The Swimming Butterfly (Giyushino Fanfic)

Chapter 5

𝚃𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚘𝚔𝚊 𝙶𝚒𝚢𝚞

The rest of the days I spent at the Butterfly Estate were nothing memorable. After my fifth day resting, I decided that my wounds were healed enough and headed back to my home. Making sure to hide dog Kocho, I silently retreated to the comfort and silence of the small Minka that I called home. I lived alone, a fact that seemed to greatly bother Kocho. During missions, she would never fail to bring it up and torment me about it.

Haha, you social recluse. I bet you have no friends. You'll never be able to find a friend or much less a girlfriend. You're lucky that I take pity on you and talk to you, even though you never respond.

Recalling all of the times Kocho tormented me, my mouth began to frown, wrinkling the skin in the bottom half of my face.

'I can't lie and say that I hate her. Although she greatly annoys me, she still puts up with my silence and continues to talk to me. All of the other pillars and demon slayers have given up on me, but Kocho still rambles pointless nonsense to me. She can sometimes go overboard, but once in a blue moon, I enjoy her company.'

Noticing the darkness that began to envelop the sky, I picked up my pace and sprinted back to my home. Finally making it back to my house, I let dog Kocho roam, letting her assimilate to her new surroundings.

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𝙺𝚘𝚌𝚑𝚘 𝚂𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚘𝚋𝚞

I watched as Tomioka crept out of my estate, taking care to not creak any of the floorboards.

'He's quite perceptive. It usually takes servants and kakushi years to learn what floorboards creak, but after 5 days he seems to have memorised which boards to avoid. It might be time to invest in new flooring.'

Realizing that I didn't say goodbye or bid him farewell, guilt began to build in my heart. I lightened the feeling of guilt by pointing out how he didn't tell me that he was leaving in the first place.

I sat down on the cypress wood floor and watched as his silhouette shrunk, faintly illuminated by the moonlight. Right as his figure disappeared, cicadas and katydids began to chirp, my cue to leave.

The next few days were nothing spectacular. I treated injured demon slayers and spent all of my free time making new poisons or socializing with Kanao, Aoi, and the other maids. While I was outside training my tsugako, Kanao, I caught a brief glimpse of my kasugai crow.

"CAW, CAW. SHINOBU MUST REPORT TO THE UBUYASHIKI MANSION TO GET HER NEXT MISSION. SHINOBU MUST REPORT TO THE UBUYASHIKI MANSION TO GET HER NEXT MISSION."

'To be honest, I was getting quite bored staying home all of the time. I hope I get paired with Tomioka for this mission.'

Delighted at the prospect of teasing Tomioka, I quickly gathered all of my gear and headed out. As I was about to leave the main gates, I saw Kanao, Aoi, Sumi, Kiho, and Naho all lined up outside. After they said their goodbyes and prayers for my safety, Aoi yelled out to me, "Please come back safely!"

I smiled and without looking back, I called out. "Don't worry about me. I'll come back safe and sound!"

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𝚃𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚘𝚔𝚊 𝙶𝚒𝚢𝚞

After I received orders from Oyakata from my kasugai, I immediately prepared to head to the Ubayashiki mansion. As I was draping my haori over my shoulders and sheathing my sword, I felt a furry animal draped over my feet. Over the past few days, dog Kocho opened up to me and developed the habit of laying down on my feet.