Chapter Text
Team Bonding, They Said
The night began innocently enough with the regular Hashira meeting, which had ended earlier than expected. Tengen had been celebrating his third (or was it fourth now?) anniversary to one of his wives, and had bottles of sake to celebrate.
Upon learning this, the Love Hashira suggested they all have fun and drink while “bonding” with a casual game of Truth or Dare.
“C’mon! One night of fun won’t hurt! We never hang out like friends!” Mitsuri whined, clutching a bottle of sake like it was the last hope for humanity.
“Friends?” Sanemi grunted, opening his own bottle. “You mean a bunch of people who can kill each other with one swing?”
“Exactly!” she said cheerfully.
Obanai sighed. “This is a terrible idea.”
“Which means we’re doing it,” Tengen declared dramatically. “Flashy bonding time begins now!”
“While this would lead to amazing blackmail material, we have a mission tomorrow.” Muichiro said as he headed out, with Gyomei. Gyomei bowed his head and said, “Please don’t get arrested.”
As the two were walking off and waving off Mitsuri’s pleas, Giyu sat in the corner, expression unreadable. Shinobu was beside him, wearing her usual too-sweet smile that hid her real feelings.
“Are you going to play, Tomioka?” she asked in a casual tone.
“…No,” he said immediately.
“Ah, too bad,” she replied. “Then I suppose I’ll have to tell everyone about that one time—”
“I’ll play.”
Everyone else turned to look at them.
Mitsuri gasped. “Wait—you both agreed?!”
Tengen threw an arm around Giyu’s shoulder. “Look at that! Tomioka has finally come out of his shell and wants to learn how to have fun.”
Sanemi snorted sake out of his nose laughing. “This is gonna be good.”
The Rules
Each Hashira was given their own bottle of sake and a cup. They used a spare bottle to spin and whoever it landed on would need to answer the simple question of Truth or Dare?
If the person chose Truth, they would need to answer a question from one person in the group. If they chose Dare, they would need to fulfill a request. There were no limits to the questions or dares that would be asked and it was all fair game.
Mitsuri explained cheerfully while refilling cups: “If you refuse or can’t fulfill a dare, you take a shot. Or if you skip a truth or lie, you take a shot! Simple!”
Whoever got drunk the fastest or finished their whole bottle of sake was the loser. Not that Mitsuri was expecting anyone to care about winning or losing.
“Why do I feel like I’m about to regret living?” murmured Obanai.
“Because you probably will,” Sanemi replied.
Since it was Mitsuri’s idea, she started the first round.
“Alright!” Mitsuri spun an empty sake bottle in the center. It whirled, clinking across the tatami mat before stopping and pointing directly at Rengoku.
Rengoku’s eyes blazed with enthusiasm. “EXCELLENT! ASK AWAY!”
Tengen grinned wickedly. “Truth or dare, Flame Boy?”
“DARE!”
“I dare you… to confess an embarrassing moment!”
“HA! EASY!” Rengoku puffed up his chest and declared to the night sky, “I ONCE ACCIDENTALLY BURNT MY OWN EYEBROWS OFF WHILE ATTACKING A DEMON WITH MY FLAME! THE DEMON WAS SO STUNNED AT MY STUPID MISTAKE AND WEIRD LOOK, IT TRIPPED OVER ITSELF LAUGHING RIGHT ON MY SWORD!”
“PFFT—” Mitsuri spit sake everywhere.
Even Giyu smirked.
Shinobu chuckled softly behind her hand. “How very fitting.”
This time, Rengoku spun the bottle, where it landed on Shinobu.
Obanai narrowed his eyes. “Truth or dare, Kocho?”
She smiled angelically. “Truth.”
“Are you bullying Tomioka for fun or is it actually because you like him?”
The entire room went silent at the blunt question.
Giyu froze and stared at Shinobu, waiting for her response.
Shinobu took a delicate sip of sake, eyes glinting with a smirk on her face. “Why, Obanai… what makes you think I can’t do both?”
Everyone howled while Sanemi fell backwards. Mitsuri fanned herself and squealed, “Awwww! That means she does!”
Shinobu simply smiled and said, “Next.”
Giyu turned red, pretending to examine the bare floor, with his heart pounding. Is this really happening?
Before he could even process what she had said, Shinobu spun the bottle and in a sick twist of fate, it chose Giyu.
“Truth or dare?” Mitsuri asked, voice filled with sugar and mischief.
“…Truth,” Giyu grunted.
Tengen grinned. “Coward’s choice! Fine, tell us: who in this room do you think is the most beautiful?”
Everyone leaned in, awaiting his answer.
Giyu hesitated and he coughed. “Shinobu.”
Sanemi choked on his drink, Mitsuri shrieked, and Rengoku yelled, “ADMIRABLE TASTE!”
Shinobu blinked, clearly not expecting him to actually say it. Her smile wavered. “…My, that’s unexpected.”
“Was that a confession or just bad timing?” Tengen teased.
“…Both,” Giyu muttered.
Everyone screamed while Sanemi spilled the rest of his bottle on himself.
Mitsuri immediately declared, “They’re sitting next to each other for the rest of the night!”
Shinobu sighed but didn’t move. “I suppose I can live with that.”
Giyu looked like he wanted to vanish into mist.
As the night went on, the sake bottles emptied and the dares got increasingly ridiculous.
Rengoku arm-wrestling Giyu, Obanai singing off key while dancing, Sanemi forced to give Shinobu a piggyback ride, Tengen fake proposing to everyone, and Mitsuri having to juggle the sake cups.
Amidst the laughter and chaos, a quiet, undeniable truth lingered between Giyu and Shinobu, like the gentle glow of a candle in a dark room.
Shinobu felt it settle over her, soft and persistent, and try as she might, she couldn’t hide the smile that bloomed across her face.
They had both meant it.