Breath of the Void

Breath of the Void: Chapter 27

I got sick. Not the 'Rona, but still not good. I'm not 100% so if there are errors I'm sorry. Also I lost all of my original notes and still haven't gotten them back, I think they're lost for good.

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Kyojuro had a number of expressions outside of battle. Within the thick of it, Musashi knew he only had a handful. There was that smile that often unnerved his opponents with how unbothered he was. Then there was his neutral face, one that was only seen when he was serious. The last two were ones that Musashi really dreaded seeing since it meant that the opponent had pushed her easygoing Flame Pillar too far— and both were masks of fury.

A furious smile donned his face now, and if the Upper Moon were any other demon, Musashi was sure that he would be shrinking back in fear.

Musashi let out a breath, lightly patting his arm before he let her go, patting her shoulder in return and handing her sword back to her— the one she had thrown at the demon.

"Thank you," she said, putting it away and readjusting her grip on her current swords. Kyojuro hummed, nodding.

"Any time," he said, adjusting his sword as well. "We shouldn't leave Gyoumei in there by himself, though."

She nodded before the two of them took off, dodging a far-reaching attack from the demon as they rejoined the others. There was no time for reunion words as they fought together. Tokito was a black blur as he moved between attacks, but the blood loss was getting to him as he just barely dodged an attack. Another cut into Himejima as he ducked his head out of the way.

Musashi twisted her blades, pushing mana into them as green and red flames ignited on her Flame and Wind swords.

A glance from Kyojuro and a nod from Shinazugawa and Himejima was all she needed for her next move.

"Hey! Bastard!" she called, making him glance over after firing off another attack.

"You're kinda gross, you know? Like really gross!" she said as she ducked between attacks. "I'm very concerned about the six eyes. Why do you have them? Where did they come from? Akaza only had two of them! Do you have to look in different directions?"

Taunting. Musashi was good at that. It might not throw him off entirely, but it would be enough. There was a fine line between arrogance, confidence, and courage, and taunts always traveled that line. Even against a man who was as grounded and intense as Yagyu, her taunts still made him crack character— just a bit.

She had to think of this fight as fighting him, not as an overwhelming battle, or they would never win. Battling was also psychological and she couldn't lose that one too.

"Are you trying to be a spider or something? You need two more eyes for that part!"

The last comment made his eyes twitch and she grinned as he directed an attack towards her. She leaped up, flipping and letting out a breath— just as Kyojuro did as well.

Breath of the Void: Flame Class— Archer Inferno!

A rain of stabs that were similar to Hasso Migi rained down on the demon, just as Kyojrou and Shinazugawa closed in on the demon. Both of them unleashed the Void attacks she had taught them— Kyojuro with Berserk Samghata, striking with his secondary sword, which was alight with real flames, rather than illusions, and Shinazugawa with Striking Swallow.

Himejima's movements shifted, his iron ball slamming into the demon as he was distracted with Breath Styles he had never seen before— and the flames that had caught on his hair from Kyojuro's blade.