Tonight || Giyushino

~Chapter 10~

[some more swearing from Sanemi]

Tanjiro was dead.

They were not ready to absorb it. Giyu was thinking about how his family would react to this. It was his fault. Tanjiro died because of him. Giyu was so crushed by the guilt that he did not notice Shinobu asking him for something. 

" Pl-lease give me the bottle, Tomioka-san," she whispered. He could not think straight. With a shaking hand, he handed her the bottle with her blood. He turned his tear-stained face to Tanjiro, who was lying peacefully on the ground. She gingerly exposed his biggest wound, that was on his chest. It was raw with blood. She uttered a small gasp. 

"He fought against the six-eye bitch," Sanemi cried,"He fought valiantly but they guy was too powerful for one person alone. I ran out with him too late. If i was faster, he would be alive," Giyu put his hand on Sanemi's shoulder, trying to comfort him. But it was useless. Both were too broken. 

Shinobu was doing something. She opened the bottle. She dripped a few drops on Tanjiro, near his heart. "What are you doing?" Sanemi asked wearily. 

"Trying to restart his heart."

"That's not possible," Sanemi replied, blankly staring at her. Shinobu shook her head. "Wisteria can do a lot of things," she whispered. Giyu looked at what she was doing intently. 

Seconds felt like minutes. Minutes felt like hours. Hours felt like years. Giyu was going to lose hope. He got up and tried to stand on his wobbly legs. He rubbed his swollen eyes and looked up at the stars. One was twinkling brighter than the others. It's Tanjiro, Giyu smiled. He would be looking down on them. Suddenly, the star dimmed. 

Fanit breathing was heard. Tears of joy sprang from Shinobu's eyes. There was a pulse. A soft pulse but it was there. Giyu spun back and knelt in front of Tanjiro. He was alive! Shinobu looked happy but drained. Tanjiro was alive! He was not dead! And it was because of Shinobu. Sanemi wrapped Tanjiro in a hug. He was indeed breathing!

"Get him to safety. He needs proper medical treatment, or this will be for waste," Shinobu fainted. Sanemi carried Tanjiro, and Giyu carried Shinobu. The Wind kingdom was the closest to the forest. They would get medical attention there. Dawn was approaching. Light peeked through the trees. They ran as fsat as they could. Thankfully, Sanemi's younger brother, Genya, was strolling in the gardens. He saw them, bloodied and bruised, and was surprised to see Shinobu, but got medical help. 

They were all treated immediately. Shinobu's blood was transferred back to her. Tanjiro was alive, but he was in a coma. Sanemi and Giyu were terribly exhausted and had suffered injuries which were treated. Sanemi requested Genya not to tell their father about this. Genya obeyed. 

Giyu did not want to think about what they would have to explain. How they got Shinobu back and all. But he decided that he would face that challenge when he came to it. Now he was recuperating in the Wind kingdom.