Omae Wa Mou Shindeiru [DISCONTINUED]

127: Reverence

"Be safe, alright? Stay out of trouble," Nao holds up a fist, "Tell your mother I said hello."

You smirk and give him a fist bump, "You too, babe. Stay safe."

You two part ways with one last smile. It was a bit awkward, but honestly it was due to the fact that you two enjoyed each other's company so much. You didn't really want to part ways, but Nao was too stubborn to admit it, and you were too respectful of boundaries to push it any further.

You're hoping you'll see him again. He was rude, and sometimes said the wrong things, and wasn't as emotionally available as you wished, but he was…

Selfish.

Nao was a selfish person.

Which, in retrospect, is not a good trait in a friend or a person. But he knew when to take care of himself. He knew when he needed to prioritize himself. He knew what made him happy and didn't care if it made others upset.

And you're the complete opposite.

("(L/n)!!")

You didn't care much for your health. You never truly prioritize yourself. And you didn't want to go home to be happy because it would mean hurting the friends you made here.

("(L/N)!!!")

Nao was selfish, but maybe… maybe that is exactly what you need.

"(L/N)!!!!!"

"WAH!!!"

You jump when you finally register the female voice frantically calling your name. You turn around just in time to be tackled by a girl with pink hair.

"IWBEIEJD?!?!?!?!"

"(L/N)!!! I'M SORRRYYY! ARE YOU OKAY??"

The girl, Mitsuri, climbs off you and helps you up in the span of 2 seconds. You get dizzy from the quick events, but not to worry!

You don't have a second to spare to think about what just happened because Mitsuri quickly ruins your okay mood.

"Y-You've heard… right? The news…"

The girl knows how close you two were, despite only seeing you two together a few times, Kyojuro talks about you a lot in the letters he used to send Mitsuri.

If you haven't heard already, then you deserve to know.

You furrow your eyebrows, "The news?"

Mitsuri's eyes water a bit, "About Rengoku…"

Ah.

That news.

You furrow your eyebrows and look away, trying your best not to cry as well: "Yeah. I was there."

"(L/n)..."

"CAW!! CAW!!"

You didn't pay any mind to the crow, but it catches Mitsuri's attention. And it seemed to remind her of the reason why she was running to begin with.

She clutches the fabric of your blur haori, dragging you by the arm, and running in the direction of the village.

"Wha-Kanroji! What are you doing??"

"The swordsmith village! It's under attack by demons!"

Wait, what?

Already?

That's today?

"O-Okay! Alright!"

Mitsuri lets go of your arm, but in doing so, you can't match her speed and you end up just chasing after her.