The Crystal's Whisper and The Wind's Embrace

Chapter 26: Girlfriend for a Day

"Amano! I need your help with something important," Sanemi's urgent voice came through the door, rousing Tsukiyo from her sleep early in the morning.

"Why the rush?" Tsukiyo grumbled, struggling to shake off her drowsiness as she approached the door.

"What took you so long?" Sanemi demanded, irritation evident in his tone as Tsukiyo finally opened the door.

Yawning, Tsukiyo blinked sleepily, trying to process the early morning disturbance. "What's so urgent that you're banging on my door like crazy?"

Ignoring Tsukiyo's irritation, Sanemi cut straight to the chase. "Your task for today: pretend to be my girlfriend," he declared, his words causing Tsukiyo to snap fully awake.

"What?!" Tsukiyo exclaimed in disbelief.

"Exactly what I said. I am not going to repeat it. Go get dressed, we're leaving soon," Sanemi ordered, his tone brooking no argument.

Tsukiyo swiftly changed into her demon slayer uniform and rushed out to meet Sanemi. "What's all this about?" she asked, her confusion evident in her voice.

Sanemi grumbled impatiently, "You don't need to know the details. Just play along and act like you're my girlfriend."

"But how can I convincingly play the part without knowing the backstory?" Tsukiyo pressed, her brow furrowing in concern. "What if something unexpected happens?"

After a moment of contemplation, Sanemi relented. "Fine. There's this girl, Hana. She is my childhood friend, and we grew up in the same village. She's been pestering me again lately. I need to show her I'm taken so she'll leave me alone. You just need to act like we've been together for a while and put on a loving display to scare her off."

Tsukiyo pondered his explanation, a finger resting thoughtfully under her chin. "Why not ask Mitsuri for help? She's charming and outgoing. I'm not exactly experienced in romance, so I'm not sure I can pull it off convincingly."

Sanemi scowled at the suggestion. "That loud girl? No thanks. Besides, Obanai would have my head if I involved Mitsuri in this," he muttered under his breath, a hint of worry in his voice.

Tsukiyo then provided another suggestion, "Well, why not get Shinobu's help then? She's good at using her tricks to handle delicate situations like this."

Sanemi paused momentarily, a flicker of uncertainty crossing his eyes before he shook his head. "I won't be able to do that. Hana knows about me and Kanae. She'll see through the act if I bring Shinobu along," he admitted reluctantly. "Forget it, you won't understand. Anyway, you're bound to follow my orders for a month. Just come with me and play your part. No more questions!"

Kanae, that's Shinobu's sister. She remembered the conversations from their girls' night when Shinobu had mentioned Sanemi's connection to Kanae. The mention of Kanae in Sanemi's explanation about Hana only fuelled Tsukiyo's curiosity further. What was the link between Hana, Sanemi, and Kanae?

Lost in her contemplation, Tsukiyo seemed oblivious to her surroundings. Sanemi, growing impatient, clicked his tongue in irritation. "Alright, if you have questions, spit them out. We can't afford for you to be zoning out like this. You'll mess up the whole plan," he chided, his frustration evident in his tone.

Tsukiyo approached Sanemi tentatively, her nerves getting the better of her as she struggled to articulate her questions. "Hana and you... and... you and Kanae... uh..." she stammered, her words faltering.

Sanemi let out an exasperated sigh, sensing Tsukiyo's unease. Despite her clumsy attempt at phrasing her question, he understood what she was trying to ask.

"As I said, Hana was my childhood friend," he began, his voice carrying a hint of nostalgia. "She's had a crush on me since we were kids, and she's been a bit of a nuisance ever since. After I became a demon slayer, we lost touch, but somehow she managed to track me down. She only backed off once she learned about me and Kanae... Kanae, she was Shinobu's sister, but she's no longer with us. Now that Hana's back, I need you to pretend to be my girlfriend so she'll back off again."

As Sanemi spoke of Kanae, his expression darkened, a shadow passing over his features.

Tsukiyo sensed that there was more to the story, but she respected Sanemi's privacy and chose not to pry further. "I'm sorry," she said softly, falling into step beside him as they embarked on their unusual mission. "I'll do my best to help you with this."