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It was like any other day. The sun was overwhelmingly bright with clouds traveling in the wispy wind and a distinct natural scent that brought oxytocin to the mind. Tomioka travels down the dirt paths of the Demon Slayer headquarters. He has somewhere quite important to be this peaceful afternoon. Usually, he would be informed of the mission via his crow; Kanzaburo. However, he has been specifically summoned to the Ubuyashiki Mansion. It was quite strange but Tomioka never second guessed his masters decisions.
Soon, he arrived and there sat Kiriya, the sole son and Kanata, the youngest daughter.
"Greetings, Tomioka-san." Kiriya welcomed as Tomioka folded his legs under himself comfortably and sat his katana down beside him.
He nodded in recognition before Kiriya followed up.
"You may be curious on why you were summoned to the Ubuyashiki Mansion specifically." Kiriya began before Kanata chimed in, "This mission was reserved for the female Hashira, however, because of some changes, you've been selected to complete it instead."
Tomioka remained stoic as always but mentally he raised an eyebrow. Reserved for Kocho and Kanroji? He did have feminine features, or so he has been told, so it wasn't a surprise he's been selected for such a job. Question now was, what was the mission?
The twins seemed to read his mind as they answered his question.
"In the entertainment district in an ochaya, a demon has been targeting customers as a maiko." Kiriya informed.
"You could go into the ochaya as a customer but we don't want you to become the victim. Instead, you shall infiltrate as a geisha to get information about the demon before killing it. This way, it doesn't pay attention to you." Kanata then followed up her brother's sentence.
Tomioka's eyes narrowed slightly as if he were thinking intensely about the whole mission. It was a good plan, he had to admit. He was glad he was summoned instead of his crow trying to explain it to him. Despite how much he loved Kanzaburo, he worried for him when it came to explaining missions.
Tomioka nodded "Of course."
He then exited the Ubuyashiki Mansion with one objective on his mind, his new mission.
-
Now that Tomioka was tasked with such a mission. He had to swiftly learn the ways of a geisha. He was a demon slayer, how hard could it truly be?
It was hard.
Despite it all. He struggled with the dances of the Nihon Buyō. He wasn't much of a dancer at all, but fueled with the overwhelming hate of demons and loyalty to Oyakata-sama he managed to master some simple geisha dances in time for his mission.
Soon, he made his way to the specific entertainment district where the demon was rumored to be residing and broke into the tea house. For now he would just kindly borrow the insanely expensive silk Hikizuri/Kimono and makeup for himself, until then, there was a demon on the loose he needed to kill.
He effortlessly painted his face and the nape of his neck a pale white rice based foundation, his lips a red that match perfectly with his red pigment black blend eye highlights and thinly drawn elegant eyebrows, perfectly completing the geisha look. He struggled taming his spiky hair into the iconic geisha hair style, adding a decorative comb and beautiful hair pin once he was finished.
Looking at himself in the mirror he could barely recognize himself. He looked like a woman. Now he could really see why people told him he appeared feminine. He couldn't stop admiring himself until he forced himself to put the Hikizuri on. He wrapped himself in the undergarment, then the under kimono and finally the expensive silky outer kimono, holding it in place with a Fukuro Obi.
At last, in a full size mirror, he admired himself, from his spotless tobi socks to the decorative comb in his hair. He was a flawless piece of art. He looked out the window and noticed dusk neared. A time where the tea house was most popular, and just in time, he was ready.
-
He peaked from the fusuma as the teahouse filled with guests. Two geisha would be performing today, him and another kind lady. He could feel the demon was around here somewhere, he just couldn't pin it exactly due to the amount of people that were entering the room.
He observed the people silently. A few businessmen, some regular guests, Kocho and the rest of the Hashira. Wait. What.
Kocho and the rest of the Hashira?!
He didn't know what to think, why were they here or why wasn't he invited. I mean, he didn't deserve to be with the other Hashira, he wasn't like them. But it hurt a little knowing they went somewhere without inviting him. No matter, this mission was more important than something like this.
He calmed down slightly at the shock, setting his priorities straight. All he had to do was do his little dance, pour some sake while converse in the female voice he practiced, find the demon, kill it, and get out before they could even know he was the geisha. Simple, quick and easy.
He watched as Uzui and Kanroji sat down, Rengoku sitting down between the two as Kocho sat beside Kanroji, Obanai and Shinazugawa sitting near. Before he could observe more, a voice rang out behind him, a house servant.
"It's almost time, Yoneko-sama." The mekake politely said in a quick bow out of respect.
Now that it was truly time, he couldn't help but have a deep sense of nervousness that he might mess up. He took a deep breath before seemingly gliding behind the fusuma separating the main room from the service area. It was time.
Under the warm bronze light of a singular lantern, the fusuma slid open with a gentle shhh. Yoneko, actually Tomioka, gracefully glided upon the mats in silence. His beautiful red Hikizuri embroidered with the nature of the Earth trailing behind him with an otherworldly grace that left the people of the tea house speechless, all their eyes now fixated on him.
He moved to the center of the room and did a low, composed bow to them before beginning his dance that he practiced nonstop for the previous several days to absolute perfection. The movement was controlled and elegant, telling a story through each deliberate gesture. Not only did his gestures narrate the story, but also a bright red fan that for a moment, he tossed into the air and caught it flawlessly. His act drew sharp gasps and applauds as he closed off his act with a short bow with his knees.
His eyes darted towards the Hashira, he just noticed Himejima wasn't here, how odd. However, he took note that they were immensely impressed by his performance. For some reason, that made him a little happy.
After the dance he completed with little to no flaw. He made his way towards the patrons, business men and guests, including his co-workers who were conversing between themselves. A servant held up a plate that held sake to pour for the guests. He folded his kimono under him as he sat, pouring the sake with practiced etiquette where the ripples didn't reach the edge of the cup for some of the patrons, appreciating the compliments he received with a kind expression.
He felt it again, the demon was near. His eyes darted across the room towards some male guests as a young maiko was talking with them. He found the demon. The demon disguising themselves as a maiko, how disgusting. A mockery to the art and craft of geisha, really. He just had to find the right time where the demon was somewhere alone, then he could strike.
-
He moved down the line towards his co-workers, the Hashira.
Kanroji was the first to compliment him, practically brimming at the rim with excitement.
"You were great out there!!!! You're fan just went woosh and then you bowed so gracefully and you're also really beautiful too!!" She exclaimed in dramatic gestures describing how he did his dance.
The others around chuckled and agreed in hums and nods.
"Yeah, you were quite flamboyant with that fan catch I must say so myself." Uzui chimed in in his usual nonchalant demeanor.
Tomioka bowed gently "You are most kind you two."
As he poured the sake into their cups, Kocho uttered a question. "What is your name, young lady?"
Tomioka tilted his head to the side slightly, gracefully of course, before answering in a soft tone.
"Yoneko is my name kind ma'am." He answered, pouring sake for Obanai and Shinazugawa.
"What a beautiful name, Yoneko-chan." Kocho complimented her with a masked smile.
Tomioka shot a warm smile towards Kocho before Obanai butted in, his bandaged mask moving with his jaw, his finger pointed at him as his heterochromic eyes narrowed in observation.
"You remind me of someone we know." He pointed out.
Damn it.
They've noticed he looked similar to well himself. He had to play this off, get the demon and ditch as soon as possible.
The others looked at him and arose in ohh's, realizing who Obanai was referring to. Kocho was the first to speak up.
"Tomioka-san would say no to this anytime, that's why nobody likes him." She spoke as if he wasn't here. Well she did think he wasn't but he was right in front of her.
"Tell me about it. That egocentric jerk." Shinazugawa chimed in with an exaggerated sigh just at the mention of Tomioka's name.
Uzui nodded in agreement, "He's an attractive man but his unflashy attitude really messes it up."
Tomioka knows he shouldn't care at all but hearing them say it actually kinda hurt. Not really much for Kocho or Shinazugawa because they always said that but still. With a wavering smile, he poured the sake gently before placing it back on the plate that the servant held.
"He appears to be an impolite man based around your tell." You could hear something in his voice and tone.
This tone slightly shifted the atmosphere. They were catching on, shit. They looked at him suspiciously covered with smiles. Shinazugawa was observing him the most, his gaze piercing him intensely. Tomioka swore he was sweating a river now.
Shinazugawas eyes widened and he leaned forward "You are Tomioka, aren't you?" He exclaimed in a low irritated growl.
Tomiokas cover had been officially blown, there was no point in trying to hide when there wasn't a place to hide. He looked around quickly before leaning in and whispering.
"I am on a mission." This completely confirmed Shinazugawas suspicion as a fact now.
The other Hashira were quite shocked at the revelation, Kanroji in particular covering her mouth with her hands.
"Oh my gosh! I didn't even notice." Kanroji squealed.
"Oh wow, you did all that yourself, Mr. Boring?" Uzui asked in a question laced with humor with a silly nickname.
Tomioka nodded, his mouth opening to say something but Rengoku, who was surprisingly silent for the majority of this yelled out.
"THE FEMININE APPEARANCE IS QUITE ATTRACTIVE, TOMIOKA-SAN!"
Tomioka swore the teas house went silent. He couldn't help but internally feel a little embarrassed and flattered.
"Thank you." The word hesitantly left his mouth.
Before Tomioka could do anything else, he saw the demon maiko walk out of the fusuma doors and into the service area. His chance had come and he had to take it, now or never.
He stood up and politely excused himself.
"Pardon me, but I have something important to attend to." He strut over to the fusuma doors and before a servant could open it, Shinazugawa did.
"I'll accompany you." He said.
He understood.
-
Tomioka dropped his elegant demeanor as they stepped out of the tea house main room. It was tiring being so uptight and graceful on purpose. You could hear the long exhausted sigh that escaped him as Shinazugawa walked beside Tomioka at an arms wide length away.
As they silently walked down the teahouse halls with quiet precision, Tomioka had so many questions to ask Shinazugawa. Like, why did he come with? He honestly thought Shinazugawa hated his guts, he didn't know why really though.
As that question brewed, Shinazugawa waved his hand as he crouched down at the shoji door and cracked it open slightly to where you could view the maiko inside touching up her hair and make up. Tomioka's hand traveled under his kimono and put his hands firmly of his katana sheathe and handle. He prepared to unsheathe it to swiftly decapitate the demon, this was his chance when it was focused on itself.
He pushed aside Shinazugawa gently, entering the room with a quiet shush and unsheathed his katana. Closing his eyes, he controlled his breathing before taking his katana and going in for the kill.
"Water breathing, First Form, Water Surface Slash." With a singular precise horizontal slash he moved like the waves and sliced.
However, the demon struck first and grabbed the sword before it could reach its neck. He tried to push, to slice the hand at least but it was wedged in it's unbelievably thick skin. He took it out and stood in a defensive position a few feet away from it, making sure it couldn't do anything yet.
"You think I didn't expect demon slayers would show up soon?" It laughed arrogantly, Tomioka and the demon now spinning in a circle as if uping each other.
Tomioka narrowed his eyes, analyzing his target. He took his chance to strike but it hadn't worked. However, this demon wasn't any of the 12 kizuki so this should be simpler, but that doesn't mean it'll be easy. This kimono restricted movement a lot, how did girls walk in these?
In the silent stalemate of gazes. He felt Shinazugawas eyes furrow in frustration. He knew Shinazugawa was going to attack any moment now.
Tomioka ducked swiftly as Shinazugawa leaped over him with his katana gripped in his hand tightly, a wild expression on his face and struck the demon.
"Wind breathing, Fifth Form, Winter Gale!" Shinazugawa exclaimed with a wicked grin as he delivered a powerful strike from above delivering rapid, circular slashes aimed at the demon vitals, pushing it back and injuring it temporarily.
Now, both Tomioka and Shinazugawa stood in defensive positions, preparing for the demons next attack. As expected, frustrated that he had been injured like that, it aggressively turned to them after half way regenerating its injuries and attacking.
It went for Tomioka first, delivering a large punch of which he jumped to the side and dodged in a solid fluid motion. The demon kept up and essentially aimed for Tomioka's katana.
SNAP
Tomioka's sword broke in half.
-
Tomioka looked down at his katana, the top part broken on the floor. How did it just do that. Whatever, it didn't matter now, it was broken and he had to use what he had to kill it.
The demon turned to Shinazugawa and attempted to attack him. However, as swift as the wind, Shinazugawa delivered his first form and lodged his katana into the back of the demon's neck. He pushed and tried to cut but it was thicker than he anticipated and lost grip and the demon sunk its claws into Shinazugawas shoulder.
Tomioka quickly looked up at the sound of his comrades grunts of pain. Shinazugawa was up against the wall of the room, his hands holding the demons fist, pushing it as it tried to push in. He was holding it back with his hands.
Tomioka knew what he had to do.
He stood up, ran and leaped up, putting his palm to the flat edge of the katana and his other on the handle, pushing in and cutting the demon's neck. With one swift slice, the demon's head popped off.
It was dead.
Tomioka turned the katana to the side quickly so he didn't accidentally slice Shinazugawas hands as Tomioka landed over Shinazugawa. They both breathed heavily, in exhaustion looking into each other's eyes in shocked silence. That fight felt like an hour but it was just 5 minutes. Shinazugawa at this angle and moment looked almost calmer than he usually was in fights, as if he were admiring Tomioka.
Shinazugawa shoved Tomioka off and rudely grabbed his katana back from him. It wasn't a 'I hate you' shove this time. It was a boundary setting one. Tomioka got up, rubbing the nape of his neck and gliding over to where his broken katana was on the ground. He'd have to go to the Swordsmith village to get this fixed. His blade was getting dull anyways so it was about time.
With awkward semi-calm silence filling the gap between the two of them, they walked out and down the hall back towards the main tea house where the rest of the Hashira were. Shinazugawa casually slid the fusuma door slightly open and glared at the Hashira with that usual angry glare he always wore, though, there was a hint of something else in there he couldn't decipher.
Tomioka peeked in and saw them getting up, showing their gratitude towards the new geisha that was pouring sake for them. She must have done her performance while Tomioka was out fighting the demon. The Hashira exited the main tea house and out the doors and into the outside where it was dark, bright lanterns lighting up the roads between the many houses in the entertainment district. It smelt of mud, cigar smoke, rotten food and perfume. What a scent combination.
Lifting up his Hikizuri, he stepped out with his geta on. He had his Hikizuri on. He forgot to give it back. He halted as the Hashira who were conversing amongst themselves walked off and he tried to walk back to the tea house to return it.
"I'll pay for it." A voice rang out.
It was Shinazugawa, still clutching his slightly blood-stained kimono. Pay for it? I mean yeah they were Hashira and quite wealthy but still. It was rude to just steal like this. At the same time, if he was going to pay, going back would be too much of a hassle.
Tomioka nodded with his stoic expression plastered on his face, joining the group again.
"Damn, Shinazugawa-san, brand new scar I see there?" Uzui remarks with a sly smirk with his hands behind his head.
Some of the others looked at Shinazugawa and his bloodied shoulder. Kocho, in her sweet voice laced with poison started.
"We'll have to get that checked out now, don't we Shinazugawa-san? You must stop getting hurt." She smiled, so obviously being slightly irritated at the fact he was hurt again. He probably visited the butter fly mansion a lot.
He groaned and rolled his eyes at their remarks, mumbling something incomprehensible under his breath.
"At least my blade isn't broken."
-
They turned their heads towards Tomioka with varying expressions.
"Ek! Your blade is broken, Tomioka-san?!" Kanroji-san cried with her fists balled up and shaking ecstatically next to her face.
He nodded silently in affirmation. Uzui observed Tomioka for a moment as he nodded nonchalantly before leaning his head towards him.
"Are you gonna return that hikizuri?" Uzui asked with an eyebrow raised.
Tomioka's eyes darted around for a moment, he looked as Shinazugawa and his gaze was literally stabbing him. It was better not to say he offered to pay for it.
"It's mine." Tomioka voiced flatly.
Some of the Hashira erupted in interested oohs.
"Never expected you to own such a flashy and expensive hikizuri!" Uzui expressed in a sense of shock, Kanroji and Rengoku nodding in agreement.
"Can I wear it, Tomioka-san!!!" Kanroji begged with pleading eyes. He wouldn't be surprised if she got on her knees and begged to wear something like this. He had to admit it, it was a pretty hikizuri.
Tomioka nodded and Kanroji practically exploded with excitement right then and there.
Soon, they made it back to the Demon Slayer headquarters and went their separate ways for the night. Tomioka didn't have any other missions to attend tonight. For now, he could get some well deserved rest. Tomioka dreamed. He dreamed about the night, about the conversations, the dances, the fight, about Shinazugawa. He was kinder than usual. Instead of fighting each other they fought together. Deep down, he felt as if he were getting closer to Shinazugawa. He didn't deserve to get close to any of the Hashira. It would only end up hurting in the end. He wouldn't get close, not again, not ever.