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The first time he met Rengoku Kyojuro was at a sunset.
He had heard rumors about a new person joining the board, but didn’t think much of it. Most of them were coming from the lower ranks or newbies, who, most of the time, didn’t really know what they were talking about. So, to say the least, he isn’t really sure what to think when those people ended up right.
The master had called him and the other board members to meet at the roof of their HQ, and Tomioka can’t fake his curiosity as he makes his way up the stairs leading to the roof.
He arrives a few minutes later, and to no one’s surprise, he is the last one there.
“Last, again? Aren’t you going to quit going up the stairs? It takes way too long,” he hears one of the other board members say.
He looks up, unsurprised to find Obanai’s judgmental gaze looking down on him. Tomioka rolls his eyes, but doesn’t respond, making his way to his lone spot on the corner.
“Settle down,” Shiobu says from her spot next to Mitsuri. Despite her tiny frame, she holds a lot of might in her gaze, and as she sets it on Obanai, the man perched on the tree, wisely doesn’t say any more. Mitsuri stares wide-eyed at Shinobu, obviously having one of her ‘ohmygodshessoamazing’ fits.
Tomioka huffs, looking up at the sky. It’s rather pretty - as the sunset always is. The sun is slowly sinking to the ground, and its brilliant light is now a faint shine. Shades of orange and red paint the sky, blended and merging together seamlessly. “And where’s the boss?”
Just then, the doors to the elevator opens, and lo and behold, the boss steps out. His commanding presence makes everyone stare at him, despite not even saying a word.
He steps out the elevator, and to all of the board member’s surprise, someone steps out with him. He has red and orange hair, and a tall and broad frame. But perhaps something that truly sticks out is his eyes. They are the same color as his hair, and they hold this fire to them, one that makes even Tomioka step back.
The boss smiles at them, and gestures to the man standing next to him.
“Everyone, meet Rengoku Kyujuro, he will be our newest member on the board.”
Shocked murmurs ripple through the small crowd as the man - no, Rengoku, grins at them.
Tomioka blinks, staring at Rengoku. Said man catches his eyes and gives a wave.
The first time he met Rengoku Kyojuro was at a sunset.
Tomioka makes his way up to the roof, feeling the distinct urge to get some fresh air.
His thoughts today are on the peculiar new member of the board. Rengoku fits right in. He’s loud, energetic, and bouncy, but he’s also diligent, quick-witted, and strong. Tomioka will admit, he’s quite formidable.
Still, Tomioka keeps his distance, like he always does. With a job like his, getting attached is a risk. People go on missions, and then don’t come back. If one gets too attached, they won’t be able to focus, and then one wrong move brings their entire operation down.
Rengoku doesn’t seem to mind that, however, as he seems just fine chatting away with the other members, and Tomioka is fine with that.
He’ll respect Rengoku from a distance, give him nods of acknowledgement when he passes, but he won’t talk to him.
His steps and thoughts come to a halt when he reaches the door to the roof, and he then opens it quietly. The fresh air hits his face instantaneously, and he lets out a deep breath.
Making his way further into the roof, he notices a figure leaning on the balcony. He also sees said figure turn around to look at him.
Sure enough, it’s Rengoku.
Tomioka huffs, feeling a twinge of annoyance spark in his chest as Rengoku waves him over. Still, shocking even himself, he joins Rengoku on the balcony.
Renguko gives him a cheerful grin, “Hello!” he chirps, his voice sounding as bright as it did when they first met.
Tomioka rests his arms on the ledge, giving a soft hum as his greeting, and stares out into the sky.
Rengoku follows his gaze. “Pretty, isn’t it?” he asks, his content smile audible in his voice.
It is pretty.
The sun is setting, and its light gives off a yellow hue at the bottom of the sky. That slowly turns into vibrant shades of divine oranges and reds, which blend perfectly together. Despite the clouds covering the sky, the sheer beauty of sunset still remains, and is just as ravishing as it usually is. In a way, it looks a bit like Rengoku’s eyes.
“Yeah,” Tomioka breathes out. “It is pretty.”
They seem to keep meeting up after that. Every time Tomioka goes up to the roof, Renguko is there. And despite his better judgment, Tomioka will always join.
They don’t really talk much, they just stand together, quietly looking at the sky, as the sun slowly sinks to the ground.
Rengoku has this certain aura, that even if he doesn’t talk, he is still heard. And when Tomioka stands next to him, he can’t help listening to the magic that his presence spills. He’s not sure why, but he does it anyway. And for some reason, he doesn’t stop.
He just stands there, with a stranger, staring out at the sinking sun.
Today Rengoku asks him what his favorite color is, catching Tomioka off guard.
“Favorite color?” Tomioka asks, tilting his head.
“Yeah!”
Tomioka frowns, biting his lip. “I guess blue is pretty.”
“Mine is orange,” Rengoku says with a grin. “We compliment each other!”
Tomioka doesn’t respond, simply turning his attention back to the sunset in front of him. Rengoku doesn’t seem to mind, as he too turns to watch the sunset.
We compliment each other!
He frowns again. That’s silly.
Tomioka huffs, resting his arms on the balcony. Rengoku looks at him, rather amused.
“Tiring mission?”
Tomioka rolls his eyes and nods.
“Yeah, well,” Rengoku responds, “I guess you and Shinobu aren’t exactly good partners.”
That was an understatement - they were awful partners. Half their mission was just them yapping at each other. Honestly, he’s surprised that they even succeeded.
Rengoku seems to catch his thoughts perfectly, and gazes back at the sunset, a soft laugh escaping his lips.
Tomioka stares at him, slightly dazed at the sound, before turning to sunset as well.
“I like painting,” Rengoku says randomly one day.
“Painting?”
“Yeah.” Rengoku rests his weight on the balcony ledge. “I think it’s pretty calming.”
Tomioka hums. There’s a moment of silence before Rengoku asks, “What do you like?”
Tomioka blinks. “What?”
“You know, hobbies? Writing, drawing, sewing –”
Tomioka cuts him off. “I like reading,” Tomioka responds smoothly, surprising himself.
Rengoku’s eyes light up. “Oh! You should read up here! And I can paint! Like a R&R session!”
Tomioka ponders for a second, as the sun sets in front of him.
“I guess that would be nice.”
Rengoku beams.
Sure enough, the next day, Rengoku brings his paints and canvas, and Tomioka brings his book.
The sounds from the balcony are the soft strokes of a paintbrush hitting a canvas, the quiet noise of pages flipping, and the faint sound that the breeze emits.
Tomioka feels at peace. Around him, the sky is orange, red, and yellow, and Rengoku is next to him, painting as Tomioka reads. He doesn't look up to see what Rengoku is painting, he just focuses his attention at the calmness he feels. He hasn’t felt this relaxed in a long time.
Rengoku adds another stroke.
Tomioka flips a page.
They continue like that, up until the yellow shades in the sky are almost non-existent.
Rengoku sets down his brush and takes a step back, “Done!”
Tomioka looks up from his book. “Already?”
Rengoku smiles, shaking his head. “A lot of time has passed, Tomioka.”
Tomioka frowns and looks at the sky. Sure enough, the sun has almost completely sunken to the ground. He blinks. He must have gotten caught up in his book. “So it seems,” he says, bookmarking his book and closing it. “May I see you work?”
Rengoku nods, turning the canvas to Tomioka.
The painting is amazing. A vibrant shade of red seamlessly mixes with an orange color, making a perfect blend. Yellow sits below the orange, and grass is below the yellow. There is a sun in the painting - and it seems to be sinking to the ground, and its rays of light are painted perfectly. The painting is a gorgeous telling of a sunset.
“Do you like it?” Rengoku inquires, bringing Tomioka back to earth.
“Yeah,” Tomioka breathes, “It’s beautiful.”
Rengoku grins in response.
The following days continue like that. Some days Rengoku will paint and Tomioka will read. On others, the two of them will simply stand side by side, and look out into the sky.
Today, Rengoku is painting again, and Tomioka is reading.
Time passes by smoothly, and the sky slowly loses its yellow the longer they stay up there. The time that passes is filled with the sounds of pages flipping, and brushes painting. It’s filled with peace.
Eventually, Rengoku, as he usually does when he finishes a painting, stes his brush down, takes a step back to look at it for a second, and then turns the canvas to Tomioka.
Tomioka himself closes his book (not before bookmarking his page), and focuses his attention on the painting Rengoku has made.
He’s surprised to be looking at himself.
Today, Rengoku has painted Tomioka, who, in the painting, is reading as the sun sets behind him. It’s a simple painting, not quite like the epic scenes that Rengoku has painted before - but Tomioka can’t help but gasp as he sees it. Because Rengoku painted him. And for a reason he can’t articulate, it touches his heart.
He looks up to meet Rengoku’s eyes, which gaze softly back at him.
Rengoku tilts his head, looking a bit shy about the painting. He doesn’t ask if Tomioka likes it or not. Tomioka guesses that Rengoku wants him to tell him without any prompt.
Tomioka breathes out as looks at Rengoku. Rengoku - who’s eyes look similar to the sunset around them, similar to the sunset in the painting.
“I love it,” he says, and something in his heart sparks when Rengoku smiles the widest smile he has ever seen.
Tomioka looks at Rengoku, who’s standing next to him, looking rather tired.
He hears Rengoku groan. “Ugh. My mission sucked.”
Tomioka raises an eyebrow, an invitation for Rengoku to explain.
Rengoku takes it quickly. “See, I was supposed to investigate something that the boss thought was some plan from the ruler or whatever. And yeah his suspicions were right, but it was tiring. ”
Tomioka hums, closing the book he brought him. “Sometimes missions are like that.”
“Yeah, and that sucks.”
Tomioka nods, and they taper into a brief moment of silence.
“Say,” Rengoku asks, “What book are you reading?’
“A fairy tale book.”
“You read fairy tales?”
“I find them enjoyable.”
Rengoku hums, “Would you mind reading me one?”
Tomioka tilts his head. “I’m sorry?”
“Well, I think a fairy tale would be nice right now. You know, it probably can calm down the adrenaline from my mission.”
Tomioka looks down at his book, thoughts racing in his head. After a minute of silence, he slowly opens the book.
And then he starts to read, speaking softly, with Rengoku listening quietly with closed eyes as the sun sets around them.
Today, they are standing silently next to one another, with the sunset in front of them. They both are lost in their thoughts.
Rengoku is probably thinking about Mitsuri and Shinobu, who just went off on a mission.
Rengoku cares a lot. He always lifts up the mood, helps the other board members and even people in the lower ranks out, and he always smiles when other people can’t. Despite working a job that can crush someone’s spirit, Rengoku seems to find it in himself to care. And it amazes Tomioka to no end.
He glances at the man, and can’t help but think about all the sunsets they spent together. Each moment they spent, with quiet chatter, with pages flipping, with paintings being painted, and with each memory made. Tomioka starts to realize that he’s getting attached.
The sun sets around the two of them, and Tomioka realizes that Rengoku has slowly been breaking down Tomioka’s walls.
He expects himself to distance himself from Rengoku after the realization. To destroy any attachment that he had developed. But he doesn’t. He just…stays. He’s there on the balcony every day, and he never leaves. He just stays with Rengoku, with the sunset in front of them.
Today, Rengoku brings his paints, brushes, and canvas, and says, “Let’s paint something together!”
Tomioka pauses. “I don’t know how to paint.”
“That’s okay!” Rengoku hands him a brush, which Tomioka hesitantly takes. “Just wing it!” Rengoku smiles at him, and then dips his brush into the orange color, and starts to paint on the canvas.
Tomioka blinks, looking at the canvas, and then at the brush, and then back at the canvas. He watches Rengoku paint random orange lines on the canvas. Orange lines…
He dips his brush into the blue color, and joins Rengoku.
When they both pull away, the canvas is filled with blobs of orange and blue, hastily painted. The painting looks rather messy. Still, the colors look perfect together.
Tomioka looks up, to see Rengoku staring at the blue. When Rengoku looks back at him, Tomioka quietly says, “We compliment each other.” And then, he smiles softly.
Rengoku lets out a cheerful laugh. “Yeah, I think we do.”
A few days ago, Tomioka realized that Rengoku was breaking down his walls. But today, as the sun sets, Tomioka realizes that he’s fine with that.
The next day, Rengoku brings four bracelets with him. He gives Tomioka two, and keeps two to himself. Both of them have one that matches the colors of the sunset, and another that has orange and blue beads.
“To remind you,” Rengoku says with a smile.
And Tomioka gives a small smile back.
The more days pass, the more Tomioka gets used to smiling. He feels comfortable, basking in Rengoku’s presence on the quiet evenings they share together. When the sun starts to set, when the sky begins to look like Rengoku’s eyes.
Because, Tomioka realizes that even if their job is harsh, it doesn’t mean he shouldn’t get attached.
Tomioka felt content, standing on the balcony, Rengoku next to him, and the setting in front of him.
Rengoku looks down on him eventually, when the sun has almost fully set, and says, “This is a nice look on you,” with a soft voice.
And Tomioka agrees.
There’s always a feeling of tiredness one gets when they come back from a long mission.
Tomioka is feeling that right now.
Infiltrating a base and collecting intel is no easy task, and one always has to be careful with their movements, and make sure that they are hidden. So, naturally, when they come back, they feel very tired.
Rengoku gives him a glance, and asks, “How about we sit down? We stand too much anyway.”
Tomioka huffs out a breath, and sits down on the cold concrete, tucking his knees to his chest. Rengoku follows him to the ground, sitting cross-legged and looking out into the sunset.
They don’t say anything for a few minutes. The only sounds coming from the balcony are the two of them breathing.
Eventually, overcome with the urge to sleep, Tomioka rests his head on Rengoku’s shoulder, and lets his eyes droop shut.
He doesn’t know, but Rengoku’s arm wraps around him.
And that’s how they stay, sitting together, as the day slowly comes to an end.
There’s a train.
Tomioka has heard about it. Apparently, Muzan’s men hijacked a train with refugees. One of the main soldiers of his men are there, making sure that no one comes in or out.
It’s a tough situation, and the boss wants it handled.
Tomioka and Rengoku stare out at the sunset.
A few minutes pass before Rengoku says, “I’m going to the train.”
Tomioka’s heart stops. It’s not that he doesn’t have faith in Rengoku, far from it. But one of Muzan’s highest soldiers is there, and those people are strong. Their strength is inhuman.
Tomioka knows the tales about the members who go to fight them. He knows the tales where they don’t come back.
But when he looks into Rengoku’s eyes, he sees that Rengoku has made up his mind. The man’s eyes have a fierce and fiery determination to them, one that Tomioka is no stranger to. And because of that, he knows that he won’t be able to convince Rengoku to stay.
So he just swallows, and takes Rengoku’s hands into his. “Stay safe,” he breathes.”
Rengoku gives him a smile. “I will. And hey, until I get back, watch the sunsets for me, okay?”
Tomioka just nods.
They are both quiet for a moment, simply holding each other’s hands, and gazing into each other’s eyes.
Tomioka is ironically the one to break the silence. “Rengoku, I…” his voice trails off. “I -”
“Yeah,” Rengoku says, eyes shiny. “I know. I do too.”
Tomioka, squeezes his hand a bit tighter.
And the rest simply happens.
Tomioka shares his first kiss with Rengoku Kyujuro on a sunset.
A day passes.
Tomioka stands on the balcony, as promised.
Five days pass.
He gazes out into the sunset. Rengoku is out there, somewhere. Maybe if he looks hard enough, he’ll spot him.
Ten days.
The wind pushes his hair back. He stares down at the bracelets on his wrist.
We compliment each other.
Fifteen.
Another sunset.
Twenty sunsets pass.
Twenty-one.
Twenty-five
Watch the sunsets for me!
30 suns-
Tomioka gazes into the distance as he stands out on the balcony.
The train is saved. Three lower ranked soldiers teamed up with Rengoku. They killed one of the soldiers, but weren’t prepared to fight off the other one that was there.
A gust of wind pushes against him.
The bracelets on his wrist glimmer.
He wonders if Rengoku got to see the sunsets. They were pretty.
Not as pretty as Rengoku’s eyes.
Tomioka’s eyes are hard. Everyone has been giving him space.
He got attached.
He doesn’t regret it.
He’s going to prove he doesn’t regret.
And so, as the sun sets around him, Tomioka decides that he’s going to fight. For himself. For Rengoku.
And the sun sinks to the ground.