The former hashira commented, placing his thumb underneath his chin.

"That might be a factor of his cautiousness. He may also be preparing us for something grand, a scheme. Who knows what he's foreseeing each day?" Giyuu reasoned.

"Fair. I forgot that they can predict the future accurately. But I think as generations pass on we rapidly improve."

"Hmm."

The conversation had allowed their tea to cool a little more than what Giyuu liked, but nonetheless, he drank it halfway before refilling the small cup with more tea from the pot. Urokodaki-sensei put his mask aside, revealing his wrinkled face, yet still looked so very kind and gentle. He still remembered his first impression when he was allowed to see his face for the first time vividly. Anyone would have the same opinion, his face didn't match his occupation at all.

"So, is this mist hashira a potential future partner?" Urokodaki-sensei suddenly teased, his face contorted into a poorly fitted smirk to his gentle face.

Giyuu who was midway swallowing his tea suddenly choked on it. They were lucky that he was able to swallow most of the liquid in his mouth before choking on some of his tea otherwise he would have spurted all over the table. Urokodaki-sensei had chosen the worst timing ever to bring that up, or that the idea was so absurd that Giyuu felt a strong surge of emotion about it. He coughed to his hand, trying to get rid of the liquid that entered his airways, but agonizing pain crept up once again, coming in harsh waves.

He was able to conceal his face from showing any discomfort in front of his teacher, but that was the least of his concern now because he could barely even sit upright. He had tried resisting not to double over, but the more he coughed the more painful it became, and there was nothing he could do. The only way to get it over was through it.

He suddenly heard the friction of a chair scratching against the floor. A warm hand was placed over his back below his shoulder blade as he coughed while the other was wrapped around his forearm that he rested on the table as a support. Once the last cough had passed he carefully took a deep breath before shakily straightening his back once again with the help of his teacher.

His teacher sighed once again, this time in disapproval. "You're injured from a mission aren't you?"

"..."

"You know I can smell even emotions. I didn't want to bring it up, but why are you exerting yourself when you're supposed to be resting?" He stressed, his brows pinching close together.

"What are you… talking about?" The wind was still knocked out of his lungs as Giyuu looked back at him.

"Just now outside."

"It's not that bad." He tried to dismiss the topic and leave it at that when another cough escaped his mouth once again.

The next minutes were spent with slow and deep breaths, as Giyuu forced himself to wind down. Urokodaki-sensei returned to his seat, patiently waiting for him to regain his composure.

"Old habits die hard… you're always hiding your pain and injuries, keeping it to yourself and not saying anything about it even when walking hurts your body." Scolded the man, it touched Giyuu effectively. Guilt had blossomed inside his heart as he now recalled just how enhanced his sense of smelling was. There really was no hiding from him.

"Sorry… I just didn't want to make you worried." Muttering, he averted his eyes elsewhere, because he didn't dare to look at his eyes.

For probably the tenth time today, his teacher sighed once again, this time forbearing rather than sounding upset. "You never fail to test my peace of mind," He huffed lightly. "But I do prefer you to just be honest, at least with me, especially about injuries. Worrying is my responsibility. If you can't stop trying to run away from the butterfly estate, at least rest properly."

"How did you know about that?" Giyuu gawked at his last phrase, immediately forgetting his culpability.

Letting out a chortle, the man beamed at his former student. "So it's true! I keep in touch with Kagaya at rare times, you know. He has pretty interesting stories about you."

Kochou must've snitched on me then…

This revelation caused Giyuu to feel embarrassed once again, but admittedly feeling better, allowing them to move on from the previous conversation. They fell into a snug silence, Giyuu taking his time to draw air into his lungs some more while Urokodaki-sensei refilled his cup once again. When he had pulled himself together, Giyuu returned to drink his tea once again.

Being able to share a tea in a serene environment like this with someone he's comfortable with was like gold, rare yet treasured. It was interesting, because in contrast to having tea with his teacher like this, a lot of talking and emotions flying around, a tea with Tokitou would be considered by others dry and boring. In spite of how seldom they exchange words, Giyuu still enjoyed the stillness.

"The mist hashira, his name is Tokitou Muichirou." Started Giyuu. "He's around thirteen or fourteen if I'm not mistaken."

"You're kidding?" Urokodaki-sensei replied, now he was the one gawking. He only got a simple head shake as a confirmation. "I think I understand why you reacted the way you did just now."

Giyuu shrugged as he placed down the cup encased in his hand. "It doesn't matter, I just didn't expect you to bring a topic about spouses."

"You mentioned how he visits often so I thought it must be someone of your interest."

"No. Honestly, I don't know why he comes here. I… used to think that he wanted something from me or maybe even use me. But he just didn't seem to want anything other than mundane matters." He admitted openly. After saying his thoughts to someone out loud he realized that he could actually get his perspective on the matter, so he let the conversation flow.

"Mundane matters?"

"Yes. Having tea like this, sparring, cooking or just sitting down and staying silent to watch the clouds." That's when Urokodaki-sensei gave him a pointed look, it was his turn to look at him with a blank face.

"..."

"Uhh…"

"Giyuu." He started slowly. "He just wants some company."

"Wow what a great revelation."

"...Maybe. But you know I am not really good with people, and I don't understand why he chose to have me as a company over other hashiras."

His teacher suddenly gave him a sad look. His gaze alone was enough to disturb the still waters of his heart. It made him feel uneasy once again, like he wasn't supposed to disclose that impulsive thought to him. At this point he felt like he talked too much. The thought of him inflicting worries and pain on the people that he cared about made him falter inside.

"You're calm and non-judgemental, even if you don't talk a lot, your company alone may just be enough for Tokitou."

Giyuu's hand stopped just as his cup was about to reach his lips again. He needed time to process what his teacher had said in his regard. His instinct was to deny that, but it wasn't an option anymore. When the hashira didn't know what to reply, he reserved his thoughts and just sipped another cup of tea.

Eventually, something popped up in his mind that Giyuu was positive he needed to inquire about. "He did mention something along the lines, "water has memories." . Do you know what it implies?"

"No. Maybe he's referring to you." Urokodaki-sensei wondered with him. "Did you make a promise to him that you forgot to fulfill? Young souls are full of resentment at times."

"No? I—" Giyuu held back his tongue. If he were to disclose they hadn't talked prior to that fateful day, Urokodaki-sensei would start lecturing again. "Nothing that I could think about."

He wasn't the type to blatantly make promises out of the whim. Tsutako taught him not to, so he rarely made any promises that he couldn't keep. Not to mention that he didn't think any of his colleagues would blindly trust him, especially because most of them had a pungent aversion to him. Maybe if it was anyone else, they would've held a grudge against Giyuu, but this was Tokitou. He could barely remember his name, let alone the things he promised.

"He could barely remember where he was yesterday, I doubt that he would remember anything I might have promised him." He elaborated, now shedding some light on the situation regarding the mist hashira.

This managed to pique Urokodaki-sensei's interest. Yet he had a slight tinge of disbelief. "Is that an exaggeration? But knowing you it probably is the truth. Did something happen to him?"

"Most likely, but I'm not sure. He has problems with his memories it seems." Giyuu replied.

Excusing himself, he stood up to clear the table, taking the two ceramic teacups and the teapot over to the kitchen sink to be washed. Before he could enter the kitchen area, the former hashira called out, stopping him from his steps.

"Giyuu."

"Yes?" Giyuu turned around to face the man, with the teapot and its cups balanced in his hands.

"Can I stay here for a while?" His teacher suddenly questioned.

The request came out of the blue, Giyuu paused for a split moment when he heard it. The thought of having his teacher staying in close proximity with him once again made him feel somewhat skittish. It felt… homecoming. He had been so busy with his tasks as a hahsira that he had never stopped to process just how quiet it gets at times, how lonely he actually was sometimes. How he… admittedly missed his teacher.

Being alone was something he basked in, he functions well when he's in full control of his bearings, but being lonely was not equal to being alone. He was for once again like a child who wanted a parent's company, a comfort place. What was home when it was cold and empty? It was just now that he realized how far he had drifted from home, when he had nothing but an empty shell of a fortress.

"Yes, of course." Please.

However long he needed to stay. Giyuu owed so much to him and he will forever be grateful to the man who saved his life years ago in the woods.

"Water has memories."

Maybe somewhere within Tokitou, he was also searching for a comfort place to come back to. If Giyuu's company was enough to help him, then he would always welcome him with open arms, just as Urokodaki-sensei did with him.

"How is your memory, Muichirou?"

How was his memory? It was an absurd question that his leader should have known. As of now, nothing had helped his memories at all, still as blank as scattering fog and mystifying as a labyrinth. It was an eerie place to be stuck in, but for Muichirou it was nothing out of the ordinaryH.

"Obscured still."

He didn't like that. The fact that he's still the same amnesiac. Day, night, in between staring at the clouds, he tried to scavenge through his brain, trying to remember any small fragments that he had on the days prior to his life as a demon slayer, but each time he stalled to extract even a single memory.

He had started memory training with the insect hashira about a week or two ago because his memory didn't seem to be coming back to him. Oyakata-sama had arranged a little weekly meeting with Kochou to see what she could help with. No one seemed to struggle like he did. No one had to make tremendous effort just to remember what he did yesterday or what he ate, so why was he the only one?

"It needs time. Be patient with yourself, Muichirou." Oyakata-sama gingerly spoke, smiling with his gentle face despite the odd curse that was consuming him alive. "Do not exert yourself too much, I trust that you have done enough. Once you have gained sight of who you are, your world will be clearer. For now, please take care, my child."

The same repeated advice again and again. He was honestly tired of it.

It was a short meeting with Oyakata-sama, he was just notifying a possibility for a mission in about a week and implored him to just be prepared should a message be passed that he was needed on scene. The mist hashira didn't know, but the telltales of the demon slayer's leader "prophecy" was always on point and he knew not to underplay his orders despite it having any probability that the alert being notified wasn't true.

Muichirou greeted Oyakata-sama's children before he strode to his next destination. He had no recollection of talking to the children, but their interaction for some reason felt natural, as if he had talked to them for some time. He did, however, remember Amane-san. Muichirou only remembered fractions of it, but her appearance sparked his memories and he was able to identify the caring women that would appear in his mind's vision every time he saw her.

She and two of her daughters, Kuina and Kanata, sent him off by the entrance of their estate with his water canteen full, and even gave him a straw hat to help fight off the blinding light of day. He left and didn't look back. The next thing he knew he was walking into the butterfly estate, ready to meet Kochou for his memory training once again.

"Ah, Tokitou-san, please wait a moment. I will inform Kochou-sensei about your arrival." The girl with the two pigtails and her white aprons greeted him and escorted him inside into a small waiting room.

Muichirou waited, sitting by the window lost in his head, but he was quickly called in once again. He was ushered into one of the rooms inside the estate and the girl knocked on the door softly. The door opened to reveal the insect hashira herself.

"Thank you, Aoi-chan." Kochou nodded to her and she left. "Please come in, Tokitou-kun."

Entering her office felt like entering her personal space. It was nothing extravagant, but definitely decorated enough and he could tell, by her desk and the room itself, how she was methodical and organized. On the walls above her office desk were pictures of her family, it seemed. three girls wearing different kimonos with matching butterfly pins, another one was a picture of the girl with the pigtails along with three triplets laughing around. It felt lived and humble. One of the things that captured his attention was her fish in its glass aquarium.

"Please sit, Tokitou-kun." Kochou gestured towards one of the furnished chairs by the rectangular table before taking a seat herself. Muichirou took the seat across from her.

"Today's appointment won't be long. I will still ask you questions to see how far back you can remember. Then I'll be giving you something you need to remember at the end of our session and your task is to remember them until next week's appointment." Explained her, although Muichirou didn't see the point in this as any attempt to refresh his memory wouldn't work. Nevertheless he silently followed, because that was the only thing he could do.

Today's appointment was slow and awkward still, a lot of silence as some (maybe most) questions fired his way couldn't be answered. Muichirou was getting bored and restless about these assessments when Kochou sighed, her patience breaking slightly by the repetitive answer of no(s) and silence as she tried asking anything about his days prior to today. His memory was worse than what she thought it would be.

It wasn't until the question about his likes and dislikes surfaced that he could finally give her a phrase worthy of a lengthy verbal answer.

"Do you know what you like? What do you like to do, Tokitou-kun?"

"...killing demons." He briefly replied.

Kochou nodded before elaborating her question further. "Why do you like to kill demons?"

"Because… I'm angry at them."

"Why are you angry at them?"

"... I don't know." Shrugging was all he could do. The same question had been circling inside himself a lot of times and it made him frustrated because he couldn't identify just why, yet the burn resisted in his heart every time he encountered a demon.

"Alright, that's okay. What about something you don't like, tell me about it." Kochou shot her next topic of questions.

"..."

"Well?"

His hesitation blooms from the fact that it sounded silly, but so far that was the only certain thing that he could recall with clarity. Muichirou knew he wasn't supposed to lie or even deflect as this was supposed to be helping his memory after all. Like previously, she will ask why and what caused it, that was one certain thing that he didn't know and it was one of the biggest abysses that existed inside of him.

"I don't like the rain, a storm to be exact." He answered, looking at her face as he did, observing her.

"Do you know why?" She returned, asking the easiest question to be answered, but not for someone like Muichirou. So he shrugged, again. "How do you feel about it? You said you feel angry that's why you slay demons, what about the storm?"

Does she really need to know?

He couldn't lie through this one, Kochou wasn't as easily fooled as other people. He was convinced that she could read through him, but why should it matter that she needed to know? There were other things that could help him with his memory training and the embarrassing information about his uncanny avoidant of the heavy rain wasn't one of them.

Muichirou looked at her, who was waiting for an answer to be uttered. "Do you really need to know?"

"That's fine if you don't want to tell me, but at least I know you can remember why you like and don't like the things you mentioned." She replied, giving him an understanding smile. "Do you know what else you can tell me about? Anything you can remember at all?"

"..."

"What about our co-workers?"

Muichirou pondered over the question. He was bad with names, but he could with ease recognize some if he knew them. "Maybe."

Kochou then started listing names of their colleagues. Muichirou knew Rengoku, he was the one with the bright smile. Shinazugawa, the constantly angry one for no reason. She expected him to remember them as they had their own shining characters, who she didn't expect him to remember was Tomioka. The way her brows were elevated told him so. It also baffled him, but it probably had something to do about his visits to the water estate.

He didn't need to guess, as she voiced her thoughts frankly. "My, I didn't expect you to remember Tomioka at all. Do you remember anything about him?"

"...kind and reliable. Water has memories…" He muttered the last sentence, unlocking a small chamber in his mind, like exploring a labyrinth, exploring a new opened path. He knew someone from his past said that. "Someone from the past said that once, water has memories."

Taken aback, Kochou was speechless.

"Water has memories…" It didn't take long for her to reset her composure with a small smile. "The Tomioka I know is stubborn, stoic, and heartless. But that's great, Tokitou-kun, don't forget about him."

He couldn't give his words on it, but it wasn't like he would intentionally forget about him.

Thirty minutes in, they moved on to a series of activities to work on his memories. These were simple games such as four cups and a ball shuffle or sorting orders of words but each time it got more difficult as new words were introduced one by one. He felt like a kid, but who was an amnesiac like him to negotiate about it. If it will help him in the long run he'll do anything.

"Alright, we're done for today, Tokitou-kun." He finally stood and Kochou followed suit. They made progress today after all, even if it was just a little.

"Oh I forgot, remember this by next appointment. The name of my fish over there." She pointed at the fish tank behind him and he turned his head around to look at it. "His name is Mister Forceps."

What an odd name…

Next destination, water estate.

-

"Ohh you think I didn't see that?"

"Your move."

"I'll have that piece thank you." The check was undid. As his lance was taken by the other's bishop.

His rook retreated to defend instead.

"A wise choice." A piece was moved to check the king from another side, but it was quickly brought down by his knight taking the other's lance.

"Stop bluffing."

Urokodaki-sensei chuckled. They've been going on against each other for the past hour, taking, dropping and promoting pieces. Playing their tactics against each other. This was the second round of Shogi they had been playing as they sat on the engawa. The weather wasn't as hot and humid as it was a few days ago, just right for them to be outside with the breeze and bright sky. The previous game had gone on for about 40 minutes before Giyuu, who got the upper hand, managed to checkmate his teacher. However, in this game the older man definitely had the upper hand.

At this moment his king was still nicely guarded, but it was only a matter of time that his promoted bishop would start taking down his defense. Giyuu had to move back his rook to stop him from carrying out an offense. It took him another five minutes of defending, trying to attack but ended up retreating and sacrificing some of his pieces, until he finally got an opening to effectively make an offense, and his set up for a showdown was complete.

"You thought you could…"

His knight was taken, but in turn Giyuu finally captured his bishop. That one move caused both to lose many pieces at once, going back and forth capturing each other's pieces. Eventually the game had ended by the 50 minute mark, a tight round, but Urokodaki-sensei had played his cards right and managed to checkmate his king.

"Heh, that was a good round, you held your defense well." Urokodaki-sensei complimented, despite his sloppy plays. He just got lucky in the first round.

"I am still rusty, it's been a long time." Giyuu admitted as he still had his eyes fixed on the board, analyzing what he could've done to counter that last attack. He felt like he could've done something.

"You could have moved your gold general there to stop me." His teacher inserted, pointing his fingers on the tile that he mentioned when Giyuu still couldn't locate his mistake.

"Yes… but you would've still won by moving your knight." He countered and he agreed with Giyuu, leaving it at that.

What was meant to be a while had turned into a couple of days. Urokodaki-sensei had been staying with him for 3 days now and his dayoffs had never been this lively. Usually he would try and train even on his day off, but with Urokodaki-sensei around he forbade him to do so, knowing the existence of his injuries. The past three days had been filled with nothing but slow and light activities.

They were about to start another round of shogi when he heard the faint sound of the door to the estate being knocked. Giyuu excused himself to stand up and open the door. Slowly, he pushed himself off the floor, taking caution not to exert excessive force on his side. Upon reaching the hallway, however, Shinomori-san had opened the door first and in front of her he could see the guest that stood there.

"Oh, do you have an appointment with Tomioka-san?" She inquired the demon slayer, not knowing he was his colleague.

"...No."

"Ah, I'm afraid Tomioka-san is off duty at the moment." She politely informed him.

"It's alright, Shinomori-san." Giyuu interrupted from behind. "Let him in."

She stepped aside to let the ombre-haired teen through, bowing lightly before closing the door and silently retreat back into the mansion. Giyuu thanked her quietly before greeting the mist hashira as he took off his pair of zori.

"Have you been well, Tokitou-kun?" Giyuu questioned.

"Hmm." The younger hummed as he calmly nodded. Before anyone could utter anything else, Tokitou suddenly slanted his head to the right, peeking to see something, more like someone, behind him.

"Another hashira it seems?" The gruff voice was heard behind them.

Giyuu turned around to see his teacher appearing from the room, approaching them as they stood by the entrance. He stepped aside, allowing the two people to see each other without him blocking their views.

With his dull eyes, Tokitou looked up to meet Urokodaki's face covered with his red tengu mask. From an outsider's perspective, his mask would conceal his face which gave away someone's nature, whether they were approachable and not. No one would've known that he was actually the nicest person Tomioka had met. Tokitou was definitely at a loss for words on what to say and his teacher in retrospect simply stood there taking his time to observe the hashira who curiously stood in front of him.

"Is this the mist hashira?" Urokodaki-sensei turned to look at Giyuu as he questioned.

"Yes…" He confirmed.

"Hey… Tomioka-san, who is this man with the mask and how does he know me?" The mist hashira looked directly at him with his dull eyes that made Giyuu suddenly feel cornered by the both of them.

Urokodaki-sensei let out a laugh, free of guilt and oblivious for making Giyuu having second thoughts about mentioning his colleague. If Tokitou was conscious that they were talking about him priorly. "I'm Urokodaki Sakonji, nice to meet you."

The mist hashira looked at him, through his dull eyes. At first it looked like he wasn't interested in the person in front of him until Giyuu noticed that he had lowered his head, his attention drifting to his torso, but more so to admire his kimono. His eyes, once dull, had suddenly brightened. It made him look more like his age when he had that tinge illuminating his eyes.

Urokodaki-sensei, who was perplexed by his gesture, waved his wizened hand in front of Tokitou who was staring at him. Tokitou wasn't even being subtle about being mesmerized by the blue and white simple kimono. Eventually Tokitou blinked and he looked up once again at the man.

"What are you staring at, my boy?" Urokodaki-sensei questioned.

Tokitou's eyes remained animated even as his eyes weren't fixed on his teacher's kimono anymore. "Where did you get that?"

"Get what? My kimono?" Giyuu's teacher clarified and Tokitou simply nodded. "Oh, I don't remember, sorry Tokitou-kun. It's been years ago."

Immediately as he said that, Tokitou's eyes reverted to its dull and distant once. No words were uttered from him, but anyone would be able to notice from his eyes the disappointment that hit the mist hashira. It occurred to Giyuu that his adoration for his teacher's kimono was because of the cloud patterns. His whole life knowing Urokodaki-sensei, it was never without his cloud patterned blue kimono, not even Giyuu knew how old that clothing of his was because of how well it was preserved with only a few threads sticking out from the fabric.

"That's fine, I don't use kimono on missions anyway." Tokitou shrugged, face emotionless and monotone.

Before the conversation could proceed any further, Giyuu interrupted them, ushering them to move to a better place to talk rather than here right by the entrance. He had no expectations on Tokitou coming here while Urokodaki-sensei was staying around, but his visit wasn't surprising either.

He was, in all honesty, curious as to how his colleague's and teacher's interaction would commence. Urokodaki-sensei wasn't the type to speak often, but when he needed to it's not difficult for him to connect with others. It was clearly shown once he took a glimpse at the younger hashira and how he easily had a conversation with him. Giyuu could never.

"What is that?" Tokitou pointed out upon seeing the shogi set left undisturbed from their last game.

"Shogi. Have you never heard about it?" The former hashira questioned as he lowered himself and folded his legs to sit.

Once again Tokitou simply shrugged as he stared at the shogi board resting on the small square table, "I don't remember. Probably never."

"It's a game about strategizing and analyzing." Giyuu decided to interject and explain the idea, "Your objective is to move pieces and capture the king. Each piece has their designated movements."

Tokitou tilted his head, "Like chess then?"

"More or less, but shogi has more complexity to it." He replied as he sat down in front of Urokodaki-sensei across the table.

They started to gather the scattered pieces on the board and put them back into the thin portable pouch before setting it aside along with the board. It was enough Shogi for the day, they had another guest coming over and it was nearing lunch time anyways, Giyuu and Urokodaki-sensei planned on coming over to the village near the mansion. Tokitou could just stick around with them if he doesn't mind it, so Giyuu invited him and Tokitou agreed.

It wasn't a far walking distance, and by the time they would have arrived it was supposed to be right around lunch time. Despite Tokitou having just arrived at the water estate, not long they had started their journey to said village. It wasn't a far walking distance away and the weather was nice outside, not scorching hot yet still bright enough for them to walk with minimal heat.

The route to the village was straightforward, they just needed to trace through the dirt path left from the estate, cross the meadow and take a left at the junction. Crossing the meadow was one of the things Giyuu enjoyed every time he went down to the village, seeing the grass grooving elegantly with the wind on a clear day was breathtaking. Being out without his uniform was relishing and he felt fresh. For once he could forget about his duties, although he still felt obligated to quickly get back on post.

"Where to?" Tokitou suddenly asked beside Giyuu, breaking the silence as they crossed the field. Urokodaki was not far behind, seemingly enjoying the air by himself.

"Just ahead, there will be a junction and we're taking left." Said Giyuu, to which Tokitou simply hummed in reply before they reverted to the calming silence.

The fresh air was a good opportunity to test the depth of his breath. Drawing a deep breath of air, Giyuu could still feel the burning pain by his side, but it was definitely better. He could do it without hitching anymore. The area around his ribs was still sore, but the cuts on his chest and abdomen were drying well and as long as he properly cared for it, they would heal quickly.

"Why are you on a day off?" The mist hashira questioned next.

Giyuu glanced at him who was looking at Giyuu with his turquoise eyes. "I have an injury from my last mission."

"Aren't you supposed to be at the butterfly estate or just resting?" Tokitou shot at him, which made his teacher join their chat from behind.

"That's what I told him, but he wouldn't listen."

Giyuu turned his head around even more to send a stare at his teacher who was probably snickering quietly from afar. "It's getting better. Oyakata-sama put me on leave for about a week after my treatment at the butterfly estate." He defended. "It's not a far walk anyway."

"I just went there today." Tokitou shared, which Giyuu didn't expect would happen. All this time their conversations had mainly consisted of small short phrases. Most of the time it also occurs just if something were of importance.

"Are you also injured?" He asked in return.

"No… Oyakata-sama had scheduled training for my memory with Kochou-san." Tokitou elaborated.

"How did it go?"

"Nothing really special. She asked me questions and I just answered them and then she trained my memory a little by playing some memory games. Then…"

It might just be his imagination, but Giyuu felt like Tokitou was talking more than he would be. Giyuu listened to him telling his experience with his memory training as he continued on. It felt… pleasant, to be having a conversation that flowed naturally like this with him even if he sounded rather monotone and sullen. He wasn't loud or rambling, and Giyuu didn't have to think hardly on what he needed to say next as it just flowed like the river.

Eventually the conversation had reached an end and Tokitou returned his attention back to the road ahead, Giyuu doing the same. Before they knew it they had passed by the junction, taking only 5 minutes of walking before they had arrived by the village. It wasn't a busy one, but they had quite a lot of amenities to offer. Good enough for Giyuu to get by with his basic needs. Shinomori-san had a family here the last he remembered, so she was the one who usually went down here to buy groceries.

"So where to, Giyuu?" His teacher asked, making his presence known once again.

Giyuu looked around, locating the two restaurants located on the main road of the village. He turned around and pointed them at Tokitou and Urokodaki-sense. "Do you prefer ramen or rice today, there are two places here that we can dine in."

"Both are fine." The teen replied.

"It's been a while since I've had soba, do they sell any here?" His teacher gave his opinion. The ramen shop it was and Giyuu led them towards the building right in the middle of the rows of other shops.

-

Muichirou had never seen such a pretty meadow like this one, it looked really peaceful. The whole way towards the village was a flash, thanks to the beautiful scenery and the company of Tomioka and the gramps. He was alluring, unlike anyone he had seen, he was keen on keeping his mask. At first Muichirou wondered if he was someone from the swordsmith family, but they didn't wear Tengu masks like Urokodaki.

The village wasn't as crowded as he imagined it to be, but it was still lively. Along the way, some of the people who recognized Tomioka greeted him with a smile or a wave. He was quite well-known around the village it seemed. Once they entered the ramen shop, the master chef working at the bar immediately noticed him and gave him a curt smile. The rich smell of broth, mainly shoyu, hit his nose immediately causing his stomach to rumble inside.

They sat by the bar adjacent beside one another, Muichirou sitting in the middle between both men. They placed their order and not long after, their respective dishes were being feasted. Urokodaki had cold soba, Tomioka had basic Shoyu ramen, while he was having curry broth ramen. He had never tried it, opted for something out of the norm and he really enjoyed every bite of it.

"So, Tokitou-kun, how many forms does mist breathing have?" Urokodaki suddenly questioned beside him, pausing his chopstick from picking up more soba.

Mucihirou quickly, yet carefully chewed and swallowed the food in his mouth before answering, "Originally six, but I added one of them."

"Really? You should show me sometimes, you must be really skilled." The man commented.

"Oh uhh… sure I guess."

Muichirou knew by then that Urokodaki wasn't an average swordsman. Tomioka never really introduced who he was, and he was just a tad bit curious about the man. It wouldn't hurt to ask, he didn't look like the type to be upholding privacy of his own identity and overprotecting it.

"Are you also working for the corps?" He fired his question.

"I used to, I'm just an old retired man now." A slight tug appeared on his cheek as they spoke. "The old days…"

"A hashira?"

"Yes, I was the water hashira until the 95th leader of the corps stepped up"

Muichirou learned then that he was Tomioka's teacher then, but Tomioka wasn't his Tsuguko. Really he thought the old man was Tomioka's father or maybe uncle. He guessed that by the time he retired he had just started teaching swordsmen, including Tomioka. He also learned that the reason why he wore his mask was that demons used to mock his face, making Tokitou even more ambivalent about his face. He still felt a little let down by the fact that he couldn't tell him where he bought his kimono, but nevermind that.

Once they were done with their meals, with Muichirou finishing last, came the time for them to pay. It was then that he realized he had no money on him. He should just start bringing some on his way to do anything, albeit he doubted he would remember it. Unbeknownst to him, Tomioka stood up some time between his pondering and had paid for all of their meals.

As he continued to silently stare at his bowl, Tomioka suddenly spoke as he stood, with some amount of money held in his hand. "Let's go." he said.

Muichirou looked at the notes and coins in his hand. "Have you paid?"

"Yes, are you done eating?" Tomioka replied, which means he had paid for his meal as well.

"I'll pay you back, remind me later on."

"No need." Tomioka replied as he pocketed the change into the small pouch he brought with.

Muichirou was confused. He owed him money, then he should return it. So he repeated, "I'll return it, but I will forget so remind me if I haven't."

"No need, my treat today." Tomioka insisted as they exited the place not leaving a room for debate further as it was pointless. Muichirou didn't know how to argue further, so he might just as well let it go.

Beside him Urokodaki let out a small burp as he stepped out of the shop and into the street muttering, "That's delicious." And Muichirou agreed, it was a delicious meal, a satisfying one.

Upon stepping out of the ramen shop they spent some time exploring what the village had to offer. They stumbled upon some stands of flea markets, selling second-hand goods and some rare-finds. Muichirou didn't purchase anything as he didn't have an ounce of yen and nothing was striking in his eyes. Muichirou and Tomioka didn't actively search around like Urokodaki who jumped from one stand to the next. The water hashira eventually came across a bird box, still got a fine furnish on it, with minimal scratches here and there, but it was sturdy. Tomioka seemed to contemplate beforehand, but eventually after a brief little bargain they made a deal.

They tracked their way back not long after Urokodaki had enough looking around. With a bird box in hand, Tomioka led them out of the village. Venturing the meadow once again they went, accompanied by the clouds up above moving across the sky, blocking the sun momentarily before passing on with the gale. Muichirou's head was up in the sky with the cotton fluffs as he walked.

Tomioka and Urokodaki had seemed to be talking quietly behind him, on topics which Muichirou had no importance for. He could tell they were more than just a student and teacher in kahoots. He couldn't place his fingers on it, but Muichirou could tell they had some sort of warm fondness over one another. It felt familial.

"A bond thicker than blood… " Where have I heard that…?

Out of the blue there was a certain tug in his heart, something new, he had never felt that before. Badump-badump his heart was supposed to go, but it felt like his stomach sunk with each beat. Looking at Urokodaki and Tomioka having some sort of familial bond made him question his own origins, like who he was and where he was from. It made him all the more pressured to quickly regain his memories.

"..tou. Tokitou." It was Tomioka. No he wasn't losing himself to his haze this time.

Rather reluctantly he stopped his pace and turned around. "Yes?" He replied.

"You look absent." Tomioka bluntly mentioned.

"I was trying to remember something important, but… I couldn't." It was rather embarrassing to admit, but Tomioka had never seemed bothered that he couldn't remember something. Contrary to it, he was rather patient with him.

Once the gates of the water estate were seen, Muichirou was immediately greeted by Ginko and Tomioka's crow perching by the entrance of the gate. He had expected for her to berate him, but when she saw a glimpse of the bird box she had forgotten all urge to do so and instead tilted her head as she looked at the bird box. Beside her, Tomioka's crow took off flying to greet Urokodaki as they walked towards the gates.

"Kanzaburo, how do you do?" Urokodaki returned his courtesy with a nod.

"Giyuu?"

"No, that's Giyuu." The man pointed at his demon slayer. Kanzaburo stared at the man beside him as he flapped his wings to stay afloat. He eventually recognized who he was talking to. "Urokodako?"

"It's Urokodaki, Kanzaburo." Tomioka corrected, before his crow landed on his right shoulder and pecked its beak to his hair.

Muichirou learned that the bird box was for Ginko. He thought at first it was for his own crow, but the moment he put it up beside the other bird box, he knew it was intentionally for Ginko. Immediately after inspecting it, Ginko settled inside the little shelter without any complaint and nestled inside it comfortably, not even bothering to loudly caw at Muichirou.

"Why did you do that?" Muchirou inquired eventually as they sat by the engawa, while Urokodaki had disappeared into the estate after some time.

"Do what?"

"..."

"..."

"The bird box, I thought it was for your own crow." He elaborated.

"Your crow keeps on taking Kanzaburo's space, so I figured because she tags along every time you come here, there's no harm in placing another one."

That was… considerate of him.

Tomioka wasn't heartless, no. The water's surface was deeper than what everyone bothered to notice. Maybe Tokitou accidentally was the first to brave the waters, but he realized that he could see something beyond the facade he displayed, it felt like… trust. Tomioka had his reasons to carefully encase his emotions with layer after layer, maybe it was distrust, or perhaps a traumatic past. Whatever glimmer of trust Tomioka was bidding with him, Muichirou had no plans on severing that fragile golden thread. And maybe, just a glimmer of hope, he could put his trust in Tomioka as well. So he braced himself and mustered up the courage.

"Tomioka-san… What does "bond thicker than blood" mean?" He delicately broke the silence with his question.

Tomioka turned his head sideways to look at him with a small hum before answering, "It's implying that family isn't all blood relation."

They fell into silence once again. Deep inside, Muichirou had a context of what it meant, he wanted to spit out the vile bothersome feeling, but he didn't know where to start. The silence wasn't of comfort, rather filled with on Muichirou's end.

"I can't remember my family." He finally muttered quietly. "I don't know who I am, or where I come from."

Tomioka spent a good few seconds looking at him, "Do you want to remember?" he returned, his question this time was one that made him sound stupid.

"Of course I do." He snapped a little, tone sounded a little harsh than his usual monotone replies.

"Then you will, Tokitou. It will come to you." He firmly stressed.

Before he could stop himself, he accidentally blurted his deepest worries regarding his whole memory ordeal, honest and impulsive, "And what if it doesn't?" He couldn't help but to let the words spill out of his mouth, it felt so real once he had said it out loud.

The feeling of having an expectation for a worst case scenario, something so likely yet unlikely all the same to happen, was impacting. Muichirou never had the chance to acknowledge that he might actually spiral and lose himself even more because he was so busy trying but no progress was made. Giving up wasn't an option, it was the deal and drill, but he was slowly losing hope.

"...I will help you until you do."

"What?" He was surprised, but really what he really felt was disbelief. Tomioka wasn't heartless, but he didn't expect his senior to help him on his own accord. He didn't have to help him, so why?

"I will help you until you do." Tomioka repeated, not even a stutter or hesitation was heard.

"...Okay… Thank you."

It felt like a heavy load being released from his shoulders, now shared by two. It dawned on him that he no longer felt alone facing it, he had found a sense of direction. Like a boat lost in a sea of fog, now guided by a lighthouse, ever present and reliable even in the densest of fogs.

"Do you feel like trying shogi?"

-

When Urokodaki-sensei had returned, they played shogi once again, and this time they had an audience. Tokitou opted to observe for this first round. Be as it may with a foggy memory, Tokitou's comprehension was clear as day. He picked up the rules quite quickly, going against Giyuu with minimum repetition of rules. Tokitou was still rough, but Giyuu knew with just enough practice he would be a capable opponent.

It was nearing dusk that Tokitou had to leave for his shift. Giyuu and Urokodaki-sensei were there to send him off by the gates. Within the few hours the teen spent here, he could tell that his teacher was piqued and quite fond of him.

"Take care, Tokitou-kun. We'll meet again when time allows." Urokodaki-sensei bid his goodbye, Tokitou simply nodded, his deep turquoise eyes examined the man and his mask for the last time that day.

"Watch your back." Giyuu told him.

Tokitou nodded, now turning to Giyuu who stood beside Urokodaki-sensei. He paused and looked at him before continuing his words, as if unsure of what he wanted to utter. "Will you be here next week?" Tokitou eventually asked him.

He found a little fragment of himself in the younger hashira at times, this time it was the way he awkwardly asked for confirmation despite the obvious. "I'm always here."

"Good."

With that, Tokitou marched on his way. Ginko flying not far above him, leading the amnesiac hashira to his post, looking back once to bid his goodbye. Giyuu and his teacher watched silently as his figure got smaller and smaller by the distance, before his teacher urged them to retreat for the rest of the day. The ombre of red and orange hues tinting the clouds was beautiful today. In a matter of a few weeks the season will change and a nice weather like this will seldom appear.

"You care deeply about him don't you?" His teacher suddenly shot him the question.

Giyuu had to contemplate beforehand before answering.

Yes, more than I expected I was going to.

He didn't even realize they had even started to expect each other's presence now, nor did he know what they were at the moment. Acquaintances? Friends? Or nothing else more than co-workers?

But he knew for sure, "You can say that I do." This he was certain. From the tug of his teacher's face at the side, he could tell he was grinning warmly despite the mask.

"You're the comfort place he never had. I could sense fondness between the two of you."

"Hmm."

"Keep that close to your heart."

Of course.

The morning started slowly, one of the rare times where Giyuu simply had stopped to take his time on the table, as the birds chirped outside and the morning rays protruded through panes. He found his teacher cooking breakfast upon waking up. He would get ready for the day first and foremost before devouring breakfast, but today, there was that giddy urge to slack. Maybe it was the longing feeling to be at ease, to shed all that duty from his shoulders and simply eat what was on the table. Or it could have simply been the silent desire to feel at home in a shell of luxury that he couldn't have deserved.

Urokodaki-sensei had opted to prolong his stay in the water estate. Giyuu had no objections, his company was pleasant. He meant what he said, he could stay as long as he wanted to. Who was he to reject a man that had given him a second chance at life? Setting aside the underlying feeling of worthlessness, he was still grateful for the man. He felt more at home in his mansion with him around.

That sloth morning came to an end when his crow had arrived to greet him for the day with a message relayed from his leader. A meeting was to commence at noon today. It was abrupt, and Giyuu couldn't help but to speculate something grave, but he surmised it required no urgency and dismissed that thought.

"Peculiar..." Urokodaki-sensei mentioned from behind the newspaper covering his face. Kanzaburo now perched on his shoulder, intrigued with the paper held in his hands.

"What do you reckon it's about?" Giyuu stared at his empty plate, with nothing but streaks of grease and food left over. He wished he could have more…

"Who knows?"

Right he was, no one would have known. A certain uneasiness lingered with the message, he could try to pry more information from Kanzaburo — if he knew any — but he would've likely forgotten if it wasn't a direct message. His glass tended to be half empty these days, he preferred not to have any expectations, and so he obediently set out right at noon without much thought about it.

-

"Ah, Tomioka-san is here? What a surprise." Kochou raised her eyebrows, something from the way she was acting made him suspect that Oyakata-sama called him on such short notice because of her.

"Can't you at least greet me back, that's not quite as polite is it?"

"Good morning," He returned, complying, but that didn't seem to satisfy Kochou. The insect hashira crossed her arms at this.

He would never get to understand the true nature of her motives whenever she did these kinds of acts around him. He greeted her and he felt like it was enough, besides he was here on a meeting with his leader, not to have an idle chat with her. He wouldn't mind a conversation with Kochou, in all honesty, she truly was the only other hashira that bothered to have a conversation with him, but even he was slightly irked at this nonsense.

"Has anyone ever mentioned that look you have when you're thinking? It's quite unsettling. Tomioka-san, stop staring at me." She bluntly attacked. Was he even staring at her? "Anyways, a meeting with Oyakata-sama is on your agenda today?"

"Yes. He also asked you to come here I assume?" Giyuu replied, ignoring the question prior.

At that she eased her stance, dropping her arms lightly to the side as her face relaxed a little. "No actually, I am here for my weekly report on the operations within the butterfly estate, and in particular… your dear friend."

That struck Giyuu, he opened his mouth to refuse but undeniably it was only because he was appalled to replace the image of a person he associate with the words "dear friend". His last one passed long ago. It made him falter just a little, keeping his face flat to conceal any emotions.

"You're so mean Tomioka-san. No wonder you have no friends, you don't even acknowledge him. Never mind that, I'm sure Tokitou wouldn't take that to heart either. You two are the most phlegmatic people ever, no wonder the two of you are stuck together like glue."

It's not that he didn't acknowledge Tokitou as his friend. Giyuu was… hesitant.

"He talks highly of you, consider him a friend now would you? You're as hopeless as ever…" She sighed.

It was due time that he view him now as a friend, but Giyuu struggled trying to meet that ground. Kochou had a point, however, he ought to start getting used to that idea. She made Giyuu somewhat wonder in a sense, the sort of things Tokitou tell Kochou regarding him. He would never think of himself being brought up in a conversation where people speak thoughtful things about him.

But did he really mention such things? Or was Kochou just being passive aggressive by being sarcastic? He was notorious for poor awareness of social cues, but even so he could not really tell that Kochou was flinging sarcasm at him.

Social cues are… complicated.

"Your face really does say something a little more about you." Kochou suddenly breached the silence with her remark.

"What does that supposed to mean?" He questioned, genuinely curious. By then he had just realised how his arms had folded against itself, and went to drop them to his sides.

"Your face kind of tense up when you have something in mind, did no one really tell you about this?"

"I don't make faces." Giyuu denied, despite Urokodaki-sensei's words echoing somewhere in the back of his mind. This was the second time someone had said such a thing. It must really be true but Giyuu just didn't like the thought that she could read him like that.

"Believe what you will, Tomioka-san." Kochou gave a gentle smile as she huffed and closed her eyes briefly. Once she opened them again it was with an enthusiastic glare. Kochou brought up her index finger as she continued, "Aren't you curious Tomioka-san? About what Tokitou told me about you?"

"Sure." Was all he said as an answer.

He was reluctant to proceed with the topic, yet eventually relented. Curiosity had shaken up the waters of his resolve. He was disappointed to get his hopes up, because when Kochou stayed quiet doing nothing but staring at him with that comically lucid eyes of hers, he knew somehow he had stepped on a sinkhole of her stage play, he prepared himself for the cold water to drench him.

"Hey, Tomioka-san…" She looked straight at him with that sly look of hers, one where she was about to mess with him again. "Do you actually think that I would tell you? Doctor-patient confidentiality." She pointed up her index finger higher, smirking and all satisfied that she had outwitted him once again.

Embarrassment struck him like a jostle on the serene waters. That backwash felt familiar, it was baffling how he had gotten used to her mischief. Of course she just had to…

"Was that necessary, Kochou?"

"Obligatory I would say." She returned, chortling quietly.

Exasperated by her act, Tomioka planned on excusing himself to finally make his way further into the mansion, but before he could, the successor of the Ubuyashiki clan had called for him instead. Giyuu bowed his head upon Kiriya's arrival within their presence; Kochou mimicked his action.

"Tomioka Giyuu, the leader is ready to meet you, please follow me." Kiriya spoke, firm and proficient. The training he endured was evident, his father had been preparing him for the worst that was yet to come.

Without another word, Giyuu followed the young Ubuyashiki inside. He entered through the usual passageway leading to the garden, anticipating what was about to come. Never had he ever felt on edge to meet Oyakata-sama, this was the first time. It felt like treading waters of the unknown, waters that he had known for so long, yet now he was losing touch.

Unconsciously, Giyuu rubbed the hilt of his nichirin blade with his thumb, fumbling with it as he walked. He took the turn and approached his usual post, lowering down to the gravelled ground beneath as he sat on his folded legs. Kiriya excused himself inside, and not long after his leader stepped out into the engawa with the aid of his two daughters. Giyuu lowered his head in respect when he appeared, greeting his leader.

"My, the weather today seems quite gloomy is it not? Please raise your head, Giyuu, my child." He spoke softly, greeting Giyuu with a gentle smile on his face. "Are you well?"

"Yes, thank you for your concern, I am now ready to be posted on missions again."

"That is good to hear, Kanzaburo will notify you when I do assign you to one. That being said, today's meeting has no urgency, I simply have a request that I need to ask of you."

Giyuu's attention was piqued, slightly surprised, but he kept his emotions levelled. "What you ask of me, I will carry out."

"You misunderstood me. I request of you, but I am not commanding you. You can opt out if it is beyond what you are willing to compromise. I believe this one might just throw you out of your elements. I will reconfirm your decision once you have heard the extent of my favour." Oyakata-sama reaffirmed. Taking a pause, purposefully for Giyuu to be able to understand that he was genuine before continuing. "You must be quite acquainted with Tokitou are you not?"

Giyuu felt the knots in his mind slowly untangled upon hearing that. That was indeed not an urgent topic that needed to be discussed about, nor was it related to the corps operability. In front of him, his leader bent down carefully, folding his legs underneath and humbly sat.

"I would say so." The hashira replied.

"That is nice to hear, I am happy to know that you are able to make connections with others. It grieves me to see how you distance yourself from the other children. But that is a story for another time." A sad smile tugged on his face, staying there for a moment before morphing back to his kind resting face. Giyuu suppose it was quite unforeseen of him to suddenly be friends with his colleague that he subconsciously avoided.

"Tokitou had his fair share of opinions about you, and so far I've heard well-natured things about you. I trust that you are now well aware of Muichirou's nature?"

"Apologies, Oyakata-sama, I do not seem to follow." Giyuu admitted.

If he meant his uncanny selective memory loss then yes, Giyuu was well aware of it. He wasn't going to jump into conclusions. It would be better to appear less informed than pretending to know, no matter how obvious it might seem.

"I am simply referring to Tokitou's memory loss. I imagine you have encountered such occasions where he struggles to remember even the most recent events?" Oyakata-sama clarified.

"Yes, he at first struggled to remember me." Giyuu confirmed.

"Would you mind describing how you came to be acquainted with our youngest member in the first place?"

Giyuu did just as asked, "He visited the water mansion one day, drenched because of the rain. He did not specify why he came, but upon knowing my name and… identity as the water hashira, his eyes brightened. He mentioned something about water having memories."

In front of him, Oyakata-sama warmly smiled, the ghost of his ashen face was lifted. Giyuu couldn't help but to notice the malignant mass that was slowly overtaking his face, covering more and more areas of his skin. A year ago the discoloration was barely seen above his eyebrows, now however, it was stripping his vision away. The root-like texture seemed painful, as if it was slowly embedding deeper and deeper into his skull and eyes. To think that the man in front of him was just 2 years older than he was at the moment, and yet he's bearing the fate of the world on his shoulders. Compared to Giyuu, the duty and burden was far bludgeoning, nevertheless the man strongly stood within the world, revolving it. That was why they had only the utmost respect for him.

For Giyuu, he was grateful for his leader to even consider him to be someone of quality.

"I believe he has been coming to visit more often. How do you feel about it?"

"Yes, he has. To be frank, at first I suspected he had a favour in mind, but I was mistaken. "

He heard him humming in what sounded like satisfaction and content, "Good to know he has someone like you as a company then. It might be difficult to comprehend, but Muichirou seemed to have found comfort with each coming visit. Are you comfortable with him coming over every so often like that?" was his next question.

"I don't mind it." He's used to it in fact.

"From reports I have received from Shinobu, it seems that he is slowly retaining memories for longer periods. You will find this surprising, but most of those memories that Shinobu referred to, were of the times he spent over in your residence. He noted you to be a kind person." Oyakata-sama continued. He was pausing every now and then, allowing space for Giyuu to follow his words. "I can only do so much for him as a leader and merely only wish him peace of mind. Therefore, here is my request, please take good care of my child Muichirou. Please guide him through his own mind, help him regain his memories. I acknowledge that it is a cumbersome favour I am asking of you, but I do not entrust any other person with this request other than you. If you wish to decline, know that I will not hold any resentment."

The hashira's mind seemed to lag at that, it was as if his leader knew him better than Giyuu himself. Strong was his desire to refute his words. Nothing about him radiates someone suitable for the task. Despite the people around him drawing the same conclusion, that Tokitou seemed to find him a comforting individual, Giyuu knew he was far from what they picture him to be.

He couldn't even find refuge to comfort within himself, the water and tides remained troubled. Even if he did cave into himself, he would only be sucked into the whirlpool of his own turmoils. So how could he embody comfort when he himself could not seem to find it in him?

"Oyakata-sama, I beg to differ. Why do you have such trust that I am the one able to help him? I am not the best person you should entrust to take care of another person." Giyuu replied, or rather doubted.

"I am not looking for the best. Simply one that cares enough. By the end of the day, Muichirou was able to confide in you and nor have you turned a blind eye when others have simply referred to him as someone forgetful. Giyuu, you may doubt yourself, but my trust stems from the sole fact that he chose you time after time. Not even Gyomei or I he chose. Do you deny?"

No… I can't deny that.

Giyuu had his answer reserved well before this meeting even came to fruition. That day when they arrived back from visiting the village nearby, the older of them had decided to willingly help the younger to remember. He realised that effectively, Giyuu was simply shedding his pledge to light in front of his leader. Without this meeting, he would still help Tokitou with all that he could.

For the first time he finally had fuel, acting on his own free will, letting impulsiveness drive through and swerve the stream. He had come to a point where he did care, someone like him whose days filled with apathy had been turned the total opposite just because of a seemingly insignificant act of kindness. No… even his mere existence was enough to be of help to someone.

"I accept your request." The hashira firmly agreed. For a moment he bowed his head as he finalised his decision with his words. There was no going back now, or even from the start.

"Are you accepting because you feel a sense of duty because I ask of you or is it voluntary?"

Giyuu's legs underneath were starting to get uncomfortable as it exerts pressure against the blunt edges of the gravel. He wished after he had given his affirmation, the man would quickly dismiss him.

"A few weeks ago I had told Tokitou myself that I will help him through it. I do not understand why, and like you suggest, this is out of character of me, but I knew I wanted to help. Even if he didn't speak of it, I…" he stuttered, "I could somehow see he was silently asking for help."

Oyakata-sama suddenly stood on his feet before asking Giyuu to do the same, "Please stand."

So Giyuu did, finally released from the uncomfortable position he put himself onto. He could have just knelt down, which was more merciful for his legs. One of his daughters moved to grab his zori upon being asked, guiding him as he stepped down from the engawa to meet the earth. Now they were seeing eye to eye. His leader being taller just made his authority more present, it wasn't suffocating in a way —but he had to stop himself from taking a step back and buckling because of the numbness that resulted from the prolonged blood constriction to his legs.

Despite being on the brink of vision loss, those faded lavender eyes still had that genuine kind shimmer to it. A hand reached out to his shoulder and gently placed itself there. The hashira studied his face albeit the vain attempt to understand his emotions.

"Have more faith in yourself, Giyuu," He said, "You have never failed to amaze me. You are more than your past and pain, I see great things ahead. Shall you need aid, do not hesitate to send me a letter through your crow."

That gentle and tranquil voice always carried reassurance along. Giyuu had icks with blatant comforting words. Living in a world where blood, massacre and horrors that they demon slayers had to endure, Giyuu would rather hear the wind rustling than empty promises. However, hearing those words coming out of his leader's mouth, it carries more weight than if 100 strangers were to say such a thing.

There was one thing remaining that nagged at him. He wondered if he had answers to it or if his leader could help enlighten him.

"There is one thing that bothers me." Giyuu started, unsure of how to approach the question. "Upon coming to the water estate for the first time, the first thing that he mentioned was how water has memories. Do you know what it means?"

"I do not have a good grasp of the context, but I believe its meaning will be revealed once he regains his memory. Something that you'll have to ponder until then, I'm afraid."

-

The sky above was overcast and grey. At last it was going to rain after a long period of heatwaves with nothing but humid air and scorching sun. Upon coming back to his place, Giyuu was dead set on forgetting the events that took place moments prior. He had enough thinking during the trek back to his mansion.

Upon passing the entrance to the water mansion, he was greeted by Mio who was sweeping the ground getting rid of the dried and yellow leaves that were past its prime. She was wearing her demon slayer uniform, but her pristine white apron was nowhere to be found. He noticed her injured hand placed on the stick of the wooden garden broom that she was holding.

"Ah, Tomioka-san, welcome back." She placed a hand in front of her chest as she lowered her head in respect. "Urokodaki-sama is currently out."

"I see. Did he specify where he was going?" Giyuu asked as he stood in front of her. He was relieved to finally arrive.

"No, he didn't mention anything of the sort." Mio noted.

If he were to guess, his teacher would probably be visiting the village once again to see the flea markets or talk to the locals, maybe even play go or shogi. Knowing the man, he wouldn't be back any later than sunset, which would be the time when Giyuu had to start heading to his assigned post for today's patrol.

The hashira thanked Mio for the notice and retreated deeper into the mansion, taking the side route that led to the backyard instead of the front entrance. Carefully he started to shed his haori and as his katana was about to be dismantled, Giyuu halted. The urge to train was suddenly appealing, growing desperate and nagging at him.

It had been a while since he trained following his injuries, thanks to Urokodaki-sensei. Now that he was no longer his student, the man had lost that stern tutor soul, now he was more of that caring protective parent like a first time parent. Now that he's away, without a second thought Giyuu unsheathed his blade instead.

-

The glare of the sun that usually greeted him through the cracks of his window was not there to interrupt his sleep. Thanks to that he was able to get more rest, catching up to more hours of sleep that was robbed from him. However that only meant one thing, Muichirou knew that today was going to rain.

The impending apprehension was slowly creeping in him as the day dragged on. On days like this he had to force himself to eat, to move and distract himself from the fear and anger that builds up inside him. It usually started small, but if heavy rain were to befallen then that ridiculous fear would loom over him.

Eventually, Muichirou found himself walking once again to the water estate. The roads and terrain around now felt somewhat familiar. He no longer felt off and as lost as when he first threaded the paths. The left turn he had to make in the first junction before walking until he met another path that leads to the second junction where he makes another left. Ginkgo was still his navigator, but he could at least navigate some things around.

The sky was now even more dim and the gales blowing were turning frequent. With this weather, the mist hashira simply didn't want to be alone. That was why he insisted on the trip to Tomioka's estate despite how he could slack off and catch some more sleep —because Tomioka would know what to do if he did get to that… state. Today he was heel-and-toeing, racing against the grey clumps above. He would hate to be stuck in the rain midway, it would have been better if he stayed back instead as it would just be for naught.

Upon arriving at the estate, dry and spared from the rain, Muichirou allowed himself in through the gates perusal. Funny how Tomioka never seemed to lock his gates, but then again demons only strike at night. He wouldn't say it aloud, but the mist hashira thought that Tomioka was a little dumb. Even if Tomioka could handle an intruder trespassing, he shouldn't welcome them with open arms like this.

Before he could knock on his door, it burst open, causing his shoulder to hitch.

"Tokitou-sama." It was the caretaker, whatever her name was. "Come in please, the rain is going to fall soon."

How did she know I was in front…?

He was escorted into the estate. The warm lighting invited him inside, and he ambled and wondered where Tomioka was.

"Tomioka-san is in the garden, he's currently training." The caretaker recited, sounding as if she could read minds. Muichirou was certainly bothered.

"Can you read minds?" The mist hashira mindlessly questioned, sounding dazed but genuinely pondered.

"Eh? Come again?" She replied, looking rather aghast at his uncanny question. He thought his question was justified, but then again, no such individual could read minds… or was there? Now he sounded stupid…

"Nothing…"

"Well I just thought the reason you come here is to meet Tomioka-san, or do you have anything else to do?"

"No just to meet Tomioka-san."

Muichirou then hustled towards the engawa without any hesitation, and just like she said, Tomioka was training. His icy blue blade suspended in the air as he held his stance. Tomioka didn't seem to acknowledge Muichirou's presence as he swung and spun his blade, changing his stance, showing his martial art competency. Once he ended his moves, his focus shifted to greet Muichirou.

"Why are you training when it's going to rain?" Muichirou asked aloud.

"Killing my time before patrol starts."

"You intend to train through the rain?"

"...No." That's a yes.

Muichirou knew how to spot a lie, at least in this case it was obvious, but he kept his mouth shut and refrained from mentioning it. Muichirou plopped down on the wooden floor of the engawa, his feet dangling on the edge.

"Do you want to train together?" Tomioka offered as he took his water canteen to drink, putting his blade to rest.

"Sparing?" Muichirou looked up quietly to gaze at the sky. "But I'm not intending to get wet."

"Anything is fine," The older shrugged his shoulders, his face remaining flat. "We can stop when it rains."

And so Muichirou joined Tomioka. After briefly stretching his arms and legs, Muichirou swiftly closed their distance and delivered his first attack.

Sparring eased his mind. It neutralises the negative emotions that circulated through his body. They were doing hand-on-hand combat and Muichirou could tell that this wasn't the first time that he sparred with Tomioka. Fragments of memories flashed, reminding him of that day when he asked him to spar. The water hashira was able to read his movements, but Muichirou had tricks up his sleeves and all he needed was just an opening. Tomioka didn't possess the speed that he had, but he could tell how his moves were laced with experience and countless hours of training.

Muichirou felt sloppy with his movements going against Tomioka. Yes, he wasn't insanely fast, but his movements were calculated and mitigated. The fact that he hadn't seen any opening so far was pressuring, his mind was starting to scramble. He was the water hashira for a reason.

"You're holding back." Tomioka pointed and Muichirou felt taunted at that.

In a quick instant he dodged the incoming fist, dropping low to squat and at the same time swinging his leg quickly, throwing Tomioka out of balance. He took that opportunity to get out of his line of view with lightning speed, standing behind Tomioka before attempting to apprehend the taller by bringing him down. His experience came into play however, as if he was familiar with the stratagem, Tomioka quickly manoeuvred his body to the side, rolling before standing back up once again to throw attacking blows that forced Muichirou to jump back to recollect himself.

Tomioka was starting to irritate him. He wouldn't admit it to others, but he hated losing.

Muichirou took a quick deep breath, preparing himself to use one of his breathing forms. "Mist breathing, seventh form… obscuring clouds."

While they were not using any blades, there was no restrictions on steppings and movements. Muichirou was simply testing out the movements that he made without his blade. After all that additional movement was just to aid him in approaching his target. Muichirou moved as if he was shrouded with mist, silent, skidding from one direction to the next, before quickly apprehending Tomioka and this time successfully swooping him off his footing resulting in Tomioka apprehended on the ground.

"You used a breathing form." Tomioka noted, out of breath.

"I didn't." He lied. Technically it wasn't an official one, he made it himself and he utilised it without the need of a blade. "That doesn't count."

Before Tomioka could voice out a reply, he was stopped when footsteps interrupted the silence behind them, making his presence known. Tomioka lifted his head and Muichirou quickly turned his head sideways.

"What's this? Giyuu, you lost?" Urokodaki let out a chuckle at that which completely dissuaded Tomioka from continuing his argument about Muichirou's last move. "I must say, that was impressive, Tokitou-kun."

In exhaustion, his sparring partner lying on the ground lowered his head with an exasperated huff. Tomioka hauled himself to sit on the ground before standing up and quickly dusting the dirt sticking on his uniform, "Another round?"

"Sure." He nodded.

Droplets of water hit Muichirou's skin, once, twice, and in mere seconds droplets turned into drizzles. One more wouldn't hurt, it shouldn't be a problem. Uneasiness slowly settled within him and nagging his mind to deny the offer. He pushed it aside, however, thinking that if he were to overcome it he would have to push through.

Another round commenced, but it didn't take long for Muichirou to get distracted by the lightning that flashed above and the low rumbling of the thunder. His mind glitched, unable to ignore the sudden trigger. Although he was able to recover, he opted to take several jumps back to recollect himself. After a moment of pause, he approached Tomioka once again, but it only took another lightning that followed to make him falter.

"Let's stop." Tomioka called off. Seemingly had noticed how his movement reflected his discomfort. "The rain will only get heavier."

Muichirou willingly agreed to get under the shade. Protected by the roof over the engawa, they sat, cooling down while the rain steadily poured.

"I bought these, yaki imo," Urokodaki opened the bag he held onto, he unwrapped the damp newspaper used to cover the sweet potatoes and offered it to Tomioka and Muichirou. It was warm, no longer hot like if one was to buy it fresh.

Tomioka muttered his thanks and took the first bite, Muichirou inspected the delicate food in his hand, before savouring the potato. The warmth and sweet undertone taste of the tuber was humbling in the midst of his sumptuous, fulfilling diet. It was almost… nostalgic in a way.

"You are welcomed to sit inside, Tokitou-kun, but I don't think there's going to be a storm today." Tomioka kindly offered.

It wasn't like he was drifting. Something about eating sweet potato with the company of others made him feel grounded to where he was at the moment. The air was finally cool and the wind was blowing with mercy. Muichirou didn't like the rain, but he realised that sitting under the shade in Tomioka's engawa like this while the sky poured water didn't have to make him feel conflicted and divided with vexation.

"It's alright…" He settled with. "I don't mind it."

Maybe it was both Tomioka and his teacher being there that helped. Being with them. That might just be the solution. If so, then Muichirou wouldn't mind walking all the way here by means of keeping the smog within his mind in check. He realised how accustomed he had felt to be here, a feeling as if he was not a guest but a resident within the household. No, something closer and warmer. The mist estate was turning more dreary and lonely. Even with the hollowness of this place, the lack of shimmer with the absence of ostentatious furniture, Muichirou had more sentimental attachment to this place than his own residence.

His heart still leapt sometimes when lightning quietly appeared, streaking white veins in the grey clouds above. Now he found himself slowly trying to relax and surely enough the tension leeching on him started to dissipate, like morning dews evaporating from leaves and stems of flowers. He had always been adamant on ignoring the rain for as long as he could remember, but even so, at times when the rain had managed to show how prominent it was. Without hearing its static noise in the background or the drips on the roofs above him, there was a certain distinct smell as if a pair to the rain.

And right now that smell was ever more present than ever.

-

Giyuu caught that, the way his face morphed to fear and how his still movement suddenly jerked as lightning appeared. Immediately he ought to know that it would be better to stop, before some accidental injuries got inflicted on him. What refrained him was how Tokitou swiftly recollected himself, cleverly creating a gap between them, pausing their brawl for a fraction of a second. The next time he staggered due to the rumbling thunder, it was his cue to halt their spar for good and the teen willingly complied

His panic was to be anticipated, and should he feel alarmed, Giyuu understood his assignment. Thankfully, the mist hashira stayed firmly grounded. The rain wasn't a harsh one, that might also be a factor. At least the spectrum of rain and Tokitou's reaction was more drawn clearly in his mind. A storm being the worst so far, and drizzle being the least affecting.

Whilst that panic-stricken state was not there, the water hashira could tell he was deep in thoughts.

"Are you alright?" he threw the question. It felt out of nature when the simple words left his mouth. A hum as a response was a convincing affirmation that the teen was present.

He really had nurtured and adopted that caring character in their small friendship, which was not foreseen. Possibly because he was the older of the two, yet all his life, Giyuu had been the one others had taken care of. Hilarious how life was. As if the world and the gods were done seeing him content and comfortable, years later fate entrusted a person into his care. While not as in taking someone under his wing, the sense of responsibility he knew was just as important.

Somewhere in the distance, he could feel the pair of eyes silently observing them.

"What is this smell?"

Giyuu looked at him, confused at first, but he then knew what Tokitou was referring to. "The earthy scent?"

A nod confirmed his statement.

"Petrichor." His teacher calmly replied from somewhere behind them.

"Smells like home…"

Home…

Petrichor was there that one rainy day after a long summer that he first spent alone with his sister because their parents were too occupied working. It was there when he was stuck inside his house and couldn't go out to play, making mochi with Tsutako. It was there when he pretended to be asleep so Tsutako would pick him up and tuck him to sleep. Petrichor was there when he trained with Sabito after the rain, when the three of them enjoyed a warm bowl of sukiyaki filled with Sabito's loud and obnoxious laughter as he took the last meat in the soup, teasing Giyuu for being too slow. Petrichor was there when Sabito comforted him through one of his nightmares of Tsutako.

The sentiment it carried was ever present, and now it would be there for Tokitou as he made new memories. It wasn't just Tokitou, but Giyuu was also part of said precious memory. Likewise, he was also making new memories. Tsutako and Sabito had taught him how to be a person. They took care of him. Deep within his mind and heart, it was as if their voices whispered to him that it was his time to take their place and be that person to someone else.

"Be there for him, Giyuu.", "Man up and do it." was what he imagined they would say.

Tomioka Giyuu, the water, is far from perfect and ideal. He has been lost within water itself, unable to keep himself afloat for more times than he can count. All these times, he was the one being controlled by the stream, but if this glimmer of chance comes to grant him command of the river of his life, then will it be too late for him to take control? Will it be the same? New beginnings made him only think for the worst. The silent creeping thought that Tokitou will be another Sabito or Tsutako, lost to fate, something he cannot control. Giyuu is sure that he won't be able to haul himself up once again if it does happen.

For now however, he will cherish this new found connection and the warmth that it brings, greedy to keep it close to his heart, pledging not to lose it again. Above all, it was that love and care that Tsutako and Sabito showed him that allowed him to take that step and leap of faith.

Nee-san, Sabito, watch over us…

-

Calm morning wind, gentle on the cheeks accompanied the three people sat on the tatami mat, having tea as they converse.

"It's an interesting combination indeed. I didn't expect them to have ended up like this."

"Haha, Kochou-sama, I assured you in the years I've known Giyuu, I've never imagined something like this would happen."

"With all due respect Oyakata-sama, what if they were to quarrel? Are you sure of it?"

The man on her right gently chuckled as his hands wrapped around the mug, absorbing its warmth.

"I believe Giyuu will be the one to counter that young rebellious spirit, and Muichirou will be the rationale to his emotions. No need to worry." He assured. "After all, like how mist and water are one, they are each other's blade as they sharpen one another, together, all at once."