A/N - Hiya guys! I'm back! Well...Sorta...This is going to be a relatively short chapter for me. But that's only because I didn't edit it as much as I usually edit my other more recent chapters, and I'm struggling with some writer's block. This was supposed to be a much much longer chapter and include the actual portion of the night where they go out on the date and everything, but I realized that if I kept pushing it off until I got something I thought was "perfect" I would never update, and since I hate making you wait I decided to cut it again and post this so you have something to read in the meantime. I will probably go back and edit this some other time, but then again, most likely not.
I was planning on getting all of it written so I can just post it all on the same day, this part followed by part 4 with the actual date, but it will be a little while till I post part 4, after which we will be getting into some major MAJOR plot builders. The next 4-5 chapters of those plot builders are planned. So I know what's going to happen already, ;) I just need to write it out. So please please please be patient with me! And I'm so sorry for the long wait and if this chapter and the next seem rushed. I know how much some of you were excited for a super amazing date night chapter and I'm worried I won't be able to deliver that for you because of my writer's block and heavy criticism of my writing. (i.e. - I am my biggest critic.) Anyways, hope you enjoy!
Before Mizuki even had time to give a proper explanation, she found herself hoisted off the ground and thrown over Tengen's shoulder. She hoped that he would have at least been gentle with her despite his obvious annoyance at the moment, but of course, she wasn't nearly lucky enough to be graced with something so fortunate. He tossed her over his shoulder and stormed off so fast it nearly gave her whiplash.
"You can't be serious! You have to be joking! And if this is a joke, it certainly is not a very flamboyant one!"
"Tengen!" she gasped, "You are fucking up my outfit! Put me down so I can walk on my own! Please?!"
"Well, it sure sucks to be you doesn't it?" A sharp slap to her rear end shocked a small squeak out of Mizuki's lips, "You should have thought about that before you decided to come up with such a terribly plain idea for our date night! I should have known better than to let you pick it!"
She found herself laughing at his hysteria. It was amazing just how fast this had escalated into a problem. "Tengen, I think you're overreacting."
"Overreacting?! Woman did you not hear what you just said to me?! Do you not remember the words that came out of your mouth?! Or is your hair tied up too tight to let you think straight?!"
"I think I know what I said, Tengen. And that's exactly why I think you're overreacting."
"For the last time Mizuki. I am NOT overreacting!"
Mizuki wasn't sure if she should laugh or actually be annoyed with her fiance. She knew what she said, and she wasn't wavering on it. So of course, the fact that she was just as stubborn if not more so than the sound hashira himself on this issue meant that it was just about to get blown way out of proportion in only a matter of seconds. To be honest, it was already getting quite ridiculous. Tengen was fuming. She had never seen him this mad about something unless either his father was involved, he felt disrespected or he was in a never-ending insult match between him and Ryuichi. She knew of Tengen's desire to live up his life to the fullest now. But she still didn't quite feel the same way as he did.
Now, under different circumstances, this might have been pretty romantic. Tengen whisked Mizuki right off her feet as he ran off to the destination of their date. However, the tight grip Tengen held on her waist as he grumbled and cursed under his breath stomping off at quite literally the speed of sound was a vivid reminder that this was most definitely not a romantic moment.
"Tengen, where are we even going?" she groaned.
"To speak with Kyojuro and your sister," he replied. "I need to sort this shit show out now."
Mizuki tried lifting her head to look behind herself. She kept one hand securely placed on her head to keep her hair in place and the other, palm down against Tengen's back. She rolled her eyes and smacked Tengen in the back of his head, "What do you mean 'sort this shi'-What is the matter with you?"
"You. Little - !"
Tengen shrugged aggressively, repositioning Mizuki on his shoulder. He repaid her quickly for her attitude with yet another sharp slap to her rear. The sudden jostling about jerked Mizuki around and a pin came jettisoning from her hair.
"Damnnit Tengen! This is not romantic at all!"
"Oh please, what do you know about romantic?!"
"Excuse you? I may not have come from the most amazing living situation but I know enough to know this is not romantic!"
Now it was Tengen's turn to laugh. And boy did he laugh out loud. "Woman, you wouldn't know romantic if it hit you in the head!"
"Well, excuse me?!" she gawked and her face burned, "Who made you the God of date night?!"
"Me! I did! So you better listen, Goddamnit!" Tengen bristled. Then, coming to a rather abrupt stop he took a breath before placing Mizuki back down on her own two feet. He faced her, and she crossed her arms as she looked up at him, "I'm not about to take my fiance whom I've been waiting 7 whole years to be with to go look at some fucking stars all night! I can do that at my own house! I don't have to take you out to do that."
"Then why don't you?" she pleaded, "I actually wouldn't mind if we did that. It's more intimate that way."
Tengen's eyes widened at her, and he tossed his arms up in exasperation, "More intimate? What about more grand?! More flashy! Something flamboyant for heaven's sake!"
"Tengen we don't need all that. I don't need all that."
"But you do! You deserve it!" he holds her face in his hands, "You're going to be my wife, Mizuki! We've worked so hard for this, I want the whole world to know that you're mine!"
Mizuki closed her eyes for a moment. She already knew what that meant to him. But it was too dangerous. She couldn't just let the whole world know about them. There were too many things at stake. Of course, it shouldn't matter that they do something extravagant for their first date, but knowing the life that she has lived and still does live, it would be too much of a risk for her to suddenly start living her life like she was any normal girl. The demon slayers in themselves are a covert organization, and coming from a clan of shinobi that were supposed to be dead for years, feared for their genetic ability to turn into demons at will make it even more important for her to stay hidden.
And while she hated to squash Tengen's dreams like this she knew that whatever he had in mind could put them at risk for being seen. Being in the demon slayers has done a very good job at keeping her hidden. So as much as she wanted to just finally go somewhere fun like a festival, she knew that she couldn't, and she had to make sure that Tengen knew that. Besides, festivals had always been a no-go for her and her family. She would do well to remember that warning from her father and Tengan-Sensei if the altercation with the man selling rice balls wasn't striking enough of a memory.
Mizuki pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed, "Look, let's just get to Rengoku-san's house okay? Like we planned? We can decide together on where to go once we're there. So if anyone has any different ideas we can hash it out together instead of arguing between the two of us."
Tengen looked at her skeptically for a moment.
"What?" her brow raised at him, "Don't tell me you wanna take back what you said now. We agreed to decide together didn't we?"
Yes, they did and he wasn't about to dispute that. However, he was a little irked that he felt she was trying to change the subject on him. Even though he had agreed to decide together, quite frankly he didn't feel that they needed to. And he was tired of waiting. But if he didn't agree and they continued to argue where they were, the day would pass and no one would get to do what they wanted. So for the time being, he conceded. Reluctantly, rolling his eyes, he followed behind Mizuki, grumbling under his breath behind her back, as she walked off in front of him.
Since Tengen had already made it pretty far carrying Mizuki over his shoulder while they argued, the two ended up arriving at Kyojuro's place shortly after, and when Tengen knocked on the door Mizuki stood by shaking her head and pinching her nose in disbelief. She sighed deeply, her fingers restlessly tapping at her hip.
"I can't believe this is happening," she muttered. "This isn't how I pictured today would go."
Now it was Tengen's turn to raise a brow at her, "Well you better believe it love. You brought this upon yourself." he scoffed.
Mizuki's hands dropped to her waist, and she shot Tengen a look. He returned the look she gave him with a scowl of his own and crossed his arms. He felt the childish urge to stick his tongue out at her but quickly decided against it. If he had done so for even half a millisecond she would have slapped him so hard he would have bit his tongue off. And quite frankly ticking her off was not worth his tongue.
"Tengen, what I'm saying is that I don't understand how we even started arguing. We were fine just moments ago, you know? I mean. I don't get it. I really think the Sakura Trees date is a good idea. It's simple, its fun, and I really do think it's kinda romantic."
"Fun? Romantic? Since when was sitting on the grass and looking up at a bunch of stars fun? And don't get me started on the idea of that being even remotely romantic!" then he shook his head and wagged his finger to point between the both of them, "Seriously, if this is your idea of a date night and you stand by that I don't think this is gonna work out for much longer."
Well. What a turnaround this was from an hour ago, wasn't it? Just a few moments ago Tengen was talking about how much he loved her and how badly he wanted to take her home and just tear her clothes off. But she wasn't surprised and instead, she found herself laughing at the humor of it.
"Wow, what would your rather us do then?"
"Anything but sit and watch a bunch of stupid stars and flowers bloom!" he whined.
Mizuki shook her head in disbelief as she struggled to keep herself from laughing even more, "Why does that idea make you so upset?"
"Because it's boring! The opposite of flamboyant!" he complained.
"Tengen, this is our first actual date together. Why can't it just be something nice and quiet like stargazing and sitting under the beautiful sakura trees?" She shrugged. "We spend our whole lives fighting and surviving. It can get so noisy at times don't you think? We should do something quiet and relaxing."
Tengen's eyes widened, "No! That's exactly why we should do something special!" he exclaimed, and he grabbed Mizuki by the shoulders, "We're gonna get married for heaven's sake!"
The hardened expression on the sound hashira's face didn't change even in the slightest even when Mizuki's hand came up and cupped the side of his face as she chuckled, "I know, and that's why we agreed not to fight about something as trivial as this. Right?"
Mizuki was trying to keep the balance between her frustration with her fiance and her love. The conflicting feelings were something she wasn't fond of, but she knew that as silly as this conversation was it was only a small part of what trials they'd have to face as a couple now. But it was funny how the precautions they took to avoid an argument between the two of them resulted in a disagreement nonetheless. Strangely enough, Mizuki already figured that Tengen would complain about any idea for their date unless it was his.
It took Tengen a moment to respond, but when he did, he took the hand she placed on his cheek in his as he said, "Well, that was before I knew you picked such a shitty date night idea..."
Her eyes widened in shock. The small sliver of patience Mizuki had completely turned to ice and she scoffed. Her hand slipped away from his and she crossed her arms back over her chest defiantly, "Fine. If that's how you think. So be it. But as your future wife, I really think we should just relax."
"And as your future husband I say we throw a goddamn party!" he growled through grit teeth.
"But Tengen-"
"But nothing!" he interjected, "Do you have any idea just how much money I make?!"
Mizuki's face twisted into that of confusion. Where exactly was he going with this?
"No," she sighed.
"I get paid whatever the hell I wanna get paid! So, basically, a shit ton of money! So, if I wanna spend it all on you I should be allowed to! Understand?"
"I understand perfectly Tengen but I-"
"But what?" Tengen started.
The sound of the door creaking open was the only thing to break Mizuki's focus from Tengen. Her mouth opened in response but no words came out. And not long after a voice came from behind the other side of the door, and she faltered. Without even needing to look she already knew who had answered the door, and she immediately felt terrible for making such a noise in front of the boy's house.
Her face softened into that of a pleasant smile as she turned to the young yellow and red-haired boy practically hiding behind the door. She ignored the scowl on Tengen's face when he saw how quickly she melted in front of Senjuro who greeted them both with a soft,
"Um...Hello?"
"Senjuro-kun, hi." Mizuki smiled warmly, "It's good to see you."
The boy's pensiveness slowly faded as a small smile came to his lips. He looked up to meet the eyes of Mizuki and the sound hashira beside her and pulled the door open a little further. "Oh, it's good to see you too, Mizuki-san." his eyes twinkled the slightest bit as he smiled at her, "Are you well?"
"Yes," she replied with a small grin. "Thank you for asking."
"And you? Uzui-san?" Senjuro asked as his eyes shifted up to meet the sound pillar's, "It's been a little while since you've last visited."
Tengen merely grumbled in reply prompting Mizuki to slap his arm with the back of her hand. He winced and clicked his tongue in annoyance at her before answering the boy's question again.
"I'm fine. Never better," he said with a smirk, then turning his face away he grumbled under his breath again, "This is ridiculous."
Senjuro smiled sheepishly, then he paused, his mouth hung open for a moment, and he looked the couple over before finishing his thought aloud, "Is...something the matter? Something I can help you with?"
Mizuki's expression went from cautious to weary only to go back to cautious again. Her eyes left the boy for only a brief second to glance at Tengen. There was a faint glimmer of irritation in her eyes when she did, but at least it was tempered by her gentle tone and the slightest upturn of her lips as she said, "Yes actually. Is Rengoku-san home? I was told that we could-"
"KYOJURO!" Tengen bellowed, "GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE! WE NEED TO TALK!"
Immediately he barged his way into the boy's house. Senjuro quickly stepped aside unintentionally letting the sound hashira in. Mizuki watched the panic rush over the boy's features as he struggled to think of a way to prevent him from going any further but it was to no avail. Their jaws dropped open in shock as Tengen was not only well into the boy's house halfway up a set of stairs, but had snatched a peach that had been kept out in a bowl on the dining table and already started eating it.
Now Senjuro should not have been surprised at Tengen's actions, and to be quite honest he really wasn't. Incidences such as this were rather frequent given that his elder brother and the sound hashira were very close friends. Even still, Senjuro helplessly glanced over to Mizuki who could only offer an apology for her fiance's rudeness.
Senjuro shook his head and sighed, "It's ok Mizuki-san. This isn't the first time we've had Uzui-san over."
"I know that. But...he...doesn't do this every time? Does he?"
Senjuro fixed the bowl of fruits Tengen had so rudely taken from. The cringing expression Senjuro had on his face regardless of his lack of response was all Mizuki needed to know the answer was very much, "Yes, every time."
Mizuki shook her head, "I should stop him before he goes too far. You said Rengoku-san was getting dressed wasn't he?"
"Yes," he nodded, "He should be in his room now."
Mizuki groaned, "And this man has no boundaries. He'd probably barge right in on Rengoku-san while the man is half naked."
Senjuro cringed again.
"Seriously?" Mizuki rose a brow and Senjuro only nodded in reply. "Goodness, so he can just barge in and invade everyone else's privacy but people can't do that to him?" then she paused, biting her lip, "Ah...Sorry," she apologized, realizing that she probably said more than she should have in front of the boy. Then pointing in the direction that Tengen had gone she asked, "Would you mind if I went after him?"
"No, of course not."
Mizuki nodded, "Thank you. I'll try not to be too long."
Senjuro watched as the black and white-haired girl made her way to his brother's room. He stood there for a moment, contemplating whether he should follow them or not. At first, he was content to stay where he was and wait, sweep the floor in the meantime, or finish preparing the lunch he had started not long before Mizuki and Tengen arrived there. He knew that even if Tengen barged in on Kyojuro, his brother would know how to handle it fine on his own. It wouldn't be necessary for him to butt his head in between their conversations. No matter how rude and disrespectful Tengen was of others'
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