4. watching wind, sand, and water converge.

Is Sanemi, like, the world's unluckiest asshole ever?

Kanata genuinely remembers that Masachika is meant to die, but, he had no idea when it happened or where they were, and there was no way he could have given them any support until he got the news about Sanemi becoming a Hashira.

And of course, that raging dumbass broke his sword again. Kanata is beginning to feel unnecessarily homicidal.

"Kanata! Kanata! New sword order! New sword needs to be made!"

He'd been sitting in a dango shop in some nondescript town in the middle of his journey, when Yashahane makes the fervent report.

He had his usual Hyottoko mask set aside, a cloth mask tied over just his eyes so he could enjoy his meal. Paired with his fan and breathing style, he could be mistaken as a traditional dancer, which helps avoid cops in this age of sword bans.

He doesn't put much notice toward the child that served him the dango just yet. It's common for children to help out in this era, and since this was a wisteria house, he wouldn't be surprised if this child was an orphan survivor from a demon attack. That's very common.

"And! Shinazugawa Sanemi and Kumeno Masachika have defeated Lower Moon One! Shinazugawa Sanemi advances to the rank of Hashira!"

Morbid. You don't become a Hashira if you kill a Moon in a team, (at least, not usually,) so Sanemi basically only got the title because Masachika died. Damn.

"A new sword is required! A new sword is required!"

"Hmm," Kanata thinks Yashahane is excited enough for the both of them, so he can just enjoy his dango, take his time, and figure out how long he'll loiter around before making his way to the Butterfly Mansion. Sanemi definitely needs a long break, and the more Kanata dallies, the longer he has. Maybe he'll go the long way around.

"Wh– wait!"

Something shatters. And the child serving him— oh, was that tea for me— rushes forward, forgetting the broken tray and crockery to grab at Kanata's collar almost confrontationally.

Yashahane yelps, scuttering away, not wanting to be a part of the conflict.

"You!"

They're almost the same age. Kanata's older by just a bit, logically speaking, but this kid is just naturally big in physique.

The point is: "you know my big brother?!"

Shinazugawa Genya has been living in Wisteria Houses ever since his brother left him behind to become a demon slayer. And this is most likely the first time in a long, long time he's been allowed to learn any information about him.

Oh wow.

Sanemi's the world's unluckiest bastard, ever, and Kanata is going to go and shove this right in his face. Who cares if his best friend just died, Kanata just found his estranged younger brother. Perfect. Let's double up the trauma on that guy, can't possibly get any worse anyways.

"Yasha, change of plans," Kanata isn't at all bothered by the collar grab, and this infuriates Genya as Kanata simply glances toward his crow. "Let's go to Butterfly Mansion now."

"Hey, listen to me!"

Kanata reaches up and pats him on the head.

Genya freezes. He lets out a horrified, "what?"

And Kanata nods. Yep, he's definitely Sanemi's younger brother. How cute.

"Oh, I have a gun," Kanata remembers. "Do you want to use a gun?"

"What???"

-

Butterfly Mansion is always a fond sight. Slayers are recuperating here all year, healing after battle and getting back into shape.

"Oh! It's been a while, Kanata-san!"

Aoi has been off-duty for a whole year now at this point.

Unprecedentedly, she takes her sword with her at all times even in the mansion and does sword and breath training drills in the morning. Corps members that notice it gossip all the time about her unfavourably, but she doesn't let it bother her.

"You're here for the oaf, right? He's been making a fuss, I heard he kicked up a ruckus at the Hashira Meeting and embarrassed himself. Kanae-sama hasn't let him live it down yet, so he's been a grump," Aoi says, like a situational report as she takes down the laundry and loads the baskets.

Kanata watches her go on like a housewife, and decides to take one of the baskets for her as they walk on inside together.

"And who's that?"

She finally takes notice of Genya, who's nervously looking around, clutching a case containing a gun that Kanata shoved at him and refused to take back. He's clutching it like a security blanket, and Aoi turns her gaze to Kanata, accusingly.

"Why does he look like Sanemi?"

Genya perks up immediately at that.

And Kanata answers, "Shinazugawa Genya."

Aoi pauses.

Then, "I am so sorry," she says, bowing with deepest sincerity to the boy. Doesn't matter if Genya's taller than her. "Live strong."

"Ah— right," Genya stumbles, bowing because he doesn't know what the hell's going on, "no, I am... uh... sorry. For any trouble my brother may have caused as well."

"Kanata," Aoi says, and since there's no honorific, Kanata straightens to attention.

"Yes."

"You're bringing this kid to Sanemi?"

"Yes."

"Alright. A single scratch on this kid and I'm pouring water into your bag."

"Please don't. I will protect him with my life."

"You better."

"I swear. Don't touch my bag."

-

Aoi opens the door, and immediately steps aside, hooking an arm around Genya's so he stands by her. Kanata, who is simply confused about her movement, gets a faceful of feet as Sanemi lunges at him from his bed.

"FUCKER!"

They go flying to the far wall in a loud heap.

Genya yelps, but Aoi is unfazed.

"The sword fucking BROKE! Apologize to Masachika, you little bitch!"

It really isn't Kanata's fault that they decided to go fight Lower Moon One. That's literally the highest-ranked a Moon has ever been spotted for the past hundred years.

Kanata whines when his woven sash belt snaps from the impact, it's a worn out thing but that seemed to be the last straw for it— and his haori, along with multiple things snagged to the belt, all scatter about messily in the corridor as he lands unceremoniously on it with Sanemi's foot in his forehead, and the rest of his weight on his stomach.

Sure, Sanemi is technically standing on his mask and not his literal face skin, but somehow, it's worse.

Kanata is now upset.

"N-" Genya stutters, terrified that this is how he's meeting his brother for the first time in years, "Nii-chan?"

"HUH?"

Sanemi whirls around and promptly flinches.

The case in Genya's arms, marked with the symbol of swordsmith village, answers his question— and Sanemi rips his eyes away from his brother to yell at Kanata again.

"You piece of shit! How'd you find him?! And why did you bring him here??"

Genya panics. ."Wha– no! It's not Kanata-san's fault, I—" he hesitates when the glare is shot at him with so much putrid anger he cowers, "I wanted to find you..."

"So you brought him to fucking HEADQUARTERS?!" Sanemi's volume goes another decibel higher, it's still directed at Kanata. "I will fucking shatter your teeth you ignorant fucker! He's a civilian!"

"Shinazugawa-san," Aoi calls.

"When the FUCK did I become Shinazugawa-fucking-SAN?!" Sanemi whirls on her. "You're creeping me out!"

"Shinazugawa-san," she repeats with emphasis, just to be annoying. "Shatter his teeth or whatever, can you do it outside? Also, you broke his sawdust gourd and now there's sand everywhere. Who do you think is cleaning this up?"

"Maybe once you explain to me why you brought HIM here!!" Sanemi roars back, pointing at Genya like he was some mortal enemy.

Genya looked utterly shattered, "N- Nii-chan, stop stepping on him! I'm the one that asked to be here—"

"You fucking GET OUT!" Sanemi howls.

Alright. Kanata has had enough.

"Back up—!' Aoi notices it first, grabbing Genya by the sleeve and dragging him back.

"Huh?" Sanemi notices a moment after her. A moment too late. And then his face goes pale. "Fu—" but it's too late to get off now.

Kanata's hand is on his sword's handle. All it takes is a sharp flick against the tsuba, and it unlatches from the sheathe.

Sand Breathing, Fifth Form: Shamal

砂の呼吸・ 伍ノ型 ・シャマル

The lurch of sand spears upward from underneath Kanata, ripping apart clothes, upturning every stray article on the ground, and shredding through Sanemi's skin as he hurries to shield at least the important organs of his face.

"OW!"

Aoi roars, just barely out of range. "Kanata, that is an INJURED MAN!"

Actually, that is a dead man if Kanata has anything to say about it.

"Fucker— Kanata! I don't have a sword right now! Fight me without your blades!"

Oh, your sword's broken. How unfortunate. Too bad you didn't have thirty spare swords in your bag, like me.

"Wait— is that mine?"

Kanata picks up another sword. It's nicely wrapped in a cloth, and the sword guard is an intricate fold of blades circling the hilt with a rich green tinge. It's a gorgeous sword.

Kanata tosses it in Aoi's direction, and she catches it with alarm.

"Hold on now— don't fight here–!!"

Kanata's not listening. He has his fan out, flicking them out with his wrist. Sanemi is cursing up a storm because you can't just dodge the blades of those things, any wind it causes is in the range of his blade too and— he's the Wind Hashira now, okay? He knows damn well how hard it is to dodge wind!

Sanemi is also very, very injured right now.

So, three more steps and Kanata has a closed fan pinned on Sanemi's neck against the wall. He could retaliate but he's not risking it. If that fan so much as shifts just a bit, Shamal will erupt all over again.

"Oh for fuck's sake! Kanata, I will kill you the second I get my damn sword!" Sanemi yells, "I said my bad, alright? I said it! Stop it!"

No, you stepped on me. Die.

Sanemi still doesn't understand Shamal, but he knows two things: much like iaijutsu, the attack comes in a flash right after Kanata unsheathes any weapon, and two, it's way more lethal when he uses his fan to do it.

"Oh dear, you two are at it?"

Chuckling, Makomo steps in from the courtyard, smiling wide at the sight. Why the hell does she just happen to be here today? Is this a class reunion?

Behind her are two boys— newly-minted slayers, both with a fox mask on the sides of their heads that was similar to the one around Makomo's obi.

Kanata glances over with surprise. Those are some very familiar faces.

"This fucker started it!" Sanemi yells, using the distraction to snag the hand with the fan in it and hold it away by the fingers so Kanata couldn't even wriggle. Kanata then pulls out his shortsword with his other hand and Sanemi yells, grabbing him by the wrist before it fully comes down. "Goddamn it, you are seriously trying to kill me! Stop it!"

Kanata responds with a sharp kick upward between their arms, nailing Sanemi right in the jaw.

Makomo bursts out laughing.

Aoi groans, "Both of you, STOP IT!"

-

"Sabito, Giyuu, these guys are from the final selection class as I was," Makomo introduces them over tea. "Tecchikawara Kanata, the swordsmith; Kanzaki Aoi, secondary supervisor of the Butterfly Mansion; and Shinazugawa Sanemi, the newly instated Wind Hashira."

"Bitch. You're supposed to introduce us in order of ranking."

"Yes. Was there a problem?"

"Fuck you."

Gathered around the tea table, Sanemi sits by the veranda while his brother sits beside Kanata, nervous about the blatant rejection.

Aoi serves the tea, taking the extra steps to walk over to Sanemi and deliberately drops it at head level so he has to yelp and catch it himself.

"Wh–HEY! Bitch!"

"You're welcome."

Sabito is watching, amused, and Giyuu is honestly perplexed. Is this how friends are? Is he the only one that thinks this is weird?

Genya watches in awe. And slight guilt.

He'll probably never get used to seeing his brother so curt and temperamental. The fact that it's his fault only makes it all weigh down on him. The tea is bitter on his tongue and he can't enjoy it at all.

He doesn't really belong in this mansion, and his brother is right. It's one thing to stay in the wisteria houses as fellow victims, but the people here were born and raised among wisteria to care for the hardworking slayers.

"A swordsmith is a demon slayer?" Sabito asks, "cool! So you make your own swords?"

Kanata nods. He lifts his mask just a little, blowing on his tea before taking a sip.

"Oh! You're quiet, just like Giyuu."

Kanata nods again. 

They're both older than him, but apparently, they're only Mizunoto[10] at this point. Makomo's already Kinoe [1] just like Sanemi was, and though everyone expects her to become the next Water Hashira just like her teacher, she hasn't quite met the qualifications yet. She's yet to defeat a Demon Moon. She's not the only one of her kind, though. Rengoku Kyoujuro (currently Kinoto[2]) is quickly catching up and very eager to take his father's mantle. 

There's also Kanae's Tsuguko, Shinobu. The Corps are flourishing with their current generation.

"Sabito-kun and Giyuu-kun. That's rude."

Kanata didn't mind, but Aoi called them out the second they started inching way too close forward in an attempt to look up Kanata's lifted mask. They straightened at once.

Genya had also been sneaking a glance, but upon hearing them be called out, he averted his eyes and tried to pretend he wasn't doing it too.

Makomo smirks. "It's a pretty face underneath it."

"You're making us even more curious," Sabito whines. "Right, Giyuu?"

Giyuu nods, "isn't' it hard to drink like that?"

"Nowadays Kanata takes it off when fighting, but since he's doing swordsmith duty now, he won't be taking it off," Aoi says. "It's vital for swordsmiths to hide their identities, anyways, so they can work and still be anonymous outside the village. It helps them stay safe. They don't take it off even here, because it's their tradition."

"Not that it matters for the piece of crap," Sanemi grumbles from the veranda.

A saucer goes flying through the air, and Sanemi swerves his head aside to avoid it without even glancing back.

"Kanata! No throwing the crockery!" Aoi hollers, even though she's in the hallways now.

Makomo giggles.

"See, you two?" she gestures vaguely at them, "this is why you should keep in contact with your classmates. They're a riot, aren't they?"

Sabito and Giyuu settle back down.

"Even if you say that... the only other guy that survived is a— well," Sabito averts his eyes, sipping his tea to avoid elaborating.

"He's a dick," Giyuu says, and Sabito spits out his tea.

"Who taught you the derogatory meaning of that word?!"

"Makomo did."

"Makomo!" Sabito turns accusingly at her, and she only starts laughing harder. She laughs so hard she has to clutch her stomach and double over on the tatami.

"There's plenty of assholes around," Aoi says, "there's one right over here."

She nudges Sanemi's side with her foot and promptly hops away when Sanemi whirls around to snatch her ankle in retaliation. He misses and his lower half drops over the side of the veranda with a yelp.

Idiot's rebruised his tender ribs.

"N- Nii-chan, are you oka—"

"Shut up, Genya! LEAVE!"

Genya ducks away behind Kanata, who pats him on the head.

"What was his name? I might know him," Aoi saunters away victoriously as Sanemi struggles to get back inside the room to strangle her.

"I didn't bother to remember," Sabito's too obviously being defiant.

"Kaigaku," Giyuu, however, is a traitor.

Kanata expels his entire mouthful of tea onto Genya and is still violently choking. Genya is too baffled and worried about him to be mad. Sanemi gawks.

Makomo laughs on.

-

So, basically: what are consequences, again?

Kanata sighs as he watches Sanemi— insane. Utterly insane. He's already testing out his new sword. What an idiot— and Genya's watching too, adorably impressed. He's still half-hidden behind Kanta, though, just for good measure.

Sanemi stops at the Ninth form of Wind Breathing, the fierce guest of wind shredding apart the land beneath. He drops to the ground once more, straightens— and starts over from the First.

"...Breathing Styles are so cool," Genya whispers.

They certainly are.

"There's one thing cooler," Kanata turns to him.

Genya's head tilts.

"Really?"

Kanata points at the box with the gun in it.

Confused, Genya takes it and opens it.

But Kanata tears his eyes away to see Makomo training with Sabito and Giyuu, and she laughs, surpassing them in strength and skill both. They've barely started slaying, so it's to be expected— but she's really gotten stronger since their Final Selection, too.

"Hey, Makomo!" Sanemi calls, pausing between the Sixth and Seventh to point his sword at her. "One strike's out."

Makomo pauses as well, swerving aside from Giyuu lunging toward her, snatching wrist and twisting his sword off his grip. Her sword is on a path to her back, clashing just right against a side slash from Sabito.

Makomo chuckles at Sanemi. "Sure, why not?"

She straightens as Sabito and Giyuu lose their balance and yelp, sprawling to the ground.

"You two, go take a break."

"Right, ma'am!"

"Okay."

The two come to the veranda, settling in beside Kanata happily as Kanata pours tea into the two cups laid out for them. They're very excited to see the battle happen, despite everything, and Kanata can't help but realize how innocent they are.

Maybe he's the odd one here.

Makomo reaches for her mask.

"What the— hey! Don't put your mask on!"

"No, my kouhai are here. I'm not showing my serious face to them, what if they get scared?" Makomo pouts. "It's just a good enough handicap for you."

"Motherfucker, I'll make you regret saying that."

Makomo's voice sings. "Hey, if I defeat you, do I become a Hashira?"

"Over my overgrown GRAVE!"

He lunges, and Makomo doesn't immediately retaliate, only raising her sword to her shoulder, and then, swerving aside so Sanemi's sword parries it and slides right off course. Makomo's blade follows the line of the blade and Makomo finally steps forward—

Sanemi curses, knee dropping his center of gravity lower quickly.

Makomo's blade catches the tsuba and she falters. Sanemi twists, the tsuba a perfect angle to wrench Makomo's sword off—

—she doesn't let go, instead, she clutches the sword harder, allowing herself to leap over Sanemi's form in a somersault. Her blade spills downward, before she wrenches it in a roll right back up, this time unlatching Sanemi's sword from his grip.

Water Breathing, Second Form: Water Wheel

水の呼吸・ 弐ノ型・水車

It's not made to hit a target.

She reaches for the loose sword in mid-air—

—but Sanemi reacts first. He's still falling from his initial maneuver, landing backward on his hands and immediately swinging a sharp spin all the way around to kick his sword by the hilt into a dangerous spiral.

Makomo is forced to swerve away from the loose blade.

She lands on one hand and quickly works to get up, but Sanemi has already retrieved his sword, a horizontal slash already coming from below, inching upward to her jaw—

Wind Breathing, Sixth Form: Black Wind Mountain Mist

風の呼吸・ 陸ノ型・黒風烟嵐

There's a loud BANG!! and Sanemi pulls his sword back at the last second. This gives Makomo just enough time to barely fall back in time, and the slashes just barely graze her hair.

A bullet flies past them, hitting the tree between them right in the center.

Kanata slowly turns to the side. Genya is staring in horrified amazement. The gun is smoking in his hands. Sabito and Giyuu are alert as frazzled cats on the other side, eyes wide and utterly baffled.

Genya slowly turns to Kanata, teeth chattering, hands trembling, "What... is this...?"

Kid. How did you figure out how to unlatch the fucking safety. That thing wasn't loaded, either. Are you a genius?

"KANATA! WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU GIVE HIM?"

Kanata lunges for his bag but Sanemi catches his leg first, flinging him right off the veranda, over his head, and into the grass with a mighty facefirst crash.

He was wearing his cloth mask instead of the clay hyottoko mask, so he was spared a faceful of broken shards. But instead, he got a frontal of direct impact.

That's war.

-

"Makomo, why are the boys roughhousing again?"

When Aoi finally rounds back to this specific room, she's utterly disappointed, both in her friends and their mental maturity.

Makomo chuckles, sipping on her tea as Sabito, Giyuu, and Genya watched.

"Kanata gave Genya-kun a toy, and Sanemi didn't like it."

Aoi made a longsuffering face of utter disgust.

She sighs. "Sabito, Giyuu, just warning you, but if you two turn out anything like them, I'm going to kill everyone in this room."

"And then yourself?" Sabito knows the ending of that joke, so he reasons that she's not serious.

Pause. Aoi has walked right past the room and she is not stopping.

Sabito turns around and gets infinitely more concerned.

"Aoi-san, where's the and then yourself?? Aoi-san??"

-

Genya sighs deeply as he brings the tray of food to Sanemi's room. Aoi and Shinobu gave him permission to stay in the same room as his brother— he had a bigger room, sinc ehe's a Hashira now and his injuries are technically serious enough to warrant a private room—

—but he couldn't help but be worried.

Kanata had patted him on the back in some semblance of an assurance before leaving, and Makomo had consoled him. Sabito and Giyuu gave him words of encouragement before they left for their mission earlier in the evening.

But... now, Genya was alone.

And he anticipated the screaming that came right after he entered the room.

"What the f— who said you could come in, huh?!"

A pillow is thrown his way and though it slides off his shoulder he's glad the food isn't toppled. Sanemi is standing up now, and every cell in his very being freezes up because he's going to get hit, he's going to get—

He squeezes his eyes shut and braces himself, but instead... the tray is simply taken off his hands. He opens his eyes to see it set down at the side.

Genya's stuff is in there already— the Kakushi had moved it over.

Sanemi whirls back around and grabs Genya by the collar and his breath hitches.

"I– I'm sorry I found this place I—" Genya panics, "I just. I just wanted to— apologize– I'm s—"

"What is your apology supposed to fucking prove, huh?"

He's shaken roughly, and Genya whimpers fearfully. Genya may be the same height as Sanemi now, but Sanemi's still so, so much stronger.

"You're weak and useless, Genya," he snarls. "You're no brother of mine and you better stop telling the whole fucking world that. I don't give a shit what you're doing or what you have to say to me, fuck out of my life and STAY OUT!"

Sanemi shoves him out and slams the door.

Genya wilts immediately, tears prickling in his eyes.

"But..."

How could he say that?

"But I'm your little brother..."

If Sanemi heard him, he said nothing.

-

Genya sat outside the door from there, not moving even when the younger girls of the Butterfly Mansion asked if he was alright.

It's somewhere around the absolute dead of the night when Sanemi opens the door, sees him there, and grabs him by the hair dragging him inside.

"FOR FUCK'S SAKE. YOU'RE A FUCKING MENACE."

In hindsight, it's quite funny that all it took was Genya staying outside the door for three hours for Sanemi to cave right in.

"I can't even fucking leave, hell if I'm sleeping with your annoying sniffling out there," he snarled, shoving him to the tatami beside the food that was now set on a small tea table. "Fucking eat! And if I hear another cry out of you waking me up before sunrise, you're dead!"

Half the food's been eaten, and though it's cold now, Genya can tell Sanemi only ate about a quarter of all the dishes.

Genya rubs his tears away from his slightly swollen eyes, and he can't help but laugh.

"You still don't finish all your food, Nii-chan," he says. "Aoi-san told me you do that all the time, too, when you're here. It's not like you have to share anymore, so you can finish it, you know. I can get seconds from the kitchen."

"I said," Sanemi cuts in sharply, already dropping himself onto the bed and turning away. "Shut the fuck up, eat, and go to bed. Don't bother me."

Genya settles onto his knees in front of the food.

True to his word, Sanemi doesn't turn in his direction, not even once. He simply gets comfortable on his bed, and proceeds to ignore Genya.

But Genya claps his hands together.

"Thanks for the food," he says, softly.

Picking up his chopsticks, he begins to eat.

He tries his best not to cry anymore, but he can't help it. Right now he's the happiest he's ever been in months. He never thought he'd get to share a bowl of rice with him again.

He's so glad he found Kanata.