Donut Friendship – Chapter 21: A night at the bakery
It was Friday evening and Nezuko was sitting behind the counter. At the same time, her mother was frantically moving behind her.
"D-Does my hair look good?! Is this dress nice?! D-Did I forget anything? Uwaa…!" the mother panicked
"Hihihi… Don't worry! You look great!" Nezuko smiled and reassured her mother
"Ahh… Thank you Nezuko… I am sorry that I act so weird. It's just that… the last time I went out was so long ago…" the mother replied slightly embarrassed
Earlier that day, Nezuko's mother told Nezuka that she decided to go out in the evening, meaning that Nezuko would once again take over the bakery. When she heard that her mother was going out, Nezuko was very happy. Her mother worked a lot, so spending some time with friends would be good for her!
"You always work so hard… please, just enjoy your evening!" said Nezuko, to which the mother smiled
…
But her mother going out wasn't the only reason why Nezuko was so happy. Unbeknownst to her mother, Nezuko was going to have a friend come over. Of course, Nezuko could have just asked for permission, but then there would be the slight chance of her mother saying no.
"Hihihi… this is going to be a fun evening, for both us! Hihihi…" Nezuko thought to herself
"You're such a nice girl, Nezuko!" said the mother
"I promise you, once Tanjiro finishes his duties at the academy, then he will help you out again, and you can take some time off!" the mother added
"Thanks! But you know that I love working here…" Nezuko replied, to which the mother laughed
As the two laughed, the mother got a message on her phone.
"Ah! I need to go!" the mother said and gave Nezuko a quick kiss on the cheek
She walked up to the door and turned around.
"See you soon!" said the mother and left
Nezuko smiled and walked up to the glass, trying to get a glance at her mother's friends. But what she saw outside was something totally unexpected…
Outside the bakery, the mother walked up to a single person.
"Hello!" said the mother
"Hello…" replied Kokushibo with a smile
"So, shall we?" the mother asked with a smile, as she blushed
"Of course… I found this nice restaurant. You will love it." Kokushibo replied
"I can't wait!" the mother replied with a big smile and walked beside him
Back inside the bakery…
"…" Nezuko just stared, with her jaw opened
"…"
"…"
"…oh… when she said that she was going out… I thought she meant with a group of friends… but she actually went… with a man… huh…" Nezuko mumbled
"That explains why she was panicking so much… hahaha…" Nezuko laughed awkwardly
…
…
…
It was now 8 pm and Nezuko was about to close the bakery and wait for her friend. As she counted the money at the cash register, the door suddenly shot open.
"NEZUKO! ARE YOU READY!?" yelled a girl
"MAKOMO!" Nezuko said happily as she saw her friend, Makomo burst into the bakery
Makomo was her classmate and a good friend from the academy. Unlike Nezuko, she was very energetic, but both of them loved having fun and trying out different things. Makamo always came up with random ideas and Nezuko always joined her. This time, Makomo got the idea of spending time together inside the bakery… at night, while it was closed.
"This is going to be awesome! I have never been inside a shop while it was closed!" said Makomo
"Yeah! Me neither!" Nezuko replied
Makomo put her backpack down and showed Nezuko all the things that she has brought with her.
"Look! I got board games! Flashlights! And candy!" she said as she took everything out
"Yeah! This will be so much fun!" Nezuko replied as she thought about all the fun they were going to have
…
…
…
Later that evening, a guy was walking on the sidewalk, under the light of the various streetlamps.
"Grrrr… I know that mister Muzan said that we need to be ready for any missions 24/7… but why the hell did it had to be a Friday night?! That stupid Kokushibo… While he can go and spend the evening on a date, I have to do this stupid reconnaissance mission… DAMN IT!" Kaigaku mumbled
It was a Friday night and Kaigaku wanted to go out with his friends. Sadly for him, he got a message from his boss, Muzan, telling him to scout the Kamado Bakery. Even thought the bakery should be closed at this time, Muzan got a report that the lights were still on inside. Even though he gave up on finding the secret recipe, he still wanted to know more about the bakery, and if it wasn't hiding one or two more secrets…
Reaching the bakery, Kaigaku glanced at the shop.
"Huh?! The lights are still on? Are they really open?" he mumbled confused
Trying to get a good look inside, he spotted Nezuko, still inside the bakery.
"Oh… looks like they are still open… but why? It's 11 AM. Who the hell wants a donut at this time?" Kaigaku asked
…
"Holy crap! They are still open! This is my lucky day!" said a voice from behind
"ARGH!" Kaigaku jumped back as he got scared
Turning around, Kaigaku saw a familiar face standing behind him.
"Y-You?! What are you doing here?!" he asked and pointed at the girl standing behind him
"Hmm? It's Friday night. I am not going to sit on my ass at home… And who are you? Do we know each other?" the girl asked as she looked at him
The girl behind him was Ume Shabana. The two previously met while Kaigaku and Kokushibo were planning on what to do with their previous mission.
"Well… yeah? Kind of. A few days ago, me and my college were sitting on a bench, and you walked up to us." Kaigaku replied
"Hmmm… oh right! Now I remember. You two were talking about getting fired." Ume replied
"Well… we somehow managed to keep our jobs…" he replied
"Cool." she replied
"…"
"…"
"My name is Ume Shabana by the way." she added
"Kaigaku." he replied
"So, what are you doing here?" Ume asked
Kaigaku glanced at the bakery and spoke up.
"I was told that the bakery is supposedly still open at this hour, and I was sent out to investigate."
"Aha…" Ume mumbled
"So now, I need to find out if that rumor is true…"
"…"
"And if it is true, then I need to find out why they decided to change their opening hours…"
"…"
"That way, my boss and I can obtain some valuable information!"
"…"
"Well… that's basically it. Why are you here?" he asked and looked behind him
"Huh." he mumbled confused as he couldn't see Ume anywhere
…
"HEY! YOU'RE OPEN, RIGHT? I AM HUNGRY! I WANT SOME DONUTS! OPEN UP!" Ume yelled as she banged at the glass
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Kaigaku yelled as he saw her
Inside the bakery, Nezuko and Makomo noticed Ume.
"Who is that girl?" Makomo asked
"Oh… she is a regular at our bakery…" Nezuko replied and stared at Ume
"OPEN UP!" Ume yelled again
"She must be thinking that we're open…" Nezuko mumbled and walked up to the door
As she was about to open the door, Kaigaku ran over to Ume.
"Why are you knocking on the glass?!" he asked
"Because they are open, and I want some donuts!" she replied
Nezuko opened the door and peaked outside the bakery.
"H-Hello!" she said, as she saw the two standing in front of the bakery
"Hey! You're open, right? I want to buy some donuts!" said Ume
"Ehmm… hahaha…" Nezuko laughed awkwardly
"I am sorry… but we are closed…" Nezuko added
"What?! But… the lights are on… and I want some donuts!" Ume replied annoyed
"Hmmm… so they are closed…" Kaigaku thought about it as he heard that
"I hope you don't mind me asking… but what were you doing inside the bakery if it's closed?" Kaigaku asked
"Oh! My friend and I decided to hang out tonight inside the bakery!" Nezuko explained
"Hmm? Oh… hello!" said Makomo as she also peaked out of the bakery and saw the two
"Hey." said Kaigaku
"Hey…" said Ume, annoyed that she couldn't get a donut
"My name is Makomo! Are you Nezuko's friends?" Makomo asked eagerly
"Ehm… I wouldn't say friends. I sometimes shop at the bakery, and we worked together once…" Kaigaku explained
"Sort of…?" said Ume as she thought about it
Looking at the two, Makomo got an idea.
"Huh!" she gasped and whispered something into Nezuko's ear
"W-What…?" Nezuko asked confused
"It's going to be fun!" Makomo said, to which Nezuko thought about her words
After a few seconds, Nezuko smiled and nodded. She faced Ume and Kaigaku and spoke up.
"Ehm… we we're playing games and eating candy together… do you want to join us?" Nezuko asked
"Huh?! Join you?" Ume asked
"Yeah! It's going to be more fun with more people! We can talk and play games!" Nezuko offered
"W-What? M-Me… too?" Kaigaku asked
"Yeah! You seem like a cool guy! I would love to know more about you!" Nezuko said with a smile
"…uh… ah… haha…" Kaigaku mumbled and blushed a bit
"W-What the hell? Hanging out with… girls? Me? One guy with 3 girls…?" he thought about it
"Sure! I am in! What candy do you got?" Ume asked eagerly
"We got tons of different stuff!" Makomo replied
Kaigaku was really nervous, and he didn't know what to do.
"I was supposed to gather information about the bakery… but this is a one in a lifetime chance! What do I do… oh wait! Maybe… maybe I can gather information from within! Yes! Mister Muzan, I am doing this for you! Not because I get to spend some time with 3 ultra cute girls, that's not the reason why I do this!" Kaigaku thought and smiled
"W-Well… If you don't mind… then I gladly join you!" said Kaigaku
"Huh…? Didn't you say something about a mission to-" Ume asked, but was cut off by Kaigaku
"NO, I DIDN'T. SHUT UP. DON'T LIE." he yelled back
Hearing that, all girls stared at him.
"Igh! I mean… n-no! I would love to hang out with you girls! Ha… haha…" he said awkwardly
"A-Alright! Then come on in!" replied Nezuko and opened the door completely, letting Ume and Kaigaku inside the bakery
…
…
…
Inside, both Ume and Kaigaku looked around. Even though they have been inside the bakery a couple of times now, it was really weird being inside a shop, while it was supposed to be closed.
"Ehm… excuse me?" Makomo asked
"Y-Yeah?" Kaigaku asked
"What were you two doing outside the bakery?" Makomo asked
"I was walking by and noticed that the lights were on, so I thought that you were open…" Ume explained
"A-And I heard that bakery was open so I came here… guess that wasn't the case…" Kaigaku replied
Makomo looked at the two confused.
"Hm? You two didn't come together?" she asked
"Nope." Ume replied
"Oh… ok. To be honest, when I saw you, I thought that you two were a couple, and wanted to get some donuts together! Haha!" Makomo laughed
"C-Couple?!" Kaigaku gasped
"A couple? With him?! Ew! Never!" Ume replied and pointed at Kaigaku
"…haha…haha… she could have said that a bit nicer…" Kaigaku thought to himself, totally defeated
"Hey! Don't be so mean! I am sure he is a nice guy!" Nezuko said with an angry expression as she heard Ume
"…"
"…"
"Tsk… yeah, sorry." Ume replied as she glanced at Kaigaku
"N-No problem…" he replied and smiled at Nezuko
"This girl… is so nice…" he thought to himself
Nezuko smiled and went to get some blankets for the two. After she got them, she handed them to Kaigaku and Ume. The two put them on the floor and sat down next to Makomo and Nezuko. Now, all of them were sitting on the ground on a blanket, inside the bakery.
"It's… kinda weird… being in a store that's supposed to be closed…" said Ume as she looked around
"Yeah… I thought that too!" said Kaigaku
"Hey! I saw you two at the academy! I don't think we ever met!" said Makomo
"But of course! My name is Ume Shabana, and I am one of the cutest girls at the academy! A lot of people want to talk to me, but only a few actually do…" she said with a prideful smile
"Ohh! That's great that I get this chance! Tell me about yourself!" Makomo asked again
"Huh? About me? Well… what do you want to know?" Ume asked
"What do you do for fun? You're really popular, so I want to know!" Makomo asked
Thinking about it, Ume actually didn't had a good answer. She mostly just hang out with her brother and caused mischief…
"Well… I don't have any hobbies. I just hang out… with people?" she replied
"Cool! Do you know everyone at the academy?" Makomo asked
"What? N-no. I don't. I talk with so many people… I can't remember everyone." Ume replied, slightly embarrassed
While the two were talking, Nezuko turned to Kaigaku.
"I don't think we have introduced ourselves! My name is Nezuko Kamado!" Nezuko said with a smile
"Oh! Ehm! Yeah… my name is Kaigaku!" he replied
"You and your friend we're working here for a short time!" Nezuko replied
"Y-Yeah. It didn't work out… but everything is fine now! We managed somehow!" Kaigaku replied with an awkward smile
"That's good to hear! Did you know that I saw your friend today?" Nezuko asked
"Hm? Mister Kokushibo? Where?" Kaigaku asked
As Nezuko was about to answer, Makomo interrupted the two.
"Hey! Let's play a game together!" she said, to which both Nezuko and Kaigaku looked at her
"A game? Sure, let's play!" Nezuko replied
"Alright... what game do you want to play?" Kaigaku asked
"…" Makomo just smiled, but didn't say anything
"Truth or Dare!" Ume said with a smile
"…huh…" both Nezuko and Kaigaku mumbled confused
"Come on! This is going to be fun!" said Ume
"…"
"…"
"T-Truth… or dare?" Nezuko mumbled, a little bit blushing
"F-For real?! You want to play… that?" Kaigaku asked
"Yeah! It's going to be fun, and we can get to know each other more!" Makomo said with a smile
Both Nezuko and Kaigaku were still unsure, but after a few seconds, they looked at each other and nodded.
…
…
…
"Alright. I start! I take truth!" said Ume with confidence
"Alright… let's see… hmmmmm…" Makomo thought about a good question for her
"Oh! I got a good one!" said Makomo and faced Ume
"Who is your favorite teacher?" she asked
"What? You want to know that?" Ume asked surprised
"Yeah!" Makomo replied
Thinking about it, Ume noticed how hard that was to answer, because she hated most of the teachers.
"Well… most of the teachers suck, but… that art teacher… His classes are never boring, so I go with him…" Ume replied
"Oh, that's mister Uzui! I love his classes!" said Nezuko
"Yeah…" Ume replied
Next up was Makomo.
"Alright, my turn! Dare!" said Makomo, and looked at Nezuko
It was Nezuko's turn, so she was supposed to make her do something. She thought about it a little while, but then she got an idea.
"I dare you… to eat this donut with one bite!" she said as she took out a donut from a bag
"Ah… donuuuut…" Ume mumbled as she saw the donut
"With one… bite? Alright, here I go!" Makomo replied and took the donut
Makomo prepared herself and opened her mouth. All eyes were on her, curious to see if she could do it…
…
…she couldn't.
"Wahhh… I failed!" she said defeated
"Don't worry! Just eat it the way you like!" Nezuko replied and Makomo started eating the donut
"That was pretty anticlimactic…" thought Kaigaku
"She would need like 10 bites to finish it…" thought Ume
While she was eating, Nezuko looked at Kaigaku.
"It's my turn now. I think I go with truth." said Nezuko and waited for Kaigaku's question
"Ehm… ok! Let me think." he replied and thought about what to ask
He could ask her something about the bakery, but that would blow his cover, so he decided to ask something simple.
"Ok. So… what is your favorite place to hang out?" he asked
"My favorite place to hang out? Hmmm…" Nezuko thought about it
As she was thinking about it, Ume moved closer to Kaigaku and whispered into his ear.
"Why do you ask that? Are you planning on asking her out? Hihihi." she whispered teasingly
"WHAT?! N-no! Argh!" Kaigaku replied and blushed, while he pushed Ume away from him
"I got it! My favorite place to hang out is the academy!" Nezuko said with a smile
"Really? The academy?" Kaigaku asked confused
"Yeah! I get to meet all my friends there and there are many great spots to hang out!" Nezuko explained
Kaigaku thought about it and nodded. Now it was his turn and Ume was about to ask him a question or make him do something. He glanced at her, and she was looking at him with a smug smile, clearly ready to embarrass him.
"Igh… what do I do? If I say dare, then she will order me to do something embarrassing, but if I say truth, then she will ask me something stupid!" he thought to himself
After a couple of seconds, everyone was waiting on him.
"Igh! I take… truth…" he said
"Excellent! Hahaha… I have a perfect question for you!" she said with a smug smile
"Who do you think is the cutest girl here?" she asked
Hearing that, both Nezuko and Makomo gasped.
"HUH! She seriously asked THAT kind of question! I can't believe it!" Makomo said surprised, but she was very eager to hear his answer
"No! Don't ask that question! That is embarrassing!" Nezuko said with a red face as she panicked a little
"…GULP*" Kaigaku just gulped and thought about what to say
"Come on… we are waiting!" Ume said mockingly
"What do I do?! Should I say that I find her the cutest here to embarrass us both… or do I say the truth?" he thought about it and glanced at Nezuko
As he was about to answer, something unexpected happened.
…
…
"Nezuko?" asked a concerned voice
Hearing that voice, everyone froze up.
"Oh crap…" thought Nezuko as she heard that
"Phuh… it's her mother… I am saved!" Kaigaku thought to himself
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE." asked another familiar voice, which send chills down Kaigaku's spine
He slowly turned his head around and saw Nezuko's mother and Kokushibo standing in the door. Nezuko's mother was looking at them with a confused look, while Kokushibo was staring solely at Kaigaku, with an explain-everything-in-3-seconds-or-you're-dead-expression.
"Holy crap…I am dead…" thought Kaigaku, and didn't say anything
"M-Mom! W-W-We… ehm…!" Nezuko tried to find the right words as she panicked
"Nezuko…" said the mother
"IGH!" Nezuko stoped talking and waited for her punishment
"Nezuko… hahaha! If you want to have a little get-together with your friends in the bakery then please, tell me beforehand! Hahaha!" the mother laughed and smiled
"…huh…" Nezuko mumbled confused
"Mister Kokushibo here was walking me home, and we noticed that the lights were on inside the bakery, so we thought that something was wrong!" the mother explained with a smile
"Walking her home?" Kaigaku mumbled
"DON'T. TALK." said Kokushibo as he continued staring at Kaigaku with a murderous expression
"Anyway, I think it's pretty late. Don't you think?" the mother asked as she looked at everyone
"Oh yeah! Thank you for everything Nezuko, see you on Monday!" said Makomo as she packed her things
"Yeah, thanks for inviting me…" said Ume as she got up
"Thank you! See you later!" said Kaigaku as he tried to walk out of the bakery, but noticed something odd
As he was about to exit the bakery, he couldn't move. Looking behind him, he saw his worst nightmare come to life. Kokushibo managed to grab him, and was holding him, with a murderous expression.
"GULP*" Kaigaku gulped and prepared himself to meet his end
As everyone was leaving, the mother faced Kokushibo.
"Thank you so much for going out with me today! It was a lot of fun! I hope that… maybe we can do this again?" the mother asked with a smile
"Of course." Kokushibo replied with a smile
"Looking forward to it!" said the mother and waved him goodbye
Kokushibo also waved her goodbye and walked out of the store, dragging Kaigaku behind him.
…
…
…
"PLEASE WAIT! I CAN EXPLAIN!" Kaigaku panicked as he was now outside the bakery, with Kokushibo facing him
"Explain to me… why instead of following master Muzan's orders, you decided to spend the evening with 3 girls… and why you almost ruined my evening with lady Kamado…" Kokushibo asked with a murderous expression
"W-W-WELL… YOU KNOW…" Kaigaku tried to find the right words, but failed
"…"
"…"
"You're going to beat the crap out of me either way, right?" Kaigaku asked
"Yes." Kokushibo replied
"This is not how I wanted to spent my Friday evening…" Kaigaku mumbled, as he accepted his fate…
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Makomo is one of the few characters that have a completely different personality in Demon Slayer and Kimetsu Academy! While she is very calm in Demon Slayer, she is really energetic and random in Kimetsu Academy. Anyway, this was a really fun chapter to write, so I hope you enjoyed it! As always, suggestions, recommendations and any kind of feed back is greatly appreciated! See you next time!