SUGAR CONTENT; gintama oneshots

paper cranes - kamui

Legend says that if one folds a thousand paper cranes, their wish will come true. 

On a much smaller scale, folding one paper crane will grant one small wish. And so, every time someone she loved went out for the day, (Y/N) would fold an origami crane, wishing for their safety. It started when she was a child, too young to go with her mother to the market or her father off to work. Repetition built talent, as this was happening almost every single day. Then, a fire burned down her home and took her away from her family, stranding her in the depths of space, but with her, she brought the art of folding paper.

She had to start all over again, now for someone new. That person became Kamui, the seventh division captain of the Harusame, who was the same age as her and actively spent time with her. One day, he had chosen her out of everyone else on the navigation team to control his ship, and from then on, she had begun to fold cranes for him - not that he knew this. At the very least, he knew of their existence and it wasn't until now that he asked about them.

"What are the cranes for?" Kamui asked, coming up to stand beside where she was seated and routing the ship's course. 

He was wandering around the ship and finally noticed the origami cranes that decorated the cockpit, counting almost a hundred in a variety of colors. They were hung on translucent strings from beam to beam, above where the windows reached as to not interfere with the view. Some finished cranes that had not been put up yet littered (Y/N)'s desk, along with a stack of colorful origami paper that was stood next to her logbook.

"For good luck," was all (Y/N) said. 

Luckily, he took it as good luck for the whole ship and not just him, so he happily left with that killer smile on his face that never seemed to fade. It was his second in command and part time babysitter that stayed behind, because Abuto wasn't as easy to fool as someone whose mind was only filled with thoughts of fighting and food.

Abuto picked up one of the paper cranes, a golden one that shimmered despite the dim light, and said, "These are for the Captain, right? They must be, since you fold them every time he's about to get into another fight."

A little embarrassed by having him guess the truth, (Y/N) managed a small nod and said, "Yes, they're my way of wishing for his safety. I know he's not one to lose, but the reassurance of folding paper when I don't know how someone is doing raises my confidence in him even more. Please don't tell Kamui any of this, by the way. It's not something I want him to dwell on if we're ever separated for good."

"I won't," Abuto reassured with an indifferent shrug of his shoulders, but before left, he paused and asked one last question, "What will you do when you reach a thousand?"

The Yato must know of the legend as well, if he was asking such a question, so (Y/N) had no problem answering. "My wish will be to stay with Kamui forever and to never lose him."

After that day, the subject wasn't brought up again for some time. Years past and the more Kamui got into battles, the more paper cranes that decorated the ship. The number was nearing almost six hundred by now, and those were just the fights (Y/N) knew about. Since the amount was so great, the Yato captain became curious again, finding himself once against beside his navigator, watching her chart the stars.

She wasn't saying anything, mostly because she registered he was there but at the same time, needed to finish what she was working on. It was only when he reached over and took a blue piece of origami paper did she finally take her gaze off her work and onto the braided haired warrior. Kamui was attempting to fold the paper, using one of the nearby cranes for reference, but since he had never done it before and had not been taught, it came out looking like a crumpled up ball of paper.

"I can teach you, if you'd like," (Y/N) offered without thinking. 

Remembering just who it was she was speaking to, she opened her mouth to apologize for her potential rudeness, only for Kamui to grin. He threw the crumbled ball of paper behind him and proceeded to grab another fresh page, a red one this time.

"Show me!" Kamui said, excited.

He yanked a chair from a nearby desk and pulled it over to sit next to her, despite the fact the chair was attached to the ground. It remained standing even when he sat down, so neither of them said anything about the sparking wires coming out from beneath it. Instead, the two were focused completely on the step by step folding process to a paper crane. (Y/N) finished hers first, then waited for Kamui to flatten out his last fold, before they set the two cranes on the desk, side by side.

Although it was obvious Kamui's was done by a beginner, (Y/N) knew she was going to add it to her collection, probably as her favorite one on the entire ship.

"What are you going to wish for when you reach a thousand?" Kamui asked out of the blue, staying instead of leaving.

(Y/N) was a bit surprised he knew the legend as well, having to catch herself because of that before she gave him the truth. "I don't want to lose my home again, so I plan on wishing for things to stay the same as they are."

"I'd wish for the strongest fighter in the universe so I could fight them," he said, "Or I'd wish for you to be my navigator forever, because you always bring me to the best planets to find people to fight."

"Me too! I'd wish for you to be my captain forever!" (Y/N) blurted out.

Kamui's fearsome grin turned endearing (not that it wasn't already). "Then, let's start folding! We have to get to a thousand and make our wishes come true."

...

that's all for now in terms of updating this book - but if I ever have inspiration, I'll return

thank you for reading!