Chapter Text
“From what I hear, they all just got back from missions, so they should probably be at their estates by now,” Shinobu gave Sanemi some info before he left.
“Okay, good to know,”
Sanemi then stood up, getting ready to leave the room.
“Eek . .” Mitsuri bit her nails. Sanemi looked like he was plotting!
But also, she wondered. It was just proven that the boys weren’t kissing him out of necessity anymore. That was certain. So then . . . why?
Why were any of them still kissing him? They wouldn’t be so absurd to do it just for jokes. So there could only be one reason: they really do just love him.
This would normally have Mitsuri squealing for how cute it was. But, seriously, it’s the Hashira she’s thinking about. Tomioka and Iguro especially! She couldn’t believe that any of them would act so silly like this. So, while love was the only plausible explanation for the boys’ behavior, Mitsuri thought that it was still way too absurd to assume. Like, maybe some other malicious, inescapable force was at play! Even though that sounded equally ridiculous.
But then Mitsuri thought. Even if she ignored the mysteriousness of the boys’ behavior, there was another big concern. She had no idea how Sanemi was going to react!
“Oh, and Shinobu,” Sanemi turned around while he was at the door. “would you mind lending me their medical records?”
“Ah, you need proof? Sure.” She opened her neat drawers and sifted through a few documents before handing him four papers.
“Thanks.”
Sanemi didn’t stomp or grumble like usual, just silently walked out and slid the door behind him gently. And then he was gone!! It made Mitsuri immediately frightful, but then, she thought a little bit harder about it. She looked at him carefully.
He obviously looked like he was about to kill them out of rage right now, but what was he really feeling? Was he really angry, any more than his usual levels? What was he actually planning to do?
She needed a way to process this predicament, so she turned her head.
“So, Shinobu . . do you have any thoughts?”
“Mm . . . This is quite an uncharacteristic situation, I wouldn’t believe it if I wasn’t experiencing it firsthand,”
This seemed to spring Mitsuri into chatter mode.
“I know, right! Oh gosh! Okay, so, I actually have no idea how this is going to end!” Mitsuri bursted out, whining out of frustration. “Why do you think the boys have been kissing him all this time? Look, I understand Uzui and Rengoku tricking him like this to tease him, even though that’s kind of weird if they weren’t that close originally. But no way Iguro and Tomioka have been doing it too!”
“Oh my, you’re right. It’s a little funny how absurd that is. I . . I can’t say I have any idea. Do you think they really just wanted to kiss him . . ?” Shinobu felt a little awkward saying this, because she couldn’t imagine her colleagues acting like this for even a second. “You really are the expert on this subject, so I wholeheartedly welcome your thoughts.”
“Kya! Well, okay!” Mitsuri waved her hand as she tried to refuse the praise. “Well, we can obviously rule out the idea that they might’ve forgotten. All of them know fully well that they don’t need to kiss him. Which makes the situation even weirder! But . . okay, I actually do have some evidence that might point us closer to the truth. However I can’t tell you all of it ‘cause I got it from Sanemi, and he told me not to tell you too much embarrassing stuff!!”
“You’ve really thought about this a lot, haven’t you?”
“Just trying to live up to the title of ‘expert’ you gave me, hehe! Well, I’ll explain now! So, when this whole thing started, I had a chat with Sanemi about his experiences. And he described everything super vividly to me, while sober too! But from everything he told me, and by how vividly he described it, I firmly believe that all of the boys enjoyed kissing Sanemi. Not like I thought they wouldn’t! But they seemed to enjoy it a little too much. So, you know where I’m going with this proof, right?”
“Is that so . .”
“Also, I once asked Uzui’s wives if they were okay with him kissing Sanemi. And they were completely fine with it! They said they’re a pretty open relationship. So, all of this further proves . .”
“. . . The possibility that they actually do love him.” Shinobu finished Mitsuri’s sentence, and Mitsuri nodded.
“Yes, the possibility of love!” Mitsuri interlocked her fingers and started to swoon. “But . .” But then she quickly changed her expression to a more solemn one, placing her hands in her lap.
“If that’s true, I know all of those boys are way too stupid to deal with feelings like that. .”
Shinobu snickered.
“Ah! I didn’t mean—”
“Aha, how cute you are when you’re unfiltered,”
This made Mitsuri short-circuit for a second. Shinobu changed the subject.
“But, still, I agree with you. Do you think Sanemi even has a plan?”
“Oh, ‘course not! He’s probably gonna yell at them, and they’re gonna kiss him all over to make him shut up!” Mitsuri immediately gasped. “Kya, I didn’t mean that either!!” Shinobu laughed even louder this time.
“But seriously . . It makes me sad to imagine them all avoiding each other or something. If this happens, I think I’ll have to step in!” Mitsuri flexed her biceps with a proud look on her face.
“Haha, are you going to punch them into communication?”
“If necessary! I just don’t want them to drift apart. I think . . I think I could see them managing some kind of relationship with each other, something more than friends, right? Uzui and Rengoku have managed.”
“Yes, but we all know how stubborn Sanemi is. We’ll only have to hope this goes well. I’m afraid only time will tell . .”
“Mmm . . you’re right . .”
But then, they heard two firm knocks on the door.
“Kochou . . Kanroji . . I would like to discuss something . . . with you . .” A man’s low, comforting voice was heard . . .
“H-huh!? Is that Himejima!?” Well, this was random. The two girls looked at each other in confusion before Shinobu called him in.
“Ah, come in!”
Then, the door slid open, and a large but not-at-all scary figure loomed over them. Gyomei had a serious look on his face, but the two girls knew he would never have ill intent against them. So they just smiled at him.
“May I sit down . . ?”
“Of course, please make yourself at home.”
“What would you like to talk about?” Mitsuri squealed.
“Forgive my unintentional eavesdropping . . but I heard you both conversing about Shinazugawa, and I wanted to share with you some . . valuable information I possess . . in hopes that we can have a meaningful discussion.”
Shinobu blinked a bit.
“So you . . you want to gossip with us, Himejima?”
“Eek!! And you have gossip to share?! Of course we can talk!!” Mitsuri flared up and shook her hands excitedly.
“I wouldn’t call it gossip . . They are simply observations, from knowing the Hashira for so long. But then again, if sharing my knowledge can be called ‘gossipping’, then I must say I don’t mind.” A small smile appeared on Gyomei’s face. Now with both Mitsuri and Gyomei smiling, Shinobu couldn’t help but laugh.
“Ahaha, alright then, what have you got to share?”
Gyomei settled himself and then leaned in with his palm raised to his face, and he spoke quieter. The girls leaned in as well almost instinctively.
“Well, a moment ago my crow informed me of something interesting . . Uzui, Rengoku, Iguro, and Tomioka are all making their way here together now, to find Shinazugawa.”
“What!? To get their kisses?!” Mitsuri leaned back and covered her mouth, and Himejima nodded. “Ohmigosh, so do you have any predictions for what’s gonna happen?”
“That’s what I wanted to discuss . . and I hope my many observations of the five of them can help us hypothesize.”
“Oh, yes, your experience will indeed help our discussion. I think we should talk about what Sanemi’s relationship with everyone has been like. Mitsuri, would you like to help start us off?”
“Oh, yeah, so we can analyze them, right? Okay! Himejima, I’ve been curious. I know Shinazugawa and Iguro are great friends. But how did they become friends? And is there anything interesting you know about their relationship?”
“I am glad you asked. Iguro became a pillar a year before you, but as soon as he did, he became friends with Shinazugawa. In fact, his first mission with another Hashira was with Shinazugawa, and everyone was afraid for him because of that,” Shinobu giggled, as she recalled this memory. “But it went extremely well. From then on, the Master sent them on many more missions together.”
“Aw, that’s so sweet!”
“It really is, wow,” Shinobu nodded. “They both seem like they hate everyone, so it’s good to see them find solace in each other,”
“I must agree. I was happy for Shinazugawa, as he finally seemed to find someone like him.”
“Aww, my heart!!” Mitsuri recalled times where Rengoku would tell her bits and pieces about Iguro when she was still his tsuguko, and she knew that Iguro was distant because he had a harsh upbringing. But knowing that he was immediately able to make a Hashira friend warmed her heart.
“Please, ask whatever you’d like,” offered Gyomei.
“Well, I’ve wondered something. Himejima, out of the four, Shinazugawa has known Uzui and Tomioka the longest. But Shinazugawa seemed to hate Tomioka for a long time until recently, and he’s always tried to avoid Uzui. Do you know what their relationship has been like?”
“Oh, Shinazugawa’s first meeting with them was much more rocky . . . and their relationship has been very interesting,” Gyomei lowered his head, trying to hide his smile. “I’ll start with Tomioka. I’m not sure if you two know this, but Tomioka has always wanted to be Shinazugawa’s friend . .”
“Eh?? How do you know?” asked Mitsuri.
“Kamado Tanjirou told me that Tomioka planned to make Shinazugawa some sweets to befriend him.”
“Wow, no way. That’s amazing. I’m honestly proud.” Shinobu pretended to wipe fake tears from her face.
“I had no idea!” Mitsuri cried.
“I have suspected for a long time that Tomioka actually did want to be closer to some of the Hashira, but the signs were too subtle. Additionally . . I stopped suspecting after he showed no interest in being friends with you, Kochou.”
“Yes, I tried to make friends with him because I felt bad for the guy, but I gave up. So the thing with Shinazugawa is a shocker. Do you think he might try to befriend the other Hashira?”
“Jeez, I hope so!”
“Though . . if he was trying to do that, why would he start with Shinazugawa? That’s the hardest target.”
“I know! Himejima, can you explain Uzui, then?” Mitsuri changed the subject.
“Yes. Uzui has always treated him well, like a friend, even after his rough first impression. Though, Shinazugawa was never afraid to push him away. But . . when Rengoku joined the ranks, he and Uzui seemed to always approach Shinazugawa together, and they would ask him to hang out with them.”
“Wow, so they started teaming? Did it work?” Shinobu inquired.
“Oh, Rengoku sometimes told me that he felt like he was getting closer to Shinazugawa. He, Uzui, and Shinazugawa would get food together after missions or meetings.”
“For that reason, I believe those three have become closer to each other over time.” Gyomei replied.
“So they kind of forced Shinazugawa into becoming friends with them.”
“Perhaps . . Additionally, they started to include Iguro in their meetups when he became a Hashira, too. But only when he was with Shinazugawa.”
“Like a little quartet! Rengoku told me a bit about that, too.”
“Himejima, forgive me, but you really are a gossip,” Shinobu teased, but it was more like she was pointing out a fact than trying to joke.
“Labels are just labels.” Gyomei playfully responded, and this light banter made Mitsuri laugh.
“Ah, I think I have an idea . .” Gyomei then suddenly straightened his back a little, face looking pensive. Shinobu and Mitsuri looked up at him as he placed his pointer finger on his chin. “. . . Since Shinazugawa is about to meet with the others now, I think I might watch them and report back what happens.”
“Really?! You’d . . spy on them for us? Yes, please! I wouldn’t be able to thank you enough!”
“. . My point is proven, Himejima. But I would not be at all opposed if you did that.”
Gyomei chuckled at Shinobu’s comment. “It is settled, then. I will arrive as soon as possible, as I wish not to miss anything.”
“Oh, if you’re caught, just say you were there to wish Sanemi good luck!” Mitsuri suggested enthusiastically.
“Believe it or not, I am a good spy . . How do you think I got all that information?”
“Oh my. I’m loving this. Well, good luck, Himejima.”
With that, while Shinobu and Mitsuri were still getting their chuckles out, Gyomei swiftly left the room, and made his way to the path where his crow saw the four Hashira. He found them relatively quickly and hid far away in the trees.
On the way, though, he saw Sanemi on the same path, about to encounter the Hashira soon.
Sanemi had been walking for a few minutes, but for all that time he had, he didn’t once think about what he was going to say to everyone. The anger and disbelief clouded his mind, and all of his brain power was being used to resist ripping up the documents he had in his hand. It was a shame, though, for if he could focus on any of his other feelings, he would find that there were a lot of unsorted emotions beneath his rage.
It wasn’t like he was some kind of braindead ball of anger, but just that he was really, really unfamiliar with love. Specifically, love to himself. It was almost impossible to consider because it just felt so foreign to him.
So, when he saw four familiar figures emerge up ahead, he clenched his fists more and speeded up.
“Hey, Sanemi! What a coincidence, we were just on our way to—”
“Shut it, Tengen! You’re all out of your minds!” Sanemi abruptly cut him off as he stood before all of them, with a stern stance. He then held up the documents, where there was a sticky note on each profile that indicated that person was cured of their most recent illness. “You were all better a week ago!?”
Obanai immediately turned away. Out of everyone, he probably felt the most embarrassed, being Sanemi’s best friend. He started mentally cursing himself for being so stupid, realizing that he would of course be caught. Tengen put his hands up like he was about to be arrested. Kyoujurou became so rigid that, if he was only slightly tapped, he’d probably shatter like glass.
“Well? I want an explanation from each of you, individually. Especially you, Obanai! My own best friend . . .”
Giyuu sighed, letting his shoulders fall. “Shinazugawa, I’m sorry. We thought. .”
“We? So it was a group effort? Who proposed this, then, you—”
“That doesn’t matter! Everyone agreed!”
Obanai interrupted him, but was still looking away like a super embarrassed teenager. All the other men looked at him awkwardly.
“. . So it was you.” Sanemi crossed his arms. “Okay, someone tell me how this all started. What exactly did you propose, Obanai?” Now, he was genuinely curious. But if they didn’t explain within the next minute, Sanemi would rip all of their heads off.
“I must not withhold the truth from you any longer!” Kyoujurou suddenly blurted out, clenching his eyes shut in embarrassment. His entire face was red, like the blood from all the other parts of his body just shot up into his face. “So I will explain! Sanemi, I am sorry, but after Kochou confirmed that we overcame our ailment . . Obanai suddenly suggested that we don’t tell you. But—”
“Urghh! You and Giyuu immediately agreed, though!!” Obanai clenched his fists as he shouted at Kyoujurou. His shouts were still quieter than Kyoujurou’s regular voice, though, as his voice was not used to being strained like this.
“Yes, well, the reason . . was because . . we all agreed that when we kissed you, we all performed considerably better on missions!” Kyoujurou lowered his head in utter shame, yet his booming voice seemed a little bit prideful.
Sanemi stared at all of them. It was a miracle he was still able to hold on to the documents, because he felt like his entire body went lax. Perhaps it was because he had been gripping them so hard in anger the whole time, so they became stuck to his hand. Shinobu would probably have to get new papers.
Then, Sanemi turned his head slightly to make eye contact with Giyuu. Because . . he held on to the hope that there was no way all of them agreed to this.
“. . Yeah. What . . what he said.”
After that, Sanemi turned to Tengen.
“Guilty as charged . . .”
Everyone seemed to shake with embarrassment, even Tengen. Because this was pretty pathetic. Obanai and Kyoujurou were looking down at the ground, and Giyuu and Tengen felt locked into staring at Sanemi’s face, even though they wanted nothing but to look away. This was really their fault and their fault alone.
And everyone else’s awkward trembling made Sanemi start to quiver as well. They were like a bunch of cold birds stranded in the middle of a rainstorm. Or like a bunch of blades of grass being blown by the wind.
“I . . um.”
Then, Tengen jumped back in,
“I was actually the last to agree, though, which is probably equally as surprising to you as it was to me! All these guys seemed super on board with it,”
“Just stop talking . .” Giyuu thought as Tengen started rambling.
“But yeah, seriously! I didn’t know everyone else felt the same way until that day, but every time I kissed you before a mission, I did way better! So that’s . . partially why we didn’t tell ya.”
“Yes, when I tried kissing you before a mission, I slaughtered twenty demons all over one village!” Kyoujurou added.
Truthfully, there were probably a million things going on in Sanemi’s mind right now. He was angry, shocked, a little bit weirded out? But also kind of . . glad. Not that his kisses helped them kill demons, but that his kisses helped. But he didn’t have enough time to process that thought.
Now, Sanemi was still staring at all of them dumbfounded. His eyes were wide and he bared his teeth, and he looked like he had something (probably very vulgar) to say, but also like his head was completely empty. Like all the words and thoughts had been stripped from his brain.
“. . Damnit. This is so stupid.” Obanai spat out. He then pinched the bridge of his nose, seeming to be in deep thought for a few seconds. “. . Fuck it. You three.” He turned to everyone else who was lined up beside him.
This seemed to break their rigidness, and they all turned to him, slightly startled.
“None of us want to lose this . . don’t we!? So you all better speak right after I do.” He demanded. Then, before he could let them see his face flush, he turned back to Sanemi, determined.
He then stomped up to Sanemi, both his natural stubbornness and his newly acquired resolve showing on his face clearly. Sanemi’s gaze fell upon him, and he closed his mouth, but he was still frozen in shock.
“Sanemi,” Obanai took a long, deep breath, breathing up his pride and shoving it down his throat as far as he could just for this moment.
Then, he grabbed Sanemi’s wrists and brought them in front of him. “. . I love kissing you. I love being around you. I want to be closer with you. And I know all of these bastards want to keep kissing you too.” He shot a death glare at the others.
The way Obanai spoke with venom in his words really made it seem like he was threatening to kill Sanemi rather than confessing any affectionate feelings.
But Sanemi, who had fallen in love with his best friend who was always like this, wouldn’t want it any other way.
He opened his mouth to say something, but: “Don’t say anything. I told the others to talk right after I did, so you have to hear them first.” Obanai let go of his wrists to put his index finger above Sanemi’s lips, further silencing him.
If Obanai were to be honest, he would admit in his head that he was extremely afraid right now. His legs were shaking, and he felt a little sick, even though he was perfectly healthy right now. He shushed Sanemi so that the others could speak, but also because he was terrified of what he was going to say.
Sure, Sanemi didn’t at all seem to be disgusted with all of them tricking him. Obanai knew he didn’t hate any of them for this. But just, what if? What if he really was only kissing them because it was necessary? What if he really was disgusted by all of them? What if he really was disgusted by Obanai?
Throughout the two weeks Obanai was affected by the Blood Demon Art, he was truly so happy he could kiss Sanemi without any consequences or anything. And he really started to get a bit used to it. He started to get used to being able to act like this, to just act like they were more . . more than friends. He did everything playfully, but he was always afraid of the time when he wouldn’t be able to anymore. Because maybe Sanemi was really just that devoted to the mission. Maybe he didn’t harbor any real feelings for Obanai, or for any of them, but was just not used to physical touch or something. Maybe Obanai had read it all wrong.
All of these thoughts made Obanai spiral every few nights, and they were going to make him spiral now, if someone else didn’t start talking. If he was left alone in the silence with the man he had so many feelings for right in front of him. Luckily, Giyuu saved his ass.
Giyuu walked up to Sanemi as well and took him from Obanai, grabbing his hands and interlocking them with his own.
“. . I feel the same way. Sanemi, I still want to be able to kiss you. I don’t want to make a speech, but . . when you told me I wasn’t inferior, I think I fell in love with you too,” Giyuu explained himself as clearly as Obanai did, not wanting to say anything unnecessary. This straightforwardness was appreciated by Sanemi. However, as he spoke, his head was angled slightly downward, still afraid to make direct eye contact.
And Sanemi thought, maybe Giyuu really was superior or something, because he always managed to make Sanemi stunned like this. This irked him, but despite that, he loved the man. He loved his flaws and everything wrong with him.
Truthfully, Giyuu was just as afraid as Obanai. And all four of them knew that they all had this feeling in the back of their minds—they could feel it. Everyone saw it in each other before they kissed Sanemi, or whenever they interacted with him. Even if none of them ever visibly hesitated before kissing Sanemi, that was only because they had the excuse of the Blood Demon Art to pretend that they were just doing what they had to. But still, they all saw the fear in each other. Under Obanai’s teasing, under Giyuu’s detachment and indifference, under Tengen’s playfulness, and under Kyoujurou’s confidence, they were all a little afraid of the rejection of their feelings. It’s this fear of all the possibilities that always accompanies love.
Then, Tengen came up to Sanemi and brought him into a romantic pose, taking his hand and pulling him in to embrace him. His hair was down right now, which made Sanemi feel way more tingly than he should, and that was enhanced by Tengen starting to whisper in his ear.
“I’ll be frank, too. My wives are okay with it, as they are with Kyo, so I’d love to keep kissing you too . . I love ya, Sanemi.”
Lastly, Kyoujurou proudly approached Sanemi, took him from Tengen with flair, and then positioned himself right in front of the stunned man. He grabbed Sanemi’s hands and then got closer, making direct eye contact. As a result, he couldn’t hide how red his face was, nor how sweaty his hands were. But maybe he was okay with that being known.
“Sanemi, I truly enjoy kissing you! I love embracing you, sharing meals with you, and much more. So, I confidently declare that I love you as well! I would like for us all to stay close together, and for us to keep displaying our affection, but without having to excuse it as a necessity,”
Finally, after his speech, Kyoujurou backed up and released Sanemi’s hands. Everyone was quite packed together at this moment, so everyone’s heat was shared. And everyone stared at Sanemi intently.
But he didn’t move. At all.
Everyone leaned in closer to get a closer look at him, but his face was just . . still. His lips were parted, pupils smaller than an ant, and his face flushed, but he didn’t say anything.
“. . Sanemi.” Obanai tapped his bicep.
“Oh . .” And then, suddenly, his knees failed him, and he started to fall over in the direction Obanai tapped him.
“Uh—” Tengen muttered, but then as he saw no sign of Sanemi waking up, he shot his arm out to catch him. Obanai and Kyoujurou put their hands under his back, and Giyuu grabbed his arm. Sanemi was out cold. For a few seconds, all the guys stood there like statues, until Obanai finally broke the silence.
“Tengen, carry him to the Butterfly Mansion! Let’s go!” Tengen just nodded, scooped him up, and then all four of them started running.
Meanwhile, hidden in the forest, Gyomei took note of everything that happened.
“Oh . . I should warn Kochou,” Gyomei looked at his crow. “Zekka, please go tell Miss Kochou that Shinazugawa is being brought as a patient. And then, in private, tell her and Kanroji this,” he gave his crow a brief summary, explaining how all the boys confessed to Shinazugawa, and that he fell ill of emotional overload. His crow then pushed itself to beat the Hashira, who were moving slower than normal out of concern for Shinazugawa.
A few minutes later, the Hashira arrived at the back of the Butterfly Mansion, and saw Shinobu already standing on the engawa.
“Come, there’s a bed for him in this room!”
The four frantic boys didn’t question it and just followed her to a single-bed room. The door was already open, and Tengen placed Sanemi down. His temperature was higher than normal and he was sweating a little, and he looked really uncomfortable, so Obanai tried to reposition his head better.
Then, Shinobu told everyone to back away. She first took his temperature by opening his mouth slightly. She didn’t make any expression, so the boys were left in the dark about his condition. Suddenly, someone slid into the doorway hastily.
“Is he okay?!” It was Mitsuri who barged in.
“He’s fine.” Shinobu stood up calmly. “Boys, I need you to stay here and tell me when he wakes up. It shouldn’t be long.” Then, she walked to where Mitsuri was, still holding the thermometer because she was going to go wash it. “Okay?”
“. . Wait.” Giyuu then stopped her. “How did you know we were—”
“A little birdie told her!” Mitsuri suddenly cried out. Everyone stared at her, and Shinobu sighed.
“Just sort out your . . situation with him, okay? Call me back when you’re done.” And with that, she grabbed Mitsuri’s arm and left. The boys all stared at each other after the door closed, with dumb wide eyes.
Obanai broke the silence.
“How the hell did she kno—”
But then, he was comedically cut off by Sanemi shooting up into a sitting position and yelling like a madman: “I love you all too!”
Everyone stared at him, and then he took a deep breath to continue talking.
“I love all of you too! Holy fuck, I was trying to say that, but then I passed out for some reason!! I don’t know why, I just—God my head hurts,” Sanemi held his forehead with his palm.
But as soon as everyone processed his words, they all sighed in relief. Their hearts had been racing ever since they all confessed, because they had no idea what Sanemi was going to say. But it seems that he had his answer all along.
“Sanemi, it’s fine, we understand,” Obanai put his hand on Sanemi’s back to console him, and then, like a miracle, Giyuu started to laugh a little. As soon as Tengen and Kyoujurou saw this, they immediately began to laugh as well, greatly overpowering Giyuu’s already-quiet laughter.
“I felt so fucking bad, ‘cause when I realized I was passing out, I couldn’t tell you guys how I felt!” When Sanemi passed out, or more specifically in the seconds before he fully went under, he was conscious enough to think, but not to talk, so he was concerned that the others wouldn’t get an answer from him until he woke up. It was for that reason he declared it as soon as he regained consciousness.
Obanai started rubbing circles in the stressed man’s back, and the others couldn’t calm their laughter. Everyone basked in this sweet moment for a few seconds, until Sanemi regained the energy to yell at them.
“Okay, shut the hell up, you assholes! You’re probably the reason I fuckin’ passed out, because you thought it was a good idea to give me four confessions at once! Actually, that was your idea, wasn’t it, Obanai!?”
Obanai then took his hand away from Sanemi’s back and looked away.
“. . Shut it.”
“Ahaha!” Kyoujurou then crossed his arms and shouted. “Actually, I must say, it is very romantic, Sanemi! That you passed out from our affection,”
“Tch, fuck off,” Tengen and Kyoujurou slapped each other’s knees as they laughed.
Then, once it quieted down a little, Giyuu lifted his head up to look at Sanemi. Right now, he was sitting on the edge of Sanemi’s bed, with Obanai sitting next to Sanemi, and Tengen and Kyoujurou on two stools on the other side.
“. . Then, Sanemi, can we still get kisses from you before missions?”
“Oh, you shithead, you can kiss me whenever you fuckin’ like. Is that what you wanted me to say? You’re such a fucking weirdo,”
But Giyuu seemed to take it a little too literally.
He crawled up to Sanemi and pulled his face in for a light kiss, but he was unable to go for as long as he wanted, because Obanai and Tengen immediately jumped at him. Sanemi was already pushing him back a little, but he was weak, so they only succeeded at pushing Giyuu back when Obanai and Tengen joined.
“Hey! You’re impatient, Giyuu!” Tengen shouted after tackling Giyuu, leading him to pathetically land back where he started.
“Ask him first, dipshit.” Obanai added.
“. . Sanemi, can we continue—”
“Fuckin’ . . just wait a second!” Sanemi brought his hands to his head and started lightly scratching, as if he were thinking hard. “Before that . . what . . what are we going to be now? I don’t really care, I’m just not sure,”
“. . Hmm. Good question.” Tengen entered a thinking position.
“Well, we can just be like Tengen and I!” Kyoujurou raised his index finger. “Tengen, do you remember what Himejima told us that one time? When you and I, uh, kissed for the first time, when your wives were okay with it, but I didn’t want to impose on your marriage,”
“Oh, exactly! You guys, Himejima told Kyoujurou and I that we didn’t have to put a label on what we were. So we can just do that!”
“. . Sure.” Obanai approved.
“Oh, that sounds good,” Giyuu nodded.
“I think I just want . . to spend time with you guys, and to kiss, but there’s a lot of technicalities, I guess, so having no label works for me.” Obanai started to explain, gripping his pants in order to not fidget.
“Sure, so you three can just join Kyoujurou and I! How’s that?”
“Yeah, that’d be nice,” Sanemi pulled his knees to his chest comfortably. “Okay, wait, I’m glad we got that settled, and that we can just all be in some weird relationship with each other, but what the fuck is wrong with my body right now? Why do I feel so sick? It’s not like fuckin’ butterflies in my stomach, but I feel . . weird! Grrr! Why is it so hot and why am I shaking so much?!” He started fanning himself rapidly and shaking his head.
“Are you falling ill? Jeez, just because we said we love you? Stop being dramatic, Sanemi.” Obanai insulted him as if it would help.
“Shut up!”
“Do you want some water?” Giyuu started getting up.
“No, I just . . I feel like . . like I’m having fucking caffeine withdrawals!”
“Is that so?” Kyoujurou started thinking hard.
“Wait, oh my gosh, everyone stop,” for some reason, everyone listened to Tengen and turned to him to listen. “What if you’re having withdrawals from us kissing you? And if so . . then does that mean, now we have to cure you with kisses?”
. . .
Tengen was completely right, ironically so.
After he made his theory, he tested it by kissing Sanemi. Sanemi calmed down, but after a few seconds, he still felt restless, so Obanai and Kyoujurou kissed him. And then, a minute passed, and he was better. This realization made him want to dig his own grave and bury himself alive out of embarrassment. But nevertheless, he was allowed to leave the Butterfly Mansion, and all the boys decided to go to the Sound Pillar’s estate, after Tengen insisted. It was there that the five spent lots of time together as new partners.
However, they had no idea that someone had been listening in on them while they were in the Butterfly Mansion. That someone was a man whose height and presence shouldn’t make him so good at spying, but perhaps he could pass as a tree. Gyomei had heard everything.
Now, he was going to walk to the room Shinobu and Mitsuri were in, but he felt a tug on his sleeve.
“Himejima, what are you doing?”
Muichirou questioned him.
“I suppose I am . . gossipping. Would you like to come?” Muichiro hummed in response, and then the two went to the girls.
They asked Himejima how it went, and he said that it went well. He then summarized the story of how the new relationship was formed, and he spared some awkward details, but explained exactly what each person said.
“Ah, so it was love!” Mitsuri squealed.