Violet Memories (Sanemi x Reader)

Chapter 6: Fight, Don't Drown

(Back to Akina's POV)

I'd snuck back into the house, and when I woke up, we were off to Swordsmith Village. Once we arrived, I immediately felt that something was off.

"Kanroji-san, why are we here? Are there demons?" I said with caution. Mitsuri looked confused.

"Huh? Demons? No, Nishikawa-san, we're here to polish our swords! The blades have become quite dull, don't you think?"

I unsheathed my sword, and it turned red. I'd become accustomed to the colour change when I held it. I looked at the edges of the blade. Huh. It did seem a bit rounded.

"Let's go!" Kanroji said, tugging my arm. We went to a swordsmith who greeted us kindly.

"Welcome, hashira," he said, bowing. Mitsuri smiled, and she unsheathed her sword, and I gawked at it.

It was long, thin, and flexible, looking more like a sharp whip than a sword itself. She handed it over to the swordsmith, and turned towards me.

"Let's use the hotsprings, shall we?"

- - -

After we relaxed in the hotsprings, we dressed back up and the kakushi brought us to the house we were going to stay at. As I was lying on one of the futons, I heard Mitsuri mumble something in her sleep.

"Shinazugawa...never forgets..." she said, sleep talking.

I felt like I'd been punched, and the air felt cold.

Did she know?

I quickly dismissed that thought, as I sensed something – or someone.

"Kanroji-san, wake up." I shook her awake.

"Eh!? Nishikawa-san, what-"

"There's a demon on the roof."

We leapt out of our beds, dressed in our fighting gear, and climbed onto the roof.

There was a short, weak man, and his boy looked almost skeletal. His body was covered in wrinkles and veins. There was a huge bump on his forehead, accompanied by two horns. I gagged at the sight.

I pulled out my sword, the blade blazing red. The demon yelped, and started running.

"Kanroji-san," I said, eyeing the demon, who was running at a slow pace. "Go grab your sword."

She nodded and she went to grab it.

"Precision Breathing: Serene."

I twisted into the air and lunged at the demon, effortlessly lopping his head off, but he split into two separate demons. I looked back in disbelief.

"Well...who are you?" one of them growled, his face looking extremely angry. He had a staff in his left hand.

"Muzan-sama never informed us about you," the other one said easily, brandishing his fan. He had the kanji for "Relaxed" etched on his tongue. Both of the demons had the kanji of Upper Rank 4. I assumed the other demon was an "Anger" demon.

Suddenly, I saw the motion of the relaxed demon's hand, and I jumped to the right, avoiding a gust of wind that would have sent me flying.

"Karaku! Why did you miss?" the angry demon yelled. Karaku smiled at him.

"This is just like a mere game, Sekido," Karaku laughed.

I jumped forward, and Sekido tried to shock me with his staff, but I dodged and it missed. I sliced off his head in one swift motion, then sliced off Karaku's.

To my shock, the two of them became four. One of the new ones had giant wings, and the other had a yari.

I stayed calm.