riptide | kyojuro rengoku

XIX | him

KYOJURO WAS GETTING TIRED of lying to you. He knew how you arrived, the extent of your potential abilities, and even where Senjuro was. His little brother was tucked into his bedsheets at the moment, most likely. Yes, Rengoku Senjuro was fast asleep at home with little to no worries in his mind.

Why? Because his big brother would take care of the village's number one problem and return right home. Rengoku Kyojuro was the village's 'Golden Boy'. He was responsible for taking care of their ailments, aiding them in their daily tasks, and fending off attackers. He was the epitome of the Flame Pillar.

However, oftentimes, everyone seemed to forget he was still human. Barely nineteen and fighting on a daily basis to protect a home he had grown up in with little to no one to lead him properly on how to wield a sword, breathe fire, and keep an eye on the damage control all at once.

And all this trouble was caused by one singular prick. The 'Ocean Seer'. That's what they called her, or frankly, anyone who had been able to see into the depths of the ocean. Pirates sought them out, claiming them as property and if they weren't able to commit to their tasks, they'd be executed on the spot.

Everything was a live-or-die situation for them and Kyojuro had always felt a bit sorry for them. However, he didn't know how much longer he could live with himself knowing his little brother would hide away in fear each time there was an attack. He didn't like the people having to defend themselves with dinky frypans and weak brooms.

It was his job to protect them all.

His job to be the Flame Pillar.

His job to be a good son.

Anything but human, anything. Rengoku Kyojuro was not allowed to live a life with faults because it wasn't only his life on the line; it was everyone's. And that's why he took the greatest burden of all, taking his courage and depleting his human resolve in order to commit murder of the Ocean Seer on their land.

To commit to murdering L/n Y/n.

Yet, he could've done that long ago. He didn't know how long he could drag this out for, aimlessly traveling from island to island in a desperate attempt for something, anything to kill her once and for all. Many points in time he had hoped for something dangerous to rise out of the sea and attempt to swallow them up whole again.

He didn't care if his boat would get ruined and that he'd have to go to Hell and back when traveling home. He just wanted her gone; the source of their issues, the reasons they were attacked so much, just gone. Yet, could he really be mad at you? Kyojuro swallowed, gazing back at your sleeping form.

He could kill you. Right now, he could murder you and toss your body into the ocean, and be done with it. Still, though, Kyojuro lacked the courage. It didn't matter if he had the courage to commit to it, but it mattered to have the bravery to follow through. It didn't help that everything you seemed to do surprised him.

You learned more about the Fire Village, but tolerated it, seeming much more open-minded than him when it came to the consensus of everyone being human. Sickeningly, selfishly human. Life was cruel and unjust, but the people were even more so. Similar to how you were a pawn to Kagaya, Kyojuro was a pawn to the village.

He could get himself tortured limb from limb, but they still wouldn't budge. None of them were ever proud of him, just of his image. They called him the warrior, protector, their one and only blessing, but cursed him to Hell, right after because how dare he not save that poor old woman's shack? How dare he accidentally destroy vases outside a man's home?

How dare he not be the good son?

How dare he not live up to their utmost expectations?

How dare he?

That was it. That was the entire question that had repeated throughout the entirety of his life as soon as he had run into his parents' room, screaming about being a flame wielder. He had no idea what that would entail and sometimes, Kyojuro had wished that he had shut up at that moment and never told a soul.

Maybe if he hadn't told his father, his mother would still be alive based on some sort of miracle. Maybe the village's only doctor would put in more effort to keep her alive had Kyojuro saved him from being robbed. Maybe then his father wouldn't have ostracized them, becoming just like the village people and cursing his eldest son to Hell.

It broke Kyojuro's heart to leave his brother behind like that, especially when he was the only one that their father could openly unleash his wrath on, but what choice did he have? It was the village or his father and as far as he knew, both had become one and the same. He didn't have a source of comfort or some kind of cliffside oasis.

It was just him.

Him, his sword, his declining dignity, and his burning lungs.

Because 'him' was not enough.

You moved in your sleep again and the Flame Pillar visibly stiffened too, afraid that something he had done or mumbled had woken you up. However, you were hardly deterred, falling back asleep pretty quickly afterward. It was the most ironic thing ever, nursing you back to health when he swore to kill you.

I'll heal her up first and then I'll kill her. I at least want a fair fight. . . He tried to reassure himself, watching you carefully as he replaced the towel on your head. With a bitter look in his eyes, he retracted his hands from your figure, moving to sit on his own bed again. Deep down, he knew he couldn't bring himself to kill you.

Not only because you were innocent and painstakingly human too, but because you were the only person who seemed to accept Kyojuro as he was.

Just 'him'.