Holding a strawberry daifuku, Hiru sat at a small table in the dessert shop, watching in astonishment as the unnamed girl devoured sakura mochi one after another.
"Um... don't you get sick of eating like that?"
"Huh? Not at all~" The girl wore a blissful expression. "Besides, didn't you eat a lot of daifuku too?"
But I only eat thirty at most per sitting," Hiru said seriously. "Eating too many lowers my tolerance for sweets, and they stop tasting as good."
"No way! How could something as delicious as sakura mochi ever get boring?" The girl cradled her face in her hands. "I feel like I could eat a hundred more!"
Hiru: (｀ﾟДﾟ´)!!
"Ah, we've talked for so long, but I never asked your name," the girl said with a bright smile. "I'm Kanroji Mitsuri. What about you?"
"Just call me Hiru."
"Huh? No surname?"
"...I just don't use it anymore." Hiru ate the last strawberry daifuku, picked up the takeout box the shop owner prepared, and smiled. "I really enjoyed eating with you today. Hopefully we'll meet again."
"Huh? Sure~ See you around~" Kanroji paused, waving goodbye. "But sweets aren't a proper meal. You should remember to eat real food on time, Hiru!"
Already at the door, Hiru stumbled in shock—this wasn't a proper meal?!
Meanwhile, the sweet-faced girl only waved happily at him and continued enjoying her sakura mochi.
What an amazing girl. Hiru drifted out of the dessert shop in a daze. Her appetite is just as terrifying as Giyu's eerie laugh.
"Come to think of it, didn't Sabito and Giyu say they'd visit Mount Sagiri? And the Shinazugawa brothers too... Hm, I should check on them." With that thought, Hiru circled back to the Wisteria House to send a letter to Mount Sagiri, then asked a Kakushi to contact his Kasugai Crow, Kitaro—since he himself didn't trust his ability to arrive on time.
...
A petite girl wielding a wooden sword darted swiftly through the misty mountain. Behind her, a white-haired youth with a fierce look in his eyes lunged forward. In an instant, they traded more than a dozen blows, the surrounding fog churning violently with their movements.
"Sanemi is really strong." The girl laughed as she leapt onto a branch, swinging her wooden sword to parry his attack before using the momentum to spring even higher. "But Wind Breathing isn't a sword style you power through. You need to be more agile."
Sanemi twisted midair, kicking off a trunk behind him. Like an arrow shot upward, he charged straight at her.
"Quit talking."
Makomo only laughed and leapt aside again, slipping past the frontal attack. Her toes brushed a branch, shifting her direction as she shot upward toward Sanemi—who, suspended in midair, had nowhere to dodge. Her wooden blade turned, the back lightly grazing his neck before she landed gracefully on the ground.
"Sanemi, you're still too reckless."
Sanemi landed with a thud, angrily punching a nearby tree and glaring at her.
"Makomo! Can't you just fight me head-on once? Dodging and dodging—what kind of fighter does that?"
"I'm not good at frontal fighting. And I am a girl, you know—" Makomo stood on tiptoe and ruffled his hair. "Even if I am a teensy bit older than you."
"Ugh! You're so annoying!" Sanemi stepped back to avoid her hand, face full of disgust. "Don't talk to me like I'm Giyu. I'm the eldest son, alright? Eldest son!"
"Okay, okay—" Makomo laughed, withdrawing her hand. "Let's head down. Urokodaki and Genya should have dinner ready."
"Tsk, who cares."
"Oh? I thought Sanemi came back to see Genya. You even wrote him a letter. He was so happy he ran down the mountain to buy ingredients..." Makomo's eyes curved with mischief. "And it turns out this is how you act? Genya's going to be sad, you know?"
"Tsk—" Sanemi turned away. "You don't make any sense."
"You brothers are interesting," Makomo said, hands behind her back as she walked ahead. "So different from another pair of brothers I've met."
"...Also Water Breathing Swordsmen?"
No, friends Sabito and Giyu met during their Final Selection. And now the two brothers have both become Hashira." Makomo glanced back at Sanemi. "Weren't you recommended by the younger one of them?"
"Hah? They's Hashira?" Sanemi looked genuinely shocked. "Seriously?"
"Totally. I was surprised too." Makomo quickened her pace as the small cabin came into view. "Oh right, I think I got a letter from him not long ago."
"That guy's a hopeless direction-idiot. He must get lost all the time—"
"If you're going to talk behind someone's back, at least say it from farther away."
Both instinctively looked up…
A dark-haired boy sat in a tree, holding a picture book, his expression faintly annoyed. "And for the record, I do have a sense of direction, and I remember routes. I just get distracted when I see something interesting."
"Yeah, right." Sanemi rolled his eyes. "I've heard about your 'directionally challenged' reputation from the Kakushi trained by Wind Breathing instructors more than once."
"Sanemi, do you have to pick a fight the second you see me?" Hiru closed the book and jumped down. "I'm your guide, you know? Show me a little respect!"
"Hah? What kind of guide gets lost all the time?"
Makomo giggled. "Didn't Yoriichi come with Hiru?"
"Yeah, my brother's completely obsessed with killing demons. Says he's nearly emptied the entire Kanto region." Hiru fell in step behind her. "I don't have a fixed jurisdiction, and I didn't know where to go—so I came here."
"Isn't that exhausting?"
"No, my brother loves it." Hiru waved dismissively, sighing. "Anyway, you two are up for your selections soon, right?"
"Yes. Mine got delayed because I injured my tendons during training," Makomo said with a gentle smile. "Otherwise, I would've been in the same cohort as Sanemi."
"I passed my master's evaluation too, so that's why I'm out here," Sanemi added, scratching his hair. "I'll probably wait for the selection to start and then go with Makomo."
"Speaking of which, I've caught over thirty demons and sent them to Mount Fujikasane," Hiru said, rubbing his chin.
"Even if other Swordsman are slower, there should be more demons this year than last. And they haven't gone hungry, so they're strong. You two should be careful."
"Got it." Makomo nodded and opened the cabin door. "Master, Genya, we're back—huh? Giyu?"
"Come in." Tomioka Giyu stepped aside, giving everyone a small nod. "Long time no see."
"Sabito didn't return?"
"He still has tasks." Giyu's expression remained as vacant as always. He turned to Hiru…
"We truly are different. Congratulations."
Hiru: ...That expression looks more like you're announcing my funeral.