koi no yokan | inosuke hashibira

𝟒.𝟗

Warning: Mentions of Blood, Missing Limbs, and Anxiety

----

There wasn't much I could remember after that battle. Muichiro had seen me attempt to slice the neck of Gyokko, and used this as a chance to come up with his own plot. Using that, he fought against Gyokko all with the fiery power of his past and plan.

What was I doing while that was happening?

Well?

Things were foggy.

I remember nothing but my eyesight dripping of crimson red, bright flashes coming from every time I blink and sigh. My head was bobbing from to and fro as if my spine had suddenly lost full control of keeping my skull in place.

I didn't dare look at my arms or my body. It was useless after all, I couldn't see them.

There was a throbbing ring in my ears as if someone were ripping out every nerve of my ear drum. I could count the many rib bones that stuck in an unnatural way. Yup, there had to be at least four.

Even through all of that, the grip on my sword was tight. It was almost numbing, how hard I was grabbing on it. With my right arm shaking and my left arm barely visible to me, I could start to feel my body being lifted.

Was I being lifted by Kakushi? Or God?

There were voices I heard, some of which I could take apart. Mitsuri's shrieking, Tanjiro's praying, and the familiar soft hands of a certain demon, Nezuko. With these people in mind, I was only trusted to know that I was in safe and secure hands.

My sight was blurry, phasing in and out of blobs of color to pure darkness. I didn't like the darkness and would much rather like to see some light and color.

I would probably be sent to the infirmary sometime soon, right? I mean, as a Demon Slayer and a Hashira, these injuries and expected to happen. With my technique, I could even stop the bleeding in no time.

I'd get all better in about a few weeks and then be sent on the next mission.

Maybe I could see Inosuke. Look at his stupid smile, his eyes glossy as they reflect the pure stars that stood above us, and perhaps finally get to braid his hair after weeks of asking and convincing. I could make a bento box for him, something I haven't done in a long time.

Maybe then I could find my family. I thought about my brother, Sora, how aching of a sadness he must be going through to lose one of his only treasures. Oh, how I dream to play and run with his through our gardens again.

With the sudden thought of both Inosuke and my brother, I giggled.

----

"She moved."

A simple whisper left Shinobu's lips as she stood above the table. On that table laid a body of a young slayer, one that had to be a few years younger than her.

Immediately, the assistants of the Insect Hashira dropped the white cloth that they were about to drape over her body.

The clouds were grey that afternoon, something that would only happen after the rain. Yet, the familiar scent of dew and mist still remained in the air. With a damp atmosphere, disposing of a body must be quick.

Yet, today might be a change of plans.

"She moved?" They gasped, both in surprise and confusion. The assistants drop the cloth immediately. Grabbing each other, they run out of the room in search for another medic to assist Shinobu.

Shinobu bent over the girl's body, her hands at the edge of the table, her hair draping down over the pale cheeks of the young Hashira, and her ear resting close to her chest. The room was silenced as she listened for a beating heart.