Mizuki tilted her head, adopting a listening posture. "What's wrong?"
Kochou Shinobu swallowed, her earlobes burning red.
But she knew she absolutely couldn't back down now.
Strike while the iron is hot!!!
Kochou Shinobu took a deep breath: "I wanted to say..."
Whoosh... Mizuki, who was sitting behind her, suddenly stood up, startling Kochou Shinobu, whose high-precision brain momentarily short-circuited. She instinctively turned around.
"Mizuki?"
"It's nothing, just four corpses walking around." Mizuki looked towards the woods with a calm expression.
"Huh?" Kochou Shinobu looked stunned. Before she could react, Mizuki had already climbed ashore and put on her yukata.
"Wait a moment, I'll be right back."
Her soaking red hair hadn't been dried yet, hanging damply over the yukata, making the already dark garment appear even deeper in color.
Mizuki casually picked up Shura next to her clothes and walked down the mountain, carrying the sword.
Kochou Shinobu belatedly reacted, her mood instantly heavy.
Corpses walking around?
Did a demon arrive?
How could it find its way to the Swordsmith Village?
Kochou Shinobu didn't have time to think further; the shyness she felt moments ago was instantly forgotten. She quickly put on her clothes, grabbed her Nichirin Blade, and chased after Mizuki.
If that was the case, things were terrible. She had to quickly inform the Village Chief and contact the villagers to evacuate... Below the hot spring mountain, several uninvited guests arrived on the desolate stone steps.
The figures cautiously moved forward, hugging the trees, daring not to show themselves on the moonlit stone steps.
"Let's not, Zenitsu, let's go back!" At that moment, a slightly worried voice rang out.
The dark figure stepped out of the tree's shadow, and the moonlight revealed his face.
"I refuse!" Zenitsu Agatsuma firmly retorted. "Are you kidding me?!"
"It was supposed to be a mixed-gender hot spring, but after two days, I haven't seen anything."
Tanjirou sweatdropped. That's not the point at all!
If Miss Mizuki finds out, we're dead, Zenitsu!
Snap out of it!
"Miss Mizuki will kill us." Tanjirou had a headache; he had followed along hoping to persuade Zenitsu.
Clearly, Zenitsu was currently driven by lust and couldn't understand reason.
Zenitsu turned around, looking utterly resolute: "As long as I can see a girl's body, I'm willing to die!"
Tanjirou:... A cold bead of sweat slid down Shinazugawa Genya's temple. This guy... looked so seriously determined, anyone who didn't know better would think he was discussing something solemn.
Speaking of which... why did he follow them?
After Tanjirou returned his teeth, the four of them became acquainted through fighting.
Although Zenitsu and Inosuke were still a bit frustrated, with Tanjirou acting as the peacemaker, they quickly started getting along.
Then, taking advantage of the quiet of the night, Tanjirou suggested they all soak in the hot spring together.
Thinking it would help them bond.
Zenitsu was initially annoyed, saying he absolutely didn't want to bathe with a bunch of men.
However, after returning and not seeing Mizuki and the others, Zenitsu suddenly had a bold idea.
And so... the whole group was inexplicably dragged along by him.
Inosuke said foolishly, "If you want to look, why don't you just ask them?"
Zenitsu looked speechless: "Inosuke, you... forget it. If we get caught later, just take the lead."
Inosuke puffed white air from his boar mask, full of confidence: "Oh! You want me to fight that woman, right?"
Hearing the conversation among the three, Shinazugawa Genya's eyes widened slightly. Were these guys actually sane?
Yes, don't let this guy's fierce appearance fool you—the kind that could make neighborhood kids cry.
But after interacting with him a bit, you'd realize he's actually a straightforward guy with a lot going on inside... well, a bit of a closet pervert.
After walking a few more steps, Zenitsu looked back, put a finger to his lips, and lowered his voice: "Shh! We're almost there! Quiet down! Everything depends on this one move!"
Tanjirou's mouth twitched. "Stop messing around. Let's go back..."
Zenitsu clicked his tongue in displeasure: "Tanjirou, it's because you're so worried all the time that you can't find a girlfriend."
"Huh?" Tanjirou indicated that he couldn't follow Zenitsu's line of thought at all.
Besides, wouldn't doing this make girls like him less?
Just as he was about to continue persuading Zenitsu, suddenly, the night breeze swept down from the mountaintop, bringing a faint fragrance.
That scent... it's Mizuki... Tanjirou's expression froze instantly as he looked towards the stone steps at the summit.
"Listen up, if we get caught later, we'll just pretend we didn't know anything." Zenitsu was still briefing the people behind him, completely oblivious to their strange expressions. "We'll insist we just came to bathe in the hot spring and had no idea anyone else would be here. Got it?"
Zenitsu subconsciously imagined the graceful figures in the hot spring, and a perverted blush rose on his face.
Hehe~ Hehe~
As long as he got to see something, even taking a beating would be worth it.
"Are you guys even listening..." Zenitsu snapped out of his thoughts after a few seconds of no response, looking displeasedly at the group.
Everyone's gaze collectively darted past him toward the top of the steps.
Zenitsu's heart sank.
It was over. He had a bad feeling.
He almost forgot that his best sense, hearing, was completely useless in front of Mizuki.
Zenitsu stiffly turned around. Sure enough, standing on the moonlit stone steps was a figure in black clothes with red hair.
Utterly silent, profound like a bottomless abyss, and quiet enough to inspire fear.
It was like being deep beneath the ocean, unable to hear any sound or see any light.
"Um, Miss Mizuki, what a coincidence..." Zenitsu swallowed nervously, saying tremulously, "Are you here to soak in the hot spring too?"
Mizuki was expressionless: "Is that so? Didn't you say it was fine even if you died?"
These guys... they really have guts.
She originally thought Zenitsu, that idiot, would only talk big, but she didn't expect him to actually follow through.
Zenitsu's heart sank. It was over!
Everything was heard.
Now everything was ruined!
Not only did he fail to see anything, but now he was probably going to get beaten up.
He didn't want to get beaten up without getting any benefit!
Zenitsu screamed desperately in his heart.
"You... you're the woman who bullied my older brother at the Hashira Meeting?"
Suddenly, Shinazugawa Genya looked at Mizuki with a displeased expression.
Mizuki frowned: "Huh?"
To be honest, she was momentarily surprised to see Genya. How could this burly-looking guy be causing trouble with Zenitsu?
But what did that statement mean?
Tanjirou was confused: "Genya, what are you talking about?"
Shinazugawa Genya pointed at Mizuki, looking annoyed: "This woman takes advantage of The Master's trust to bully my older brother."
Is there something wrong with this guy's head?
Mizuki's icy face couldn't help but show a trace of bewilderment.
If anyone was doing the bullying, wasn't it Sanemi Shinazugawa who gave her the cold shoulder and isolated her?
She truly couldn't recall how she had wronged the Shinazugawa Brothers.
Or was Sanemi Shinazugawa spreading false rumors?
"Oh! Nothing can't be solved with a fight! Rooster Head, let's go!"
Without waiting for an explanation, Inosuke, whose mind was focused entirely on fighting, shouted and charged forward, drawing his Nichirin Blade.
"Eh?"
Now it was Shinazugawa Genya's turn to be shocked.
Although he was angry that this woman bullied his brother, it wasn't necessary to draw swords against her, was it?
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