Chapter Text
Giyuu is walking through the city of Asakusa during a festival its people are holding, admiring the sights. It’s relatively calm, or as calm as a bustling city such as this could be. The breeze is cool and comforting, the moon casts a soft blue-light across the wet roads. And the clouds from the earlier storm are escaping to the mountains at a leisurely pace. He passes a busy bakery, full of hungry townspeople. He notices the lanterns, delicately hanging on a thin string to create the illusion that they were floating. Too bad the moon highlights the shine of the silk. Giyuu manages to crack a small smile, he’s content with life right now, so simple as he watches the children play with each other, and the mothers watch from a distance. So simple as he passes a booth selling dragon toys, and he sees a sister scold her brother, and a boyfriend tenderly hug his spouse. He leaves the festival, knowing he still has a job to do though. A fate he would wish upon no human being inside this city; hunting man-eating demons.
He had only wanted to find an Inn to stay at, but seeing as they were mostly booked from the festivities, he would have to focus on his mission earlier so he could nap on the train back home. Giyuu sighed, the demon was well known in the area as an urban legend meant to protect the young men in the village from going missing, but Giyuu knew. He knew that it wasn’t some horrible, despicable human being. No, it was a demon that wanted to see mankind suffer. The Hashira had read the mission files, and he knew he couldn’t let his guard down, not that he usually did, but especially this time.
He had read that the demon he was ordered to specifically look for targeted young men, but it used rather unordinary ways of attaining its meals. Its blood demon art caused a curse to befall in the man, and he would later die of an illness. Then, and only then, would the demon feast. The mission confused Giyuu. Why him? He was reaching his prime in life and the demon would no doubt try to target him. So why, why would someone send him? Why not Kanroji? She surely could handle it much easier than he.
Shaking the thoughts from his head he stopped in front of a tavern, and heard it bustling with loud, drunk men and women. He composed himself, and walked in to sit on a bar stool where the keeper was stationed. “A glass of sake, please.” He said, knowing he wouldn’t drink a single drop. The bartender nodded with a warm smile and poured him his glass. “Thank you, sir.”
“Well, hello, handsome! Why don’t ya’ join me for a drink?” A young lady sat next to him asked, her words slurring on her tongue. “C’mon it’ll be fun!”
Giyuu glanced at her, “No thank you, ma’am. I-I’m sure you’re lovely, though.” He anxiously stammered out. He could, under no circumstances, get drunk on the job. And he hated to admit it, but he was a light drinker; couldn’t handle more than a couple glasses of sake.
The lady clicked her tongue. “Why not? Are ya’ a light drinker, hn?” She joked, smirking mischievously, “No wonder ya’ look so lonely. Loosen up a bit would ya’?”
The man had to admit, she had her charms about her. She had piercing purple eyes, and her confidence shown like a firework, almost as if she thought, or knew, nothing could touch her. Giyuu decided he would amuse her a little, just so she didn’t think he was an entire loser. “What’s your name? I haven’t seen you around.”
She let out a hardy, drunken laugh, “I could say the same fer you, stranger!” The woman locked eyes with him, keeping her head high, “’Name’s Hanabira, and yer’s, stranger?”
He paused, thinking of a name, but decided, well, why not? “Tomioka. Now get yourself some water, you’re slurring your words, miss.” He made eye contact with the bartender, and he slid him a glass of water and Giyuu handed it to Hanabira. She snatched it from his hands and drank it down in a few gulps.
Meanwhile, he took the chance to glance around his surroundings. The bar looked traditional, like an older building. The walls were a type of worn-out wood, and the tables were circular and wobbly. It seemed like the only nice area was right where he was. The loud people he had heard when he entered were only a few, but very drunk men laughing loudly about slurred stories they might be sharing. And right in front of him was a young woman, likely to be aged around 20-24. She should’ve fit better if he saw her with a fiancé at the festival, but it seems she’s too feisty for the young men in the area.
“So, what are ya’ doing in this area, Tomioka? You look like you would do better tending a farm!” She cackled, and waited for a response.
“It’s true I’m from the countryside, but I’m a doctor and I was travelling to a private client of mine.” He stated matter-of-factly with a cold gaze.
She had nearly laughed so hard she fell off the stool, “Oh man, that was a good joke! If you really were a doctor, yer bedside manners are horrible!!”
Giyuu was not amused to say the least, frowning he said, “Well, you don’t really need manners as long as you’re still healing them.”
She smirked. “Tomioka-San! Tomioka-San! Follow me, I’ve got something to show ya’!”
He frowned even harder, if that was possible. Sighing though, he got up. “Where to.?” He was confident for once that if anything happened, he still had his blade and no low-level, alley lurking demon could harm him. At least he was that confident in his abilities.
How wrong could he have been.
He was stuck, cornered in an alleyway far, far away from the people of Asakusa. Instead of enjoying the calmness, he was now facing Hanabira, who had transformed into her demon form, and looked extremely amused. “You really thought that I wouldn’t notice your slayer uniform? Hah! You men are all the same.” She clenched her fist and sent a spine-chilling glare at Giyuu.
She unclenched her fist, showing incredibly sharp nails, that he had no doubt, could likely tear his skull open in an instant if he let her. Hanabira, if he could trust that was her name, pointed her fingers at Giyuu and they shot out sharp thorns. He twisted his face in pain as he was able to dodge or parry most of them, but a few managed to nick him. They had the force of a shotgun and the sharpness of his blade. The thorns had put a few holes in him.
He stepped forward, drawing his nichirin sword, and began to activate the Fourth Form of Water Breathing, Striking Tide. He sharply inhaled and burst off.
Hanabira dodged every strike. No matter how perfect the aim should have been, Giyuu could hardly land a single blow.
“How dare you! Drawing a blade in the face of a beautiful woman like me,” She faked a swoon, the type of pose a maiden in distress would do, as she leaned against a wall. “It’s disgraceful!” She suddenly straightened up and yelled angrily, shooting more thorns at him, and her once chestnut brown hair faded to a mauve pink. Her clothes nearly didn’t fit her anymore, as she grew in size and her body became more mature. Somehow her nails grew longer, into claws and her pupils turned into slits that could probably cut through solid ice. Her gaze scrutinizing as more and more thorns were thrown at Giyuu.
The Water Pillar was barely managing to dodge the fast-as-light thorns, or rather, bullets— and he could barely gasp for anymore air. So no matter how he tried, he couldn’t use a single breathing technique. “Shit.” He murmured before yelling his crows name, “Call… for backup!”
*CAW CAW*
“Oh-Hoh, getting desperate, are we? Not so noble for a Hashira, hm?” She seemed unsatisfied, and glared into Giyuu’s eyes, while he stared in horror at hers.
“H-How come we never got info on you… you’re powerful enough to be one of the Uppermoons!” He yelled, not angry, not that he was losing. Just frustrated that all his training and all the sacrifices made for him, would be worth nothing in the end.
She smiled. It wasn’t a smirk, it wasn’t mischievous, but it was truly sick. This demon, Hanabira was a sadistic woman. “Don’t worry, your little friends are here, you won’t die. Yet.” She said as she turned back to her human disguise and left him for the shadows.
Giyuu’s knees started to buckle, and his eyes were blurry. Not because he was going to pass out, but because he was starting to cry in fear. What was going to happen to him? His hand covered his mouth to stop his blood from leaving his mouth, and then his vision became engrossed with black splotches around the edges and he fell to the ground.
The last thing he saw before his tiredness engulfed him, were two pairs of feet, sprinting towards him.