Gintama x Reader One Shots

Sakata Gintoki x Reader: Always

"Are you sure? This is gonna be dangerous, you know."

(F/N) tightened her grip on her sword. Gin was right. They were going into the largest battle since they'd entered the Joui war—possibly the largest battle of the war, period—but despite the danger, she looked up at him, and smiled.

"It's okay, I'm not afraid. After all, you'll always protect me, won't you?"

He stared at her, and she giggled when she saw a blush grace his cheeks. She expected him to brush it off, pretending he didn't care like always, but instead, he smiled, and it was the single most beautiful thing (F/N) had ever seen.

"That's right. You don't have to worry about a thing. I'll protect you, no matter what."

~o0o~

'You'll always protect me, won't you?'

(F/N) winced at the pain in her ribs. Blood dripped from her mouth as she struggled to her feet.

Maybe I've dug myself in a little too deep this time.

It had seemed like a fairly simple job. That morning, a man had shown up at the Yorozuya's apartment, and asked them to rescue his daughter, who'd been kidnapped earlier that week. To cover more ground, they'd split up with a promise to meet back at the apartment at one o'clock. During her search, (F/N) had found a lead, and continued to follow it until she found him—the kidnapper.

He was just one person. She'd thought she could handle him.

She was wrong.

His hand slammed into her face. Her sword was lying somewhere on the other end of the room, abandoned. She couldn't hold out much longer. All she could do was find out where the girl was being held, and hope the others were looking for her.

'You don't have to worry about a thing. I'll protect you, no matter what.'

She let out a gasp, struggling to breathe around the blood that flooded her nose and mouth.

"Where...are you keeping her?"

His foot struck the side of her head, and she fell to her side, hitting the metal ground hard. Her whole body hurt, but she forced a smile.

"I don't get why you're so intent on hiding it. It's not like I'm gonna make it out of this alive, anyway."

She heard footsteps draw closer, and looked up as he stopped, only a foot away from her head.

"What I don't understand is why you're so intent on finding out, if you're not going to make it out alive."

He drew a gun, and her blood ran cold.

Shit.

She crawled to her feet, and struggled to the window—her only hope of escape—but it was too late. She felt a white-hot pain in her back, and collapsed on the ground, her blood pooling on the floor.

That's strange...did it just get colder in here?

Her gaze flickered around the room, from the kidnapper, raising his gun to fire again, to the lone figure in the doorway.

...Gin?

(F/N)'s blood froze. From his expression, to his posture, to his eyes—wide and crazed with the pupils narrowed to mere pinpricks—everything told her something was wrong.

It took a less than a second for the wooden sword to strike the man's head. Two seconds for Gin to throw him into the wall. Another second for the man to shoot, and the bullet to go through Gin's shoulder. Normally, there would have been some reaction—a flinch or a scream to signal that it hurt—but there was nothing. No reaction. This wasn't him. This wasn't Gin.

I have to stop him.

(F/N) tried to open her mouth. She had to speak—tell him she was fine, everything was going to be okay—but she couldn't move. She watched as his sword hit the wall inches from the man's head. That blow would have killed him if he hadn't moved in time.

This is bad...that man is the only one who knows where that man's daughter is. If he dies...

"Gin..."

Finally!

"Gin..." she whispered, forcing her voice past her broken lips. "Gin, I'm fine. It's okay, really. You can stop now..."

No change. The man's gun went flying, landing on the ground somewhere on the other side of the room. Much longer, and Gin would kill him.

This is bad. He can't hear me. I have to move. I have to move!

Goddammit, body, move!

Every part of her body hurt as she scrambled to her feet. Gin's sword hit the man's shoulder, sending him tumbling to the floor. He raised his sword above his head, preparing to deal the final blow, but just a second before it could land, (F/N) leapt between them, spreading her arms wide. The sword stopped mere inches from her shoulder, and there was Gintoki—her Gintoki, sane and whole—staring at her as if she were a ghost.

"(F—F/N)?"

"It's okay, Gin," she whispered, forcing a smile. "I'm fine. See?"

The sword slipped out of his hand, and before it even touched the ground, she was in his arms, his breath against her neck as he buried his face in her shoulder. Her broken ribs ached as he squeezed her tight against his chest, but she didn't care. She just slipped her unbroken arm around his waist, and squeezed him as hard as she could in return.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I shouldn't have let you go out alone. I—"

(F/N) drew back, and flicked him on the forehead.

"Don't talk like that, idiot. It's my fault. I should've called you when I got here. Besides, I'm fine, see?"

"You're not fine, you're—"

She put a finger to his lips.

"I'm fine. I wasn't even the least bit scared. You want to know why?" She drew back with a smile on her face. "It's because I knew you'd come for me. After all, you promised, didn't you? That you'd always protect me?

"And I know you'd never break a promise to me."

Author's Note: Hello, everyone! Thank you for reading my story. If you liked it, please remember to vote! Thanks!

-Marguerite Partello