bye the way i have a cold during the summer is crazy
also — THANK YOU so much for 150k+ reads! i can't believe that there's so many of you who love this story as much as i do! <3
WARNING : Swearing
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As the three of you exited the main building, Tanjirou bit his lip nervously, "I hope they don't fight with each other.. that'll be bad.." You hummed, "Well.. yeah, you're right. But.. Haganezuka needs some karma.."
You shuddered, clenching your eyes shut, "He tried to kill us too many times! Even now, I'm scared he'll pop out of god knows where, and kill me in cold blood!"
Eli let out a sigh as he kicked a stray rock around, "Man, that sucks. Honestly, sounds more of a you problem than an us problem, though. Pfft!" You shot him a glare, "Shut your mouth!"
You then all stopped near a wooden sign that read 'Hot Springs Ahead.' You perked up, "The hot springs!! They're this way!" Eli looked at you sarcastically, "Woah, really?! No way! It's almost as if.. the sign says they're up ahead! That's crazy!"
You flipped him off, "Man, fuck you too! You're such a bully! I can't take it anymore!!" You began to playfully punch his arm repeatedly, "Bully! Bully, bully, bully!!"
Before Tanjirou could defuse the situation, a somewhat familiar voice came from the trail to the hot springs, "IS THAT YOU?! TANJIROU, (Y/N), HUGH!?"
You all jumped, before snapping your heads in the direction of the voice. There, you were met with Mitsuri — who seemed to be crying, "YOU GUYS!!!"
Tanjirou's eyes widened to the size of bowling balls, "OH, PLEASE BE CAREFUL!! YOUR BREASTS... THEY'RE GOING TO SPILL OUT!!"
Hugh brought a hand up to his cheek in an attempt to hide his blush, "I say we let them spill out— ACK!!" You slapped his face, fuming angrily, "SHUT YOUR MOUTH, YOU DAMN PERVERT!!!"
You approached Mitsuri, who then latched onto your waist, "LISTEN, LISTEEENNN!! I GOT IGNORED!! I GREETED HIM, AND HE IGNORED ME!!! WAAHH!!"
You widened your eyes, "M-MITSURI? WHO IGNORED YOU!? EH? WHAT HAPPENED?!" Eli approached the two of you, cracking his knuckles, "Pinky, say the word.. and I'll beat whoever ignored you senseless. Nobody should ever disrespect you like that!"
You hissed over to your friend, "Okay, kiss-ass. Just say you want to take her out already." Eli furrowed his brows, before whistling nonchalantly, "I don't know what you're talking about!"
Tanjirou approached Mitsuri cautiously, his expression uneasy, "M-Mitsuri.. please be careful..! Your breasts.. they're about to fall out..!"
Mitsuri feigned ignorance, continuing to cry out, "I DON'T KNOW WHO DID IT!! I ASKED HIM HIS NAME, AND HE DOWNRIGHT IGNORED ME!! ISN'T THAT CRUEL?! I'M A PILLAR!!"
She buried her face within the palm of her hands, letting out a loud sob, "NOW, ALL THE GOOD ENERGY I GOT FROM THE SPRINGS IS PRACTICALLY GONE!! WAAHH!"
You sweat dropped, "Well, on the bright side.. I heard that dinner is going to be done soon! I heard from the chief that they'll be using matsutake mushrooms!"
Mitsuri raised her head, a wide smile gracing her now enthusiastic face, "WHOOAAAA!! ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" She hopped to her feet, "YAAY!! IT'S GOING TO BE A GOOD DAY!!"
She bid you all farewell, skipping down the path and towards the village, "BYE, YOU GUYS!! I'LL SEE YOU AT DINNER!!" She then broke into song, "Good sir, good sir! What is fluttering in front of the horse~!"
You each deadpanned, before Tanjirou broke the newfound silence, "Wow.. she sure is.. enthusiastic." You nodded with an exasperated smile, "Yeah, I guess you could say that. Sounds like she loves to eat, so we share that in common.."
Eli rolled his eyes, "Yeah, it's no surprise that you love to eat, fatass." You bent over, before throwing a nearby rock his way, "SHUT THE FUCK UP, FREAK!! I'M NOT A FATASS!"
You butted heads with your chocolate haired friend, "IF I'M A FATASS, THEN WHAT DOES THAT MAKE MITSURI?! WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY, HUH?!"
Eli clenched his teeth, "DON'T DISRESPECT PINKY THAT WAY! SHE HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS, NOT AT ALL!"
Tanjirou let out a long sigh, "Come on, you two.. let's just go to the springs.. okay?"
You and Eli pulled back, before shouting at Tanjirou simultaneously, "THIS ISN'T ABOUT YOU, TANJIROU/TABASCO!!"
Soon after your feud with Eli, you all had finally arrived to the hot springs — finally, at last. As you each walked to the body of water, you pointed to a small portion of the spring that was concealed by a rock wall, "I'm gonna go over there, while you guys can.. I don't know— bond in your nakedness, or something?"
Eli twitched his eye, sweat dripping awkwardly, "Did you.. really just say that..? 'Bond in our nakedness'...?" He then let out a brief sigh, "I don't even know why I'm questioning you, at this point."
Tanjirou sheepishly chuckled, "Yeah.. you did sort of word that.. weirdly, (Y/N).. but I get what you mean.." Eli snapped his head towards Tanjirou, eyes widened, "EH?! WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT!?"
You shrugged dismissively, before parting ways with your companions, "Have fun! I'll be over here, so don't be perverted and peek!" Eli scoffed, "Yeah, like anyone would wanna peek at you!" You called back sarcastically, "Hardy, har har! You're so funny! What a comedian!!"
As you arrived at your own personal, yet mini hot spring, you let out an excited sigh, a smile evident on your features, "Waaghh, I'm so happy~!"
Taking one last surveillance of your surroundings, you swiftly slipped out of your uniform, before removing your hairpin and setting them down in a neat pile.
As you inched your way into the water, you felt a chilling sensation run up your spine, causing you to immediately retract your feet, "HOT!! HOLY SHIT, IT'S HOT!"
You dejectedly looked to the ground in personal embarrassment, "What the hell do I mean, 'it's hot?' Hot springs are supposed to be like that.."
You let out a sigh, before gathering the courage to submerge your figure beneath the spring, "I just sound like an absolute idiot, when I put it that way.."
Taking a deep breath, you dunked your head underneath the surface, squeezing your eyes tightly shut as you blew bubbles out from your nose. Once emerged, you let out a content sigh, before leaning against the edge of the spring.
Cupping a hand to your cheek, you spoke to yourself in a relaxed state, "This is the life! This is so much better than swimming in a public pool.. especially because it's mostly piss!"
You shuddered, reminiscing about your previous modern life, "Oh, god.. I do not miss that. That.. was absolute torture.."
Once a yawn unconsciously escaped your lips, you let out a hum, before gently closing your eyes, 'It wouldn't matter if I took a quick nap, right? We've been traveling all day..!'
With that, you wasted no time in entering the realm of dreams, leaving your current reality behind.
『✦』
Whilst you were off in an isolated spring, Tanjirou, Eli & Nezuko headed for one of the larger sized springs. Upon noticing Tanjirou still wore Nezuko's box, Eli piped up, "Are you really bringing your sister in with us? Isn't that.. creepy?"
Tanjirou whipped his head back, his eyes widened, "WH— EH?! WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!?" Eli mocked his shocked tone, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, WHAT AM I TALKING ABOUT?! WE'RE ALL GOING TO BE NAKED!!"
He pinched the bridge of his nose, "LOOK, TABASCO! I DON'T WANT TO BE WITH YOUR NAKED SISTER! THAT'S JUST WEIRD, MAN!!"
Upon fully realizing the situation, Tanjirou slapped a hand over his mouth, "OH MY GOD—! I NEVER EVEN THOUGHT OF THAT!!" He comically dropped to his knees, "I'm such a creep. Having my close friend bathe with my kid sister.. and not realizing the situation? I should atone for my sins with suicide."
Eli widened his eyes, "Atone with suicide?! Dude, are you okay!? Are you mentally well?!" Tanjirou feigned ignorance to Eli, before cracking Nezuko's box open, "Nezu— oh, she's asleep.." He let out a relieved sigh, "At least that problem is out of the way..!"
Eli rolled his eyes, "Honestly, Tabasco.. I obviously know you didn't have harmful intentions.." He scoffed, before snickering into his fist, "..but how did you not realize sooner— OW!!"
Getting cut off by a sudden impact to his head, Eli showcased his hand to Tanjirou — with the object laying within it. They each widened their eyes, shouting out simultaneously, "A TOOTH?! HUHH?!"
Tanjirou broke into a nervous sweat, his mouth agape, "WHO'D LOSE A TOOTH?! HOW DO YOU JUST.. LOSE A TOOTH LIKE THAT?!" Eli shared Tanjirou's expression, "IT HIT ME IN THE HEAD TOO! HOW DOES THAT EVEN HAPPEN!?"
Following the path the tooth had taken, they each laid their eyes on a figure in the back of the hot springs — Genya Shinazugawa.
Tanjirou perked up, whispering into Eli's ear, "It's mohawk-head! Shoot, what was his name!?" Eli forced back a laughter, "Holy shit, it's the dude from Final Selection! (Y/N) beat the shit out of him, huh!?"
Tanjirou snapped his fingers, finally remembering the name of the boy that stood a dozen feet in front of him. He shouted his name, pointing a finger his way, "GENYA SHINAZUGAWA!! HI!! HELLO!! MY NAME IS—"
Genya immediately whipped his head over to the two boys, an irk mark appearing on his forehead, "WH—?! DROP DEAD! GET OUT OF HERE!!"
Tanjirou merely blinked, before undressing and hopping into the spring, "IT'S BEEN SO LONG!! HOW ARE YOU DOING?! (Y/N) TOLD ME THAT YOU PAID US A VISIT!! WELL— NOT REALLY, BUT YOU WERE TECHNICALLY IN OUR ROOM!"
Eli sighed, "Might as well strip, too.." He then yanked his clothes off, before jumping in besides the two boys and shouting, "CANNONBALL!! HAHA!!"
With this, he drenched the two boys completely, causing Genya to storm over to him and shake him by his neck, "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!? I'LL KILL YOU!! DROP DEAD, NOW!! THE EARTH WILL BE A BETTER PLACE WITHOUT YOU!!"
Eli choked for air, his face paling, "T-TABASCO—! HELP!! HELP ME!!"
Tanjirou merely blinked owlishly, before splashing Genya, "HEY! THAT'S NOT NICE! WE'RE HERE TO BOND! BOND IN OUR NAKEDNESS!!"
Eli widened his eyes, inching away from the crimson haired boy, "WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT?! YOU WERE JUST COMPLAINING ABOUT (Y/N) SAYING THAT, NOT EVEN JUST A FEW MINUTES AGO!"
Genya whipped his head towards Tanjirou, angered veins evident on his features, "WHAT ARE YOU BABBLING ON ABOUT?! SLIT YOUR THROAT, RIGHT NOW!!"
He then briefly paused, before his tone slightly lowered, "WAIT— You said (Y/N) is here?! Like— HERE?! IN THE SPRING WITH US?!" He submerged into the water, hugging his chest anxiously.
Eli scoffed, "Are you a moron? She's not here, dumbass. She's in a secluded spring by herself. You really thought we'd bring her in here.. with us.. naked!?"
Genya shoved a tsunami of water Eli's way in a desperate attempt to hide the blush on his cheeks, "SHUT THE FUCK UP!! YOU'RE WORTHLESS!! KILL YOURSELF!!"
Eli shoved a tsunami of water for revenge, his brows slanted downwards, "HAAH?! WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO BE, MOHAWK BOY!? I'M NOT TAKING ANY CRITICISM FROM YOU UNTIL YOU GET A NEW HAIRCUT!!"
Before the situation could escalate even further, Tanjirou perked up, "Wait—! Shinazugawa.." He let out a light gasp, "GENYA, ARE YOU AND THE WIND PILLAR BROTHERS?! YOU SHARE THE SAME LAST NAME!!"
Genya immediately diverted his attention to Tanjirou, dashing his way menacingly before slamming his face into the water, "DON'T TALK TO ME, BITCH!!!"
With that, he stormed out of the springs, furiously grabbing a nearby towel and wrapping it around his lower body. Before he was fully out of sight, he turned around and angrily yelled, "FUCK BOTH OF YOU!! I HATE YOU!! DIE!"
Eli and Tanjirou slowly turned towards each other — brows furrowed confusedly. Eli let out a scoff, "Who shoved a stick up his ass?"
Meanwhile, Tanjirou sank into the water, only his head peeking out as he dejectedly sighed, "I thought we could all be friends.. if we just bonded in our nakedness. Man, relationships are hard."
Eli aggressively splashed Tanjirou, an irk mark apparent on his forehead, "WILL YOU STOP SAYING THAT, YOU FREAK!? YOU'RE RUINING THE EXPERIENCE!!"
『✦』
Slowly but surely, you eased your eyes open — coming face to face with a pitch black void. No - you didn't recognize this place; it held no similarities to Akari's domain whatsoever.
Feeling a surge of anxiety course through you, you swallowed before calling out, "Er— hello? Is, uh.. anybody there?"
As you attempted to take a single step forwards, you came to a nerve wracking realization that your feet were paralyzed — that you were inevitably stuck in place.
Trying to surveil your surroundings, you couldn't help but feel a dark feeling looming over you — you had a cautious feeling of danger.
Gathering up the courage, you made a call out into the endless darkness surrounding you, hoping for any sort of answer, "Hello?! If anyone's there, now would be a good time to answer me!"
Finally, a somewhat familiar voice broke through the darkness — a cold, chilling voice from behind, "I've finally found you.. hairpin girl."
A tingle ran up your spine as your neck hairs instantly stood up — chilled to the very bone. You tried to turn to face the voice, only to deadpan, "Uh.. I can't really.. turn to face you."
You pointed to your frozen feet, "You see, my feet are sort of paralyzed.. so if you're trying to do a big reveal.. it's not really working well.."
As footsteps grew closer, so did the voice, "Or.. should I say, (Y/N)? My apologies, truly. I do believe that you aren't in any place to be snarky with me, you see."
As the voice finally revealed itself to you — your blood instantly turned cold. The color drained from your face as bullets of sweat appeared on the back of your neck.
Your pulse began to quicken — far faster than it has ever beaten before as you could feel it pulsing through your eardrums.
You swallowed in a desperate attempt to appease your now dry throat — to distract yourself from the pure terror that overcame your body.
As his crimson red eyes stared into yours, you could only mutter out a single word, "Kibutsuji."
Muzan's eyes narrowed in on you as he let out a hum, "So, you do remember me. I'm relieved — it saves me a lot of time. Do you know why you're here? Why I'm in your unconsciousness?"
Despite the wave of panic surging through you, you forced an answer, "I— I don't know." Muzan scowled, before baring his claws, "You see, girl.."
He grazed his claws over your cheek — purposefully not trying to slash you, "You have something I want.. actually, no.. you have a few things I want."
Muzan offered a sly smile — his eyes turning to slits, "I don't have much time here with you, unfortunately.. but that's okay. I'll make the best of it."
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Word Count : 2565
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