AFTER KOKUSHIBO HAD returned with the marechi blood, kanna's recovery was swift and easy. the demoness returned back to normal as if nothing had happened.

she was quick to embroider a new handkerchief for akaza after bleeding all over the one he carried around.

as for kokushibo, he was rewarded the rest of the marechi blood per usual.

"lady kanna, we are due for a rematch", kokushibo reminded.

     kanna raised a brow, "you seem like you're confident in winning this time".

"naturally", the six-eyed demon responded without shame.

sliding open the door where kanna had kept her futon and other resting necessities, the woman had reached towards the far corner for a board and two bowls of pebbles.

     placing it onto the table in the center of her room, she had taken a seat on one of the mats while kokushibo sat the exact opposite of her.

     "black or white?"

     upper moon one slid the bowl of black stones towards him, pushing the white ones towards kanna.

     "very well", kanna mused, watching as kokushibo made the first move.

     go was a game that required the winner to surround the opponent's territory, for whoever encapsulated the most stones from the opposing player won.

     one could play defensively, offensively, or even both. however, every time kokushibo attempted to attack, it seemed like the woman was always four steps ahead.

     "I'll be taking these", kanna pridefully grinned, swiftly picking up six black stones off the horizontally and vertically lined-board.

     ever so slightly frowning, kokushibo wondered what his next step should be. everywhere he looked felt like a trap. not a single space on the board seemed to play into his advantage, and time was ticking.

his hand wavered above a particular spot, yet his fear for losing it all was too strong.

"you're stalling, kokushibo~"

the six-eyed demon glanced up at the sly woman, who seemed to already know what he was going to do.

"why think so hard?", kanna playfully hummed.

"after all, you are bound to lose. it's just a matter of whether you lose with dignity, or you try to prolong the game and lose even more".

     that had certainly struck a nerve, for upper moon one was sure that he wouldn't lose. he had practiced, studied the different techniques that led to victory. he was sure that kanna wouldn't be prepared, for he knew she was usually occupied with other things.

     yet it had happened right before his six eyes.

     as soon as kanna had placed the last white stone onto the board, the game was over, for every possible placement for a stone was occupied.

     "hm".

kanna's gunmetal-gray eyes glistened with satisfaction, as kokushibo unintentionally scowled at the result of the game.

"I admit defeat", upper moon one begrudgingly uttered out.

     "you could've chosen to lose with your head held high, yet despite that, you chose to have your pieces taken away one by one. say, why is that?", kanna asked, picking up the white stones and dropping them back into the wooden bowl.

     kokushibo wasn't quite sure how to answer the woman. perhaps it's because he's stubborn?

     was it wrong to wish to live longer in hopes of eventually winning against his opponent?

     "never mind that", kanna spoke after being answered with silence, "it's just a silly game anyways".

     "yes...it is", the six-eyed demon hesitantly agreed.

     kanna had then giggled at the stoic demon, maneuvering herself so that she was now sitting right beside him.

     "you're not hurt by me are you? muzan-sama will surely have my head if I dare to even insult his precious upper moon one", kanna teased.

"no", kokushibo denied.

kanna watched as kokushibo avoided her gaze.

"you're totally sulking", she grinned, cupping kokushibo's face, as she was extra careful not to wound his multiple eyes.

"...am not", upper moon one replied.

"then why can't you look me in the eyes, hm?"

     due the demoness's constant provocation, kokushibo had no choice but to pin the woman's wrists to the floor, beside her head. her back pressed against the ground, as upper moon one attempted to intimidate the woman by looming above her.

yet kanna's brief expression of surprise had only morphed into an amused one.

"you might just give me the wrong impression, kokushibo".

     "you've already seen my bare upper body multiple times...if that didn't insinuate anything, I'm not sure how me still being fully clothed would".

"you were training. it's different", kanna refuted.

"so you're saying...if I were to tower over you on the open field, you'd feel differently than now?"

"were you always this witty? since when did you start talking back", kanna huffed, playfully pouting at upper moon one.

kokushibo flashed a slight grin, before releasing the woman's wrists and sitting upright once again.

"speaking of training...will you watch?"

"will that help recover your lost ego from that game?", kanna rebutted.

     kokushibo furrowed his brows, as he many a times wondered who gave this woman the audacity to speak to him this way.

     "don't come then", upper moon one saltily responded, as he stood up and started to head towards the door.

     "kokushibo, wait", kanna called out, standing up too, as she walked towards the six-eyed demon who had promptly turned around.

     "it's still winter. dress warm", kanna slyly smiled, handing a black cape to the upper moon.

kokushibo snatched it out of the woman's grasp, as he turned around the left. despite the snow now piling up to his calves, he was adamant about not missing a day of training.

as he threw the cape to the side, kokushibo had withdrew his sword, warming up by swinging his katana in a downwards motion.

after the sixth swing, kokushibo couldn't stand his sleeves flapping around. hence, he had shedded off the top half of his nagagi kimono, tying the sleeves around his waist so that they wouldn't be of bother to him any longer.

it wasn't until half past twelve in the morning that the upper moon had sensed the presence of another.

     "you can show yourself now", kokushibo called out.

kanna stepped forwards, away from the leafless trees. the moon was bright tonight, illuminating the woman's serene expression as she made her way towards a slightly vexed kokushibo.

"why the change of heart?"

     "after a while, I realized that I do actually like watching you train", kanna sighed, feigning an apologetic tone.

"will you still let me?", kanna asked, her eyes momentarily shifting to kokushibo's bare chest.

     had it been any other demon, kokushibo would've deemed them as disrespectful. however, because it was kanna, his ego did flare up just a touch.

      "I don't care", upper moon one replied, noticing that the woman was slightly more bundled up than usual.

     "then I suppose I shall take a seat on the cloak you threw to the side", kanna smiled, getting comfortable, as she knew kokushibo consistently trained for hours.

     the upper moon begun swinging once again, careful to stay a healthy distance away from kanna so that she wouldn't get hurt.

upon the next few hours or so, kokushibo had moved onto some more complicated techniques, wowing kanna in the process.

kokushibo could feel the piercing gaze that was constantly on him. it heightened his performance, for despite the snow that had started trickling down, his skin thickened with dignity and pride.

     every swing, every jab, every move, was sharper and quicker.

upper moon one knew he was strong, for he wasn't ranked first for nothing. yet having someone admire his physique, his technique, and his raw strength made his confidence intensify even more.

     knowing that out of all his fellow kizuki he was the only one granted permission to see kanna whenever he pleased, elevated his pedestal naturally.

     he had the liberty of showing up and conversing with kanna freely, while others couldn't. he had the pleasure of greeting the woman and being entertained by her while the rest had to console their master first.

     he was the closest to kanna he'd say.

     well, all except for one person — or rather, one being.

     muzan. ironic, because there always seemed to be someone above kokushibo. always.

     kokushibo wondered whether kanna saw their master's upper body as well, and whether she thought he was the definition of perfection in regards to strength.

'at least I'm taller'.

at that very moment, kokushibo's heart seemed to nearly burst, for it was as if someone was squeezing it without mercy. his vessels pulsated in response to the lack of heart beats, resulting in the man to drop down to one knee.

kanna immediately ran over to kokushibo, asking whether the demon was feeling alright.

"I'm...fine", kokushibo finally breathed out, as his heart seemed to be relinquished from his grasp.

"perhaps we should head back. the sun will rise soon", kanna suggested.

nodding, kokushibo easily slipped his katana back into its sheath. the upper moon covered himself, as kanna grabbed the cloak that he had tossed to the side earlier.

"it's covered in snow", kanna chuckled, patting the fabric in an attempts to get rid of all the white ice.

kokushibo simply hummed, as he watched the woman focus her attention onto cleaning the cloak, nearly running into the tree before them had he not pulled her back.

     kanna felt a strong arm support her waist, as she glanced up and met the eyes of her savior.

     "thank you, kokushibo".

     upper moon one nodded, seemingly to have returned to his usual stoic manner.

the two demons trudged through the forest slowly. it was almost cinematic in a sense with how the snow had fallen onto their heads and melted into nothingness.

     both leisurely walked with the intention of prolonging their journey, with the distance of each footstep becoming smaller and smaller.

     "lady kanna", kokushibo suddenly spoke.

the two turned towards each other, with kanna humming in curiosity.

kokushibo hesitantly leaned down, for the demon needed to hunch over to even be eye-level with kanna's face. his lips neared hers. their breaths were so close to melting together like the snow had kanna not stopped him with the tips of her fingers.

     "you know better, koku", kanna reminded in a hushed tone.

koku — a nickname kanna occasionally used, only for when they were alone.

had kokushibo not known any better, he would've thought it was muzan that was squeezing his heart again. however, it was the way that kanna said his nickname and the way her fingers delicately pressed against his bitter lips that struck something within his chest.

as kanna's hand retracted, the woman had promptly swiped across her tinted lips, leaving a red mark on her thumb.

kokushibo stayed leaning forward, allowing the woman to smear her lipstick across the bottom of his lip.

it was as if she had gifted him a kiss.

kokushibo stood upright once more, as kanna had given him a pitiful smile before leaving for the infinity castle.

leaving the upper moon to dwell on what may be the closest thing he'll ever get to pressing his lips against kanna's, kokushibo softly sighed.

he pressed the back of his hand against the bottom of his mouth, reminiscing the feeling of when kanna had 'kissed' him.

perhaps that was the real moment of when the seed of rebellion had officially begun to sprout.

⋆｡ ﾟ☁︎｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆

AUTHOR'S NOTE: the way i can watch kokushibo train w/o his top on for hours 😩 (sorry)