*HOUSE TOKITO*
Tanjiro, under the guise of Sumiko, a newly acquired courtesan in the Entertainment District, worked hard and diligently at his new place of employment. He fixed the threading of the courtesan's kimonos and futons, wiped the floors clean, helped them find their lost make-up with his keen sense of smell, and even carried Oiran Koinatsu's gifts up to her room. He wasn't doing it to stay on their good graces after the madam of the house found his burned scar mark on his fore-head (although, that experience, along with the harsh hair-tugging, did hurt quite a bit) but simply because he wanted to help!
Carrying and balancing five gifts stacked on one another on each hand easily, he made his way to Oiran Koinatsu's room and set them gently in the room. As he did so, he saw two little girls in the adjacent room speaking in soft voices. One of them had been gazing out the window with a concerned and troubled expression before sliding it closed.
He didn't mean to eavesdrop but he heard their conversation.
"They say the Kyogoku's House's madam died from falling out of a window."
"That's awful. Let's be careful, okay? And have you noticed some of the older girls running away, committing ashinuke?"
"That's scary."
Tanjiro, with a gift in his hand, poked his head into the room with a smile. "What even is ashinuke?" He asked trying to make it seem like a curious question. He hoped learning what it was could help give him any leads as to Miss Suma's disappearance. Has she committed this ashinuke? Or was she compromised as Lord Uzui feared? Even though he tried to hide it, Tanjiro could smell how unsettled the hashira was by his wives' disappearance.
The two girls joined him in the room and their eyes widened at the gifts he carried easily. "That's a lot of baggage to carry," They stated in surprise.
"I think they're all gifts for Oiran Koinatsu," He replied rearranging the dozen gifts on the floor.
The conversation took a slight turn but was immediately brought back to his original question by one of the girls. "You said you've never heard of ashinuke? It's probably a good thing you haven't," She sighed out sadly. ""Ashinuke" means to run away without paying off your debts. And it's really bad if you get caught."
"Why do they do that?" He asked them with the slight tilt of his head.
The other girl then answered him, "Some people try running away in order to be with the man they're in love with. Like Oiran Suma did the other day."
That immediately piqued Tanjiro's interest.
"Listen-" Tanjiro tried to speak but was interrupted.
"You two shouldn't be spreading rumors. After all, nobody knows her whereabouts now. Who knows what happened to her?" Oiran Koinatsu spoke kindly and sadly about the disappearance of Miss Suma. She stood at the foot of her doorway with a troubled expression at their conversation but her brown eyes went wide at the pile of gifts Tanjiro brought up. "You brought these up by yourself? Thank you," She said with a gentle smile.
Tanjiro blushed under her soft gaze. She was quite a beautiful woman dressed to the utmost elegance. Lord Uzui was right; oiran's beauty were unmatched. She was kind, tender, and humble. He could smell it just from within a couple feet of her. His eyes ran from head to toe and she wore lavish jewelry that sparkled in the light. Her outfit were the kind to make Nezuko and Hanako swoon over how pretty but expensive they were. Outfits he wished his sisters had the opportunity to wear.
Realizing he had been quiet, Tanjiro quickly said, "Oh, it's my pleasure."
Oiran Koinatsu approached with a light, "Come here."
She delicately grabbed his wrist and held it up close to her. Tanjiro tried to hide the deepened blush on his cheekbones, small droplets of sweat running down the side of his face, when she placed a small, filled handkerchief in his palm. He heard it clink softly against one another, like marbles softly rolling against the other. The handkerchief opened to reveal a dozen round, bright orange pieces of candy. A gift from Oiran Koinatsu... He thought he felt his heart flutter.
"Please, accept this candy as my thanks," She spoke warmly with her smile never fading. "Keep it secret, or you'll have to share it."
Tanjiro smiled when the small girls started pleading for more candy from oiran. He safely tucked the candy within the sleeve of his haori but settled his eyes back on her. "Um... did Oiran Suma really commit ashinuke?"
Oiran Koinatsu's eyes slightly narrowed at his question. "May I ask why you're so curious about that?" She asked suddenly guarded.
Tanjiro released a silent gasp at the oiran. He made a mistake underestimating her intelligence. He had hoped she wouldn't get suspicious of his question, but, looking back at it now, it was a silly miracle. The oiran would be concerned about a new girl asking about one of her former courtesans' disappearance when so much death is occurring around the Entertainment District. With her guard up, he needed to find a way around it and ask about Miss Suma. Even if it meant... lying.
"It's just... Oiran Suma is-She's actually... Believe it or not..." He felt his heart racing as he began to answer. His throat was beginning to constrict on him, his hand clenching tightly at his side, sweat running down his head, staring into the eyes of a woman he was going to lie to. Forcing the groan out of his mouth, feeling the tight scrunch of his face and his eyes falling upwards towards the ceiling, he finished, "She's my... elder sister."
Tanjiro doesn't like lying, and he never lies. Whenever he's forced to do so, his face scrunches up into an unpleasant look and he is unable to look his victim in the eyes.
"What?!" Oiran Koinatsu and the two girls shrieked in surprise.
Tanjiro's face didn't relax once.
Oiran Koinatsu released a small breath. "I think I understand now. So you were sold shortly after your sister."
"Yes, that's right. The entire time she was here with you, I was exchanging letters with her. I promise you she isn't the type of person who would commit ashinuke," He forced himself to speak still not meeting the oiran's eyes.
Oiran Koinatsu sighed out, "Oh, I had no idea."
Tanjiro let out a sigh of his own and let himself relax. The oiran seemed to have believed him for now and lying would no longer be required, hopefully.
Oiran Koinatsu's eyes saddened and softened when she spoke, "I was surprised as well. I could hardly believe that Suma would commit ashinuke. She was such a well-behaved girl. There were no signs that she was infatuated with any man. But they ended up finding her diary. I heard they read through the entire thing and found she'd written about running off."
Even as something small as journal writing speaking of ashinuke, everyone was ready to believe it and drop the investigation into Miss Suma's disappearance. Ashinuke... demons couldn't ask for a more perfect coverup. If someone were to vanish, like Miss Suma, Makio, or Hinatsuru, people would only assume she'd run away. The diary could have been forged.
I pray that you're safe, Miss Suma, but if you're not, we're going to rescue you.
*HOUSE OGIMOTO*
Kagami and Inosuke, under the guise of courtesans Kanaka and Inoko, roamed the avocado green halls they've been staying in for a couple nights. As the sun shined brightly above in the sky, they balanced a tray of bowls in their hands with the most displeased expressions on their faces. Inosuke was greatly annoyed at having to wear clothes, complaining it made him hot to the core and dulled his beast senses, but Kagami was furious about the special treatment he was receiving.
The madam of the house believed Inosuke, or Inoko for that matter, was going to be their shining star. The perfect courtesan to rise their house to the top because of his beautiful face! Ha! If only they heard him speak! They would quickly change their minds and go running to Kagami. Or... at least she thought they will.
No one gave Kagami a second glance. The only time they did so was to judge the shape and build of her body with their eyes and mouths. They had given her and Inosuke new kimonos to wear. She was given the pink kimono with the cherry blossom pattern while he got the teal kimono with the purple flower pattern. When she had stripped in front of them, she heard the silent gasps falling from their mouths at their first look at her. How burly her arms and legs were, the muscular abdomen she honed, and the hard callouses adorning her palms. Everything had been hidden underneath the large kimono Uzui gave her, as if he knew they would be disgusted by her.
For the first time, Kagami felt disgusted by the physique of her body.
She thought back to the times when her body didn't have muscle sticking out of every surface of her skin. When she was just a small, feeble girl who could hardly deflect and defend herself against her father's shinai attacks during training. How soft, smooth, and supple her skin was, and how the courtesans kept their bodies safe from discoloration, scarring, and battle. A luxury she couldn't have.
All anger left her body and she hung her shoulders forward jetting out a small sigh. She had to get used to being disgusted from other people. Especially the men who won't ever want her.
"What's with the wimpy sigh?" She heard Inosuke grumble from beside her.
Kagami ignored the bait and grumbled back, "You won't understand, but... I just feel inadequate."
When she looked at him, he gave her a stupid face. She emitted a small growl from her throat and quickly looked around. The hallways were dim and no courtesans seemed to be around.
"What I mean is, when I look at all the courtesans, I am disgusted by my own body," She huffed out trying to blink away the burning sensation in her eyes. "They're so beautiful and delicate. There's not a single mark on their bodies. They've never been through harsh training, battles, or faced any demons. They're so feminine and just can be... like normal girls. But me? I can probably kill a man with one punch. I battled so many demons I lost count, and more than half I almost died. No man will ever choose me to be his bride."
She had closed her eyes. A single tear ran down her cheek as the silence between them continued.
Then, she felt a tiny whack to the side of her face.
Kagami opened her eyes in surprise and saw Inosuke standing in front of her with his hand lifted. A mixture of boredom and annoyance stretched his face looking at her. "Who cares about that stuff?" He huffed. "As long as I am the strongest, I don't care what other people see or think of me. Hell, I'll beat them up to show them who's boss! You shouldn't care what they think of you either. I bet you can defeat every single person in this building no sweat! And that isn't something to be ashamed of! I'll tell you one thing: I wouldn't choose a soft weakling who would get in my way in battle. I'd rather have someone who can fight and stay at my side no matter what."
Her eyes widen in surprise at his words. He gave her another tiny whack to her head.
A deep blush ran across her cheekbones mulling over his words. How he would rather have a woman who is strong and can hold her own in battle. How someone will stay at his side no matter what. She thought back to Mount Natagumo and refused to give up on him. She stayed by him even on the brink of death. Was he... talking about her?
Then, his eyes landed on the redness on her face. "D-Don't you get any ideas!" He immediately exclaimed.
Kagami only giggled and smiled brightly at him. "Thank you, Inosuke, I needed that."
Inosuke only looked more dumbfounded at her response but small stars sparkled around his head nonetheless.
"Do you think Makio is adjusting here all right?"
Both Kagami and Inosuke had forgotten the topic at hand in an instant. Their eyes narrowed and ears perked at the name of Uzui's wife. Two courtesans walked by the adjacent hallway not noticing them. They immediately hurried to the end of theirs and pressed their backs against the wall, listening in to the conversation.
"Well, she's been locked up in her room ever since she got here."
"She mentioned not feeling very well, but keeps refusing to go to a hospital."
"If she doesn't do something, the Madam's going to drag her out."
"I brought a meal to her room, but she didn't come out to get it, so I ended up having to leave it outside her door."
Kagami and Inosuke exchanged knowing glances. It was about time they found a new lead, but it was absurd. Not feeling well shouldn't be enough to stop Makio from checking in with Uzui. If she is sick, she'll be inside recovering in her room. It wouldn't hurt to check in with her and see how she is doing.
They started to rush toward Makio's room but were stopped.
"Careful, Inoko, Kanaka. You'll hurt yourself rushing around like that," One of the courtesans spoke.
Kagami flashed them a grin and bowed. "We're so sorry. Thank you for the warning," She said sweetly.
Inosuke only bowed and continued walking.
All the courtesans thought Inosuke as a quiet, shy girl. That couldn't be further from the truth. Inosuke was forbidden from speaking inside the Ogimoto house during investigating.
"You've got the voice of a dying animal, so don't say a word. Oh, and if you try putting on a girl's voice, it'll just make you creepier, if that's even possible."
Uzui wasn't pleasant about it, either.
As Kagami and Inosuke continued their way to Makio's room, they had no idea what was lurking within the depths of the darkened room shredded down to just its foundation.
Tiny tufts of cotton floated stillessly in the air, the three walls and wooden flooring carved deep with long gashes spraying the once perfect floor with large splinters, the window curtains drawn to keep the sunlight from reaching inside, and the door to the room tightly shut to keep intruders from peering in. Hanging from wall to wall, draping from the ceiling, ensnaring anything it touches like a spider's web, was a long pink purple-flower patterned obi sash. It had been the cause of the room's destruction.
Trapped inside was a young woman with pale skin and large golden brown eyes. Her black hair was tied in a ponytail behind her, her golden brown bangs framing her face. She wore a red, sleeveless striped dress that ended mid-thigh and revealed her cleavage. The obi sash wrapped harshly around her legs, waist, arms, and mouth tethered and secured her to the ground. Lines of blood ran down from her fore-head to her neck.
Four brown envelopes smacked into the ground in front of her.
"Now, then, answer me. Who was it that you were writing all of these little letters to? What was your name? Oh, I remember. It's Makio, isn't it?" A deep, luscious, female voice purred down at her.
Makio lifted her head and stared in defiance.
"Answer me at once, Makio."
The luscious voice stopped, hearing two sets of feet approaching the room.
Makio didn't expect to be rescued. She was caught in the demon's trap and had been for several days. She fought against the tight restraints that had her fighting for air and hoped whoever was approaching didn't open the door. Not just for her sake, but for theirs too. She had lost contact with Suma first then Hinatsuru, Lord Tengen afterwards. She hoped they were all right. Perhaps the obi sash would be distracted long enough for Makio to send word to Lord Tengen before it was too late.
A muffled, painful groan suddenly choked out of her.
The obi sash wrapped more of itself around her abdomen and squeezed so hard the breath was taken out of her. Her ribs felt like they were going to crack and shatter under the immense pressure, her heart and lungs compressed tightly in her chest! It lifted her high in the air, tugging at her arms and legs ferociously as well.
"If you cause a scene, I'll have your insides ground up into a bloody pulp," She barely heard the voice purr down at her through her blood-pounding head.
Unbeknownst to the pain Makio was suffering inside her room, Kagami and Inosuke quietly climbed up to the second floor and peered around the corner. Sitting in front of a courtesan's room was a tray of steaming food. It still looked untouched. That must be the tray the courtesan brought for Makio, making it her room. Though, the fact it remained untouched unnerved Kagami. A sick person would need all the nutrition they could get in order to heal. Why would Makio refuse her meals?
Is she really sick or... in trouble?
Kagami noted how unusually quiet it was.
The sun was starting to go down. The courtesans, especially Makio, should already be getting ready for the night.
"Tch," Inosuke suddenly scoffed from beside her, "Here I am, sittin' around, doing nothing! That's not my style!"
Kagami tried to pull the hard-headed, no-thinking-things-though boar-headed freak back as he ran straight for Makio's room! It was so like him to go charging into battle without thinking of a plan first! He did it in the Tsuzumi Mansion, Mount Natagumo, the Mugen Train, and now the Entertainment District. When will he ever learn? Doesn't matter then! Kagami quickly followed behind him and let him roughly pull the sliding doors open!
Horrified gasps left their mouths at the sight.
Her room was completely destroyed. Her futon was shredded, little blobs of cotton flying in the air, her mirror smashed and shattered into a million pieces, long gashes of splintered wood lining the walls and floors, but, what was most curious, was the large board spanning her room. Newspapers and articles spanning over a hundred years on demon appearances and talks of demons in Yoshiwara, women committing ashinuke, courtesans turning up missing or even dead, and much more lined the large board. Makio seemed to be doing intensive research on her own but, looking over her decimated room, was caught. By no other than the demon terrorizing Yoshiwara no doubt.
Uzui was right to be fearful for his wives'! They were captured by the demon!
Curiously, Kagami felt a cool breeze flow through her hair. The wind tugged relentlessly upwards at her.
"The attic!" Inosuke gasped looking up at the shredded ceiling. The small tufts of cotton were floating upwards towards the slashes embedded within! Grabbing the bowl of hot udon, he flung it towards the ceiling! The ceramic broke instantly upon impact, shattering to his screams, "Hey, coward! I'm onto you!"
As the noodles and broth sloshed to the ground, the whole entire ceiling shook violently!
The light fixture spun sporadically, piles of dust and dirt spilling to the ground, and the room started to vibrate with it. The aura emitting from the attic was powerful and it sought refuge there to hide from the sunlight. There's only one place for it to go, but it can't leave because daylight is still brimming outside! Now Kagami and Inosuke just need to catch the damn thing before it's too late!
Like thundering footsteps belonging to a giant, it began to move across the attic and towards the other side at a rapid pace!
Kagami and Inosuke quickly followed behind. They ran through the hallways at full speed, tripping and stumbling over their restricting kimonos, not caring for the courtesans or customers they bumped into along the way. They ran through occupied rooms of women getting their make-up and hair ready, scaring them out of their minds, but they only kept moving. The demon had taken Makio, it must've! Kagami could sense multiple different auras rushing along the roof and knew one of them had to be Makio's!
"Its gotta come down using the walls at some point!" Inosuke growled taking the lead down another hallway.
The hallway ended at a T where the demon had been heading! It had already begun rushing down the wall!
Inosuke reared his fist back, screaming, "Like right now!" and shoved it forward!
"Where are you off to in a rush, good-look-!"
Inosuke's fist smashed into the sudden appearance of drunken customer's face and let his head smash into the wall behind him. The drunken customer was immediately knocked unconscious as his head splintered and cracked the wall like a spider's web. Kagami almost cared-but was more frustrated the hit into the wall was too early! The aura of the demon went straight into the first floor!
She immediately jumped down the staircase and desperately tried to sense its aura.
Instead she was getting the courtesans!
No, no, no! She thought she would able to pinpoint the demon's location but there's so many people it's messing up with her aura detection. Just like a few days ago when she tried to find Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Inosuke, the bustling district kept her from doing so! Not to mention their kimonos were keeping Inosuke from feeling the demon's presence, and that stupid man getting in his way! Did she-did they-actually lose the demon? Did they lose Makio?
*HOUSE KYOGOKU*
Zenitsu, under the guise of the courtesan Zenko, mindlessly wandered the purple cherry blossom printed hallway. His kimono swayed lazily at his feet, courtesans brushing by him hurrying to get ready as the night started to grow closer, but he paid no attention to the beautiful women. Instead, he stared solemnly in the air in front of him and continued slumping along minding his own business.
I almost forgot why I came here in the first place. I'm supposed to be looking for Mr. Uzui's wife, Ms. Hinatsuru. Playing the shamisen and the koto probably won't help much with doing that. But it's not like anything else is happening here. I've been all ears since I arrived, and I still haven't heard a word about Ms. Hinatsuru. Then again, the owner of this house died two days ago, which makes sense why everyone is somber around here.
The madam's death was swept under the rug quickly, which was surprising to Zenitsu, but if a demon is involved it had to be the clear reason why.
Placing two fingers at the base of his ear, Zenitsu stopped his wandering and closed his eyes. He placed most of his concentration into his hearing and listened to the frantic chattering of the courtesans around him. Their conversations were all about getting ready for the busy night ahead of them, but below the restless talking was the sound of a girl crying.
That's no good. A girl is crying.
Zenitsu hurried to the source and found himself on the second floor. He slowly approached a closed room and heard the crying even clearer than before. Carefully sliding the rickety door open, he peered his head inside, letting light from the hallway stream and light up the extremely darkened room. It was completely trashed! Furniture, pillows, vases, make-up, and even paintings were strewn all over the floor! Sitting in the middle of the lonely room was a little girl crying into her hands.
"Hey! What the hell happened here?! Seriously! Your room's a mess!" Zenitsu exclaimed forgetting about his Zenko persona.
The little girl turned, startled, and he gasped seeing marks on her chin and cheek.
"Did you get into a fight?! Are you okay?! Who did this?!" He shrieked once again in dismay but the little girl only turned away from him. "Uh, hey, don't cry," He spoke softer, using his girl voice, rushing into the room. He knelt by her side, tenderly rubbing her back, and tried to soften the crying. "What's going on? Are you all right? Sorry I yelled like that. I-I wasn't angry or anything, I swear. It's just... I was surprised. That's all."
B-DMP!
Zenitsu, in less than a second, froze up in absolute terror.
"You there... What do you think you're doing in my room?"
A cold, sinister female voice growled down at him from above.
A lump grew so thick in his throat it hurt to swallow. A cold sweat broke out across his fore-head and down his back, letting droplets of fear slide down his face. The hand he was using to comfort the girl shook ferociously in the air. His heartbeat was pounding so loud in his chest he could hear it in his ears. The atmosphere weighed heavily on his shoulders. His eyes shook and wavered landing on one spot on the shattered ground. He didn't dare turn around to look at who was standing behind him.
That sound... that's not a human sound behind me. That's a demon.
His eyes shakily stared at the elongated, demonic shadow casting on to the floor from the light fixture hanging in the hallway.
I didn't even notice she was there until she started speaking. How is that possible? This sound is bad news. I've never heard one so ominously quiet before. Which means...
His breaths started coming out in ragged shudders at just the thought.
...This is an Upper Rank Demon.
"What's wrong? Are you deaf, girl?" The same voice growled at him.
Zenitsu's fear didn't dissipate nor falter at the approach of 2 more human heartbeats.
"Uh, p-please wait, Oiran Warabihime," A small voice of a girl whimpered out from the doorway. From where he sat, he could see the addition of two more smaller shadows joining the room. "That girl is brand new. She just started here the day before yesterday."
The clinking of hairpins interrupted the deafening, horrifying silence.
"And? So what if she's new?" She heard the demon scoff.
Zenitsu turned, against his better instincts, and set his eyes on Oiran Warabihime. She was beautiful, much like Oiran Koinatsu, but they were nothing alike. The heartbeat of Koinatsu was warm, soft, and kind, while Warabihime was malicious, sadistic, and threatened the spill of blood. Her lime green eyes with the demonic mark of the cat-slit pupils, contrasting her pale skin tone and midnight black hair, shifted from the two girls to him when he faced her on his knees.
Swallowing another lump, he frantically pleaded, "Forgive me if I intruded. I saw this room was a mess, and I heard a girl crying in here."
Oiran Warabihime didn't hesitate to turn her face from him, scoffing, "Why are you so damn hideous? My goodness! Looking at you makes me ill." Then, she stared unwavering angry and disgusted into his eyes, spitting, "Girls like you are better off dead. Also, what's with that hair color? You look like a sore thumb."
That... cut him deep. He wasn't that ugly... right?!
"In any case, you're right. This room is still in shambles, isn't it?" Oiran Warabihime's low voice sounded from her throat as she moved past his body and to the crying girl. "If I'm not mistaken, I told you to clean it up."
The crying girl's sobbing stopped and she choked out a small whimper.
Oiran Warabihime reached down and grabbed hold of the girl's ear, harshly tugging her off her knees and forcing her on her feet. At the new painful yelps and sobs spewing from the girl's mouth, Warabihime hissed, "Shut your mouth! Stop all that screaming and start cleaning, brat!"
"I'm sorry! Forgive me, Oiran!" The girl desperately begged but Warabihime wouldn't let go of her ear. "I'll clean it all up! Just please let go!"
At the sound of the girl's fearful crying, at the blood leaking from the ear that was about to be torn off, Zenitsu stood on his feet and didn't hesitate to grasp the demon's arm! His angry breaths came out in heaves and his teeth grounded against one another. His tight hold on the demon would've broken a normal person's arm, which shows just how powerful a demon Warabihime is. What a barbaric act against a small child! It was unforgivable!
"What's this?" She growled in disbelief.
Zenitsu stared straight into her eyes and didn't back down when he ordered, "Please... take your hands off her."
It was a battle of dominance.
The demon's stare was nothing but pure wrath. Her lips pursed in displeasure and a vein protruded from her fore-head. She didn't let go of the girl's ear but Zenitsu didn't let go of her wrist. "What did you say to me? I dare you to say that again," She hissed never removing her stare from his. The aura was incredibly overwhelming and she promised him pain.
"Please, take your hands off of her," He didn't hesitate to repeat.
The cat-slit pupils narrowed. "Up close... you're even uglier than I thought."
She was trying to unnerve him!
"Take your-" He tried to speak, but she instead interrupted him in a low, guttural, furious voice that ran chills down his spine, "Who do you think you are? How dare you touch me?"
Warabihime wrestled her wrist out of his grasp. Before he could react, she curled it into a fist and smacked the back of it into his face. It was the last thing he felt before he immediately lost consciousness.
He didn't know how long he had been asleep. In his sleep, he was hearing his courtesan name over and over again.
"Zenko!"
Zenitsu woke with a start.
Sitting upright with a startled gasp, his eyes immediately landed on the three small girls he had seen earlier in Oiran Warabihime's room. They smiled kindly and gently at him. W-Why are they all staring at him like that? "What just happened?" He almost stammered seeing he was placed in his futon back in his room.
"After you got punched, you blacked out, Zenko! We were worried sick!" Girl #1 exclaimed.
Right, the demon punched him unconscious with just one move. How embarrassing.
"I'm just a bit dizzy is all," He tried to casually speak wincing as his fingers brushed over the bruise forming on his cheek. "I had the weirdest dream I had become a man. Haha."
The same girl smiled and said, "We brought you some food, Zenko, so eat up!"
Girl #3 handed him a warm towel, giggling, "And use this to keep the swelling down."
As he placed the towel over the bruise, flinching as he did, the girl who had been crying and abused earlier, softly spoke, "Thank you for earlier. This only happened because you defended me."
Zenitsu smirked and posed for them, huffing in a deep, macho voice, "Of course, I did. Any man would rescue a girl in need. Isn't that right?" Then, he realized what he had done. "Not that I'm a man or anything! Just that any human would do it! Eh, especially if you're the eldest daughter, uh, like I am! That's why I can't just stand by while a younger girl is crying!"
"That's not true at all," She smiled. "Everyone here is busy just trying to take care of themselves each day. This is the very first time we've met someone kind as you."
That surprised him.
As they left, Zenitsu mulled over their encouraging words. No one has ever said he was kind, just that he was weird, annoying, and a nuisance. Their faces, their smiles, looked and felt genuine. Their eyes brightened seeing him. It felt... good to be appreciated. Maybe he'd like staying at Kyogoku House a little longer to help with Lord Uzui finding his wife.
Except... he didn't see, feel, or hear an obi sash dropping from the ceiling behind him.