Arataki Itto x Reader

2 Onikabuto and Hilichurls

As the days passed you felt your strength gradually return. Your wounds were mostly healed, there was only a particularly stubborn slash on your left thigh that seemed to be resisting the antiseptic herbs Baba had been applying daily. It itched.
The wounds left by arrows, that had pierced through your armour, were thankfully minimal and now only caused a dull ache in your back and shoulders; although you had to be careful not to push yourself as stretching the wrong way would cause a sharp pain. Your ribs were, surprisingly, doing well, your breathing capacity was improving with each day.
Itto excitedly scarfed down his breakfast as he discussed the mating season of onikabuto; you listened with a smile and agreed without really hearing what he'd said.
"You've finished your breakfast, let's go! Oh I'm going to find the biggest beetle and absolutely destroy that kid!" He laughed with his mouth full of rice.
You blinked, and wondered what you'd gotten yourself into. You'd never seen him clean up with such ferocity. He bade Oni Baba farewell and pulled you along behind him, beyond the garden and into the nearby woods. Ushi followed behind at a trot.
"If you need a rest at any point just let me know, I can carry you." He smiled widely as he lead the way.
"So, we're looking for beetles, right?" You ask cautiously. You didn't want to offend him by revealing how little you'd been listening this morning.
"That's right! Don't worry, I'm the best beetle hunter there is. We're going to find the biggest and strongest, train them up real good, and they'll be unstoppable! We just have to think of a cool name." He scrunched up his face in thought. "Crimson Oni Warrior. Lavender Beast. Almighty Beetleking Extraordinaire!" He certainly seemed to be enjoying himself.
You wondered what the general was doing today. Sometimes he'd take the soldiers into the woods to hunt and gather reagents for the medics and alchemists. Those days were becoming fewer and fewer as the skirmishes increased. There were too many fronts to defend, especially with the Fatui interference.
You were so deep in thought you didn't notice Itto stop and collided with his firm back. You rubbed your crushed nose and blinked away burning tears.
"Hey, you okay?" Itto saw the tears and began to frett. In a swift move he scooped you into his arms.
Your heart raced as you wrapped your arms around his waist to stabilise yourself. His bare chest was certainly enticing.
"We're not far from my usual hunting spot. But ah, if you want to turn back we can."
You shook your head. "It's okay, I was just lost in thought." Your thigh burned with discomfort and you added, "it might be nice to rest for a bit though."
He smiled and continued at a slower pace, he held his arm out for support as you walked.

Itto stopped when you reached a small clearing with thin, towering trees and a large, moss covered boulder. You could hear the chittering sounds of onikabuto in the low hanging branches. Itto placed you gently on one of the rocks and began to inspect the beetles one by one.
You tried not to itch your thigh and looked around for a distraction. A large red beetle scuttled over the mossy surface beside you. Large perhaps wasn't the right word. It was bulbous. And angry looking.
You reached out and gently poked it's spikey horns. It made a screeching sound as it's fuzzy feelers flickered. It was cute, in an aggressive sort of way.
"Hey! I found one!" Itto jogged back with a reasonably sized, dark purple beetle. His eyes dropped to the impressive specimen beside you. "Whoa! Where did you find that!"
"I think it's more accurate to say he found me." You ran a finger down the beetle's smooth shell and it let out more angry screeches. "I think you should name him Happy."
Itto raised a brow, "that's a terrible name for a warrior. Ah, but you found him so you should name him." He looked a little dejected when his eyes fell upon his much smaller beetle. "I think I'll keep looking."
You chuckled and sat with your angry beetle watching the large oni delicately forage through shrubs and trees for another beetle.

The dark clouds that had loomed over Inazuma relentlessly the past couple of years seemed to grow even more perilous as the day aged. You scooped up Happy and scanned the clearing for Itto. He was nowhere in sight.
A loud crack drew your attention and you whipped around to see a very large figure charging through the woods. It was hard to make out its features but you were sure it wasn't Itto.
You reached for your sword only to remember you no longer had it. It was probably buried under the sand on that damned beach.
The large being burst into the clearing and your heart stuttered as you realised what you were looking at. A mitachurl wielding a lethally large axe stained with what looked like blood.
It let out a chilling Battlecry and you heard the pattering footsteps of its allies not far behind. You had to run.

Turning on your heel, you headed back toward the trail leading to Itto's home. Only, you didn't really want to lead hilichurls back there. You turned again, clutching Happy to your chest as you skidded down a slope deeper into the woods. It was unlikely you could outrun a mitachurl.
A whoosh of air brushed past your back as the axe just missed. "Itto!" You cried out, and you wondered why you hadn't sooner.
You approached a small cliff, it wasn't a deadly fall but it would certainly hurt. It would slow you just enough to close the gap between yourself and the mitachurl, but there was no other option.
You braced as you leaped down and rolled to break the fall. Your knee knocked on a large branch and you grabbed it, hurling it around just in time to meet the bloodied blade of that axe.
The branch splintered in half, knocking you back with such a force you fell flat. Happy was clinging to the front of your kimono screeching at the mitachurl. Little zaps of electro energy pulsed through its shiny red shell.

The mitachurl raised it's axe to deliver the final blow when a loud 'MOO' distracted it. A flash of brown and gold flew through the air and collided with an almighty force into the mitachurl. It staggered back and lowered its axe.
Ushi skidded to a stop not far from where you lay and then began to taunt the mitachurl. He scuffed his hooves, brandished his horns, and swished his tail in a managing and aggressive manner. It was as though he were challenging the mitachurl to just try it.
You could hear the nearby sounds of bones crunching and hilichurls crying out. The pounding footsteps of another large being approached and Itto came roaring over the ledge of the cliff. He held an impressively large club over his head and brought it down upon the mitachurl. You flinched as you heard its body break under the impact. Twice for good measure.

Itto huffed and dropped the large club, it crumbled back to dust as the geo energy it was formed with dissipated. He rushed to your side and breathlessly checked you over.
"Are you hurt?"
Itto's eyes were wide with fear and relief as you sat up unsteadily. If your thigh hadn't been hurting before, it sure was now. The muscle ached and burned and you felt a strong wave of fatigue wash over you.
"I'm okay." You said, out of breath yourself.
Itto wrapped his strong arms around your body and held you close, breathing heavily over your shoulder.
"That was too close." He said, finally.
"I reacted too slowly, sorry." You said in a dejected tone. It was unbecoming of a soldier to flee helplessly.
"I don't know many folks who would be able to outrun a mitachurl in your condition. It's my fault for leaving you."
Your face flushed with embarassment. "Well, what's important is we're both okay." You said.
Itto remained in the embrace and you weren't sure what to say or do. He was a touchy fellow, but you got the impression there was something more to this. You slowly brought your own arms up, brushing them against his exposed sides, sliding them under his jacket. You hadn't intended to, but the impulse was hard to ignore as you brought your hands to his muscular pecs.
Then he loosened his hold, only he didn't release you. His own hands cupped your face and his eyes focused on your lips.
It was a surreal moment where words gave way to some indescribable force between the two of you. Itto pressed his lips against yours, one hand tangled itself in your hair and the other gently gripped your neck. You allowed your fingers to slip under the strap across his chest. With your free hand you gripped his shoulder and used it to hoist yourself further upright, pressing your body into his.

Ushi made a grumbling moo and the two of you came apart.
"Oh, he's right. We should probably get out of here before we encounter any more of those damned monsters." His face was as red as the beetle clinging angrily to your kimono. It had scuttled to your side to avoid being crushed between the two of you.
You apologised to the beetle and guided it to sit atop your shoulder. "At least we found one beetle?" You said to Itto, pointing to Happy.
"What a hardy little fella! I can already tell he's got what it takes to be a champion, haha!" He said enthusiastically.

Itto had kneeled down for you to climb onto his back, then swiftly followed the trail home.
It was strange to call it home when you were just a guest, but the life of a soldier meant home was wherever you laid down to sleep at night. Home was where your your sworn brethren had slept before they left to battle, never to return again.

You silently pressed your lips together remembering the kiss. It complicated things. A Watatsumi rebel soldier falling in love with a fugitive Inazuman. You idly wondered if you could convince him to return to Watatsumi with you.