Obanai's expression was the same as always as he looked at Mitsuri hugging the green stripped socks he'd given her as if they were her most precious treasure. She was just like that. She always made everyone feel good, special.
His expression showed nothing, but his heart pounded in his chest, swelling with an emotion he didn't dare to name. One he wasn't sure he could feel, or that anyone could feel for him.
"I'll definitely treasure them, Iguro-san!" Mitsuri said with a huge smile, even though he already told her there was no need to. After all, he could buy as many as she wanted.
Kaburamaru, moving gently around Obanai's shoulders, looked at Mitsuri closely, almost curiously.
The snake slithered down Obanai's arm, reached Mitsuri, and slowly wrapped himself around her arm until the tip of his nose touched her cheek.
"Kaburamaru," Obanai warmed, and the snake tensed, as if unaware of his own movements.
Mitsuri giggled, her cheeks pink and her eyes bright. "It's okay, Iguro-san! Kaburamaru-san is so cute."
Her words seemed to please the snake, and Kaburamaru moved with more confidence, coiling around Mitsuri's shoulders and settling in as if that had always been his favorite spot. Mitsuri looked happy, ecstatic that Kaburamaru felt safe with her.
"Iguro-san! I think Kaburamaru-san likes me!"
Kaburamaru pressed the tip of his nose against Mitsuri's neck, as if he were nuzzling against her, and Mitsuri laughed sweetly.
"It tihihickles!" she giggled, hunching her shoulders up slightly.
Kaburamaru seemed to be enjoying her reaction to his touch, so he kept nuzzling the crook of her neck with his little head. He even occasionally flicked his forked tongue out to tease her skin with a gentle, almost mischievous touch.
Mitsuri was giggling like a child, the precious sound filling the entire small restaurant and making Obanai's heart beat even harder and faster against his ribs.
"S-Stohohop!" She laughed, using one of her hands to gently push Kaburamaru's head away from her neck. "It's reheally tihicklish!"
"Kaburamaru, stop annoying Kanroji." The snake also thought Mitsuri had had enough, but didn't untangled from around her shoulders and neck, he only settled in even more comfortably.
Mitsuri giggled one more time, stroking Kaburamaru's scales as she looked up to look at Obanai once more. Her face was the definition of happiness.
"Kaburamaru-kun is so cute!"
He's not the only one, Obanai thought, but only replied with a small huff as he order another bowl of rice and Sakura mochi for Mitsuri.
ho ho ho !!! it’s santama !! (ﾟ∇^*)ﾉ⌒☆ -=★ -=☆*Merry X’mas*☆ happy holidays to all my tamadachi !!
this year i had the honor to draw for…
bread!anon !!! .*:ﾟ（｀・ω・´）ゝﾟ:*.
i was so so excited to draw these two so eh, i went all out haha (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ both ladies are so gorgeous and cute and mitsuri-chan is such a perfect lee to me !!! i really hope you enjoy how i portrayed your prompts and have a very wonderful holiday !!! ꒰๑˃͈꒵˂͈๑꒱୭̥*ﾞ̥♡⃛ Ɛn꒻öႸ
image id: 1st image-shinobu kocho approaches from behind mitsuri kanroji with a friendly and polite smile on here face. she says, “mitsuri-chan, the dozen donuts i brought for everyone-there’s only two left. would you have something to do with this?” second panel, mitsuri faces shinobu with a guilty expression, however she is trying to play it off. “oh! u-um… i don’t recall… any donuts… recently..?” “i see…” shinobu said. then, in the third panel, a shadow darkens over her face, giving her a sinister look. she wiggles her fingers towards mitsuri, who is cowering. “then you wouldn’t mind a quick deep pressure search, would you?” shinobu asks. “eep! w-wait… anything but that!” mitsuri pleads.
2nd image-mitsuri is tied up and laid on the ground. she is trussed up in a complex and intricate form of shibari, which completely traps her legs together and her arms behind her back. ropes are also wrapped around her bottom and under her bosom. shinobu is kneeled next to her, stroking and kneading mitsuri’s belly with her nails and fingers. she has a slightly disappointed look on her face. mitsuri, on the other hand, has her eyes scrunched shut and her mouth in a wide open smile, lost in hysterical laughter.
summary: Mitsuri tries to run, Tengen is being a bit of a backstabber and Sanemi is thrown under the wheels. But that’s okay, because Gyomei will make sure that all of them get what they deserve.
an: this is an immediate sequel to moving the mountain with gyomei getting some well deserved revenge and was commissioned by the lovely @sarahmaystock5578, thank you so much for your support, i hope you like this!
Mitsuri could sense Tengen and Sanemi tense up next to her and felt all color fade from her face when the soft smile suddenly turned into a mischievous smirk.
“Now, it’s my turn.”
—
Mitsuri was a woman on a mission. And for once, the mission was not about saving others, or even about killing a demon. No, this mission was about nothing but her own survival. Thinking about it, she really should’ve seen this coming. But it was too late to take anything back, let alone come up with a strategy or even properly team up with Tengen and Sanemi. It was everyone for themselves and if she wanted to make it out of here alive, she had to act now.
She quickly assessed the situation. Gyomei had incredible reflexes, but when it came to speed, no one could hold a candle to her. Well, no one except for Tengen, who had already reacted to the Stone Hashira’s ominous threat by jumping out of immediate reach. But that was okay. She didn’t have to be faster than Tengen, she didn’t even have to be faster than Gyomei. She just had to be faster than Sanemi.
“Sorry, good luck!” Mitsuri regretted leaving her colleague behind as soon as she had gotten herself out of Gyomei’s reach and Sanemi’s screeching reached her ears. Whoopsie. He was gonna get over it. Hopefully.
“Is he talking to us?” Mitsuri crouched down next to Tengen behind a bush and peaked over it to get a good look at what was happening; Gyomei had grabbed both of Sanemi’s wrists in one hand and pulled his arms up, his other hand wiggling all over the Wind Hashira’s midsection and making him shriek.
“Oh yeah, definitely.” Tengen grinned, watching the chaos ensue with obvious amusement. “But I don’t think we have to worry about that for now.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.”
He really was. With Gyomei having the surprise effect on his side, as well as his strength, there was no way for Sanemi to get out of his predicament. Not to mention that he, as they all knew from the countless tickle fights that had taken place at the Master’s mansion, was surprisingly easy to overwhelm with tickles. The Stone Hashira… not so much. And Sanemi had been the one to make Gyomei crack before, so the revenge would most likely not stop until he was utterly wrecked and incapable of killing them. Which was a good thing, right?
Mitsuri found herself hesitating upon hearing another shriek from Sanemi. “But… I mean… shouldn’t we help…?”
“Are you crazy?” The Sound Hashira let out a chuckle. “No fucking way, he’ll survive it.”
“Yeah, but will we survive it?”
“Okay, listen to me.” Mitsuri squeaked when she was grabbed and pulled into what would’ve been a tactic circle if there had been more than two people present. “You and me against Gyomei? No chance. But you and me against Sanemi? We can take him, especially after Gyomei is gonna be done with him. So yes, if we just stay out of this, we’ll survive.”
The Love Hashira thought this over. Unfortunately, she couldn’t really argue with anything Tengen just said. Yes, she wanted to help Sanemi, especially because the tickling had been her idea, but also… she didn’t want to get caught in the crossfire. And Sanemi hadn’t been very nice today, so maybe getting wrecked by Gyomei were just the consequences he had to deal with to make up for it. Yeah, she could get behind that. She nodded at Tengen and then turned her attention back to the desperate laughter and pleas for mercy coming from the Wind Hashira.
Only… there were none.
“Uh… Tengen…”
“I’m afraid he’s not available right now.”
Mitsuri squeaked and toppled over in surprise, frantically scrambling away from the intruder of their little not-an-actual-circle-circle. Gyomei smiled at her softly from where he was crouched down next to her and had Tengen pinned to the ground with an ease that was truly nothing but astounding. Everything about this was astounding - she had only looked away from Tengen for a mere second. She was a Hashira, for goodness sake, she should’ve noticed Sanemi go silent in the background, even if she had been focused on her own thoughts. Gyomei was massive, she should’ve heard him coming- actually, no, that wasn’t on her; Tengen, the Sound Hashira, should’ve heard Gyomei coming! Although maybe he did and just didn’t have the time to react or warn her or-
Mitsuri snapped back into reality when the first reluctant giggles were starting to spill out of Tengen’s mouth. Gyomei had grabbed one of his wrists and was holding it down, his other hand scratching lightly, gently, at his victim’s exposed armpit.
“Hehehey, bihig guhuy, do- ghahaha! Mihitsuri, gehet out ohof hehere!”
“Don’t listen to him.” Gyomei sounded as gentle as ever, all while his fingers didn’t stop the tickling for a second. “You were the initiator, don’t think I forgot that. The only thing running away will do is buy you a few more minutes.”
“Whahat?!” Tengen let out a cackle and Mitsuri saw his fingers claw into the ground as if he could somehow dig a tunnel to escape through. “Yohou dihidn’t tihickle Shinahazugawahaha for thahahat lohong!”
Gyomei chuckled, digging into the Sound Hashira’s armpit a bit harder and making him shriek. “Shinazugawa didn’t leave his comrades behind to fend for themselves, if I recall correctly.”
Mitsuri slowly backed away from the scene with wide eyes. Tengen was right, running would probably be for the best. But Gyomei was also right, it would only give her some extra time… that thought, however, was quickly eradicated when the Stone Hashira found a particularly bad spot and Tengen near-screamed into the ground. Time to leave!
“Good luck,” Gyomei called after her, but Mitsuri tried her best to ignore him and the implications of that sentence as she made her way over the Ubuyashiki estate and towards the gates. They were the only pillars here today, but maybe she could get backup somewhere else; Obanai was out on a mission, but Shinobu would surely let her sit this out at the Butterfly Mansion for a bit.
Mitsuri stopped dead in her tracks, her hand already on the gate. Backup. Goodness, she was the backup! Gyomei was right, leaving your comrades behind was an awful move and while she hadn’t had a chance to save Sanemi, she could still save Tengen!
The second she turned around, the moment she accelerated, she knew she had made a mistake.
“You’re going back for him, but not for me? That’s dirty, Kanroji.”
Mitsuri barely had time to even flinch before Sanemi wrapped his arm around her waist and swiftly pulled her to the ground, straddling her immediately and making escape almost unthinkable. She was strong, yes, but he had completely overwhelmed her. Mitsuri wanted to hit herself hard - where was her attention today?!
“Eek- Sanemi, wait-”
“Oh, like you guys waited for me when Himejima attacked me?” His scowl turned into an evil smirk. “Yeah, no fucking way. Gyomei, over here!”
This time Mitsuri heard Gyomei approach. Or rather, she paid attention for once and heard Tengen’s laughter die down in the distance, then a shadow fell on her and she looked up, right into the Stone Hashira’s blind eyes as he loomed over her.
“I should probably thank you for your service, Shinazugawa.” He took both of her wrists in one hand and Mitsuri didn’t know whether she wanted to laugh or cry; she couldn’t even move an inch. “But you see, I’m a little torn right now.”
Sanemi squawked in surprise when his own wrists were grabbed as well and held down by the same hand that held down Mitsuri’s. She could feel his muscles strain as he tried to pull free - unsuccessful. Gyomei’s strength was ridiculous! And all while he smiled down at them so gently, pretending like he wouldn’t hurt a fly… “Leaving your comrades behind is one thing, but betraying them? Stabbing them in the back? I’d argue that’s even worse.”
“Wha- hey! They betrayed me first!”
“An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.”
How ironic for him to say that, Mitsuri thought to herself, but she was smart enough to not say it out loud.
“Funny you’d say thaHAT- HIMEHEJIMAHAHA!”
Sanemi… wasn’t. Mitsuri tried her best not to seem too nervous as he writhed on the ground next to her in a pointless attempt to escape, although judging by the level of control she usually had over her facial expressions, she was probably failing miserably.
“Don’t worry, Mitsuri,” Gyomei spoke over Sanemi’s shrieking laughter, not stopping his relentless pinching and prodding at the Wind Pillar’s toned abs, “I haven’t forgotten about you, just wait a few more minutes.”
“NAHAHA! YOHOU AHALREHEADY TIHICKLED MEHEHE, YOHOU CAHAHAHAN’T DOHO IT FOR TOO LOHOHONG!”
“Oh, I think I can.” Gyomei’s gentle tone just made everything ten times worse and Mitsuri winced at the thought of being in Sanemi’s position. On the one hand, she felt really bad for getting him in this predicament, given that she had been the one to suggest tickling as a technique against Gyomei in the first place. On the other hand… Sanemi losing himself in laughter was a rare sight and as much as he tried to keep it one, it was no secret that he kinda maybe liked getting tickled a little bit. Still. The least she could do was offer emotional support.
“Uhm… you can do it!”
Somehow he still managed to glare at her through literal tears of laughter and Mitsuri wanted to crawl under a rock and die. Alright. No emotional support then. His loss.
She took the time during which Gyomei was tending to Sanemi to brace herself for what was to come, only to realize that no amount of minutes could possibly prepare her for anything. Every time Gyomei switched spots, every time Sanemi shrieked, she caught herself wincing and when the Wind Hashira was finally released and immediately curled into himself, she barely had time to look up before a huge hand snuck down to her midsection and began squeezing her sides.
“Aiee- Gyohomehehei!”
“Yes, Mitsuri?”
“I- dahaha, dohohon’t!”
“But why not?” Even though she had her eyes shut, Mitsuri could hear the soft smile in the Stone Hashira’s words as he prodded up and down her side. “Don’t you think you deserve this a little? After you left your comrades behind, twice?”
“Bu-buhut Tehehengen tohold mehe to- nohohoho!” she giggled and pulled her knees up, trying to block Gyomei from tickling her stomach. Unfortunately that wasn’t very easy to do when he could easily push her legs away with just two fingers while the others kept on scribbling over the thin fabric of her uniform, one of them even prodding at her belly button a little and making her squeal. “Plehehehease!”
“Please what?”
Oh no. Oh nonono. She had pulled this trick often enough on Obanai, she was not going to fall for it now. Mitsuri pressed her lips together - or tried to, at least, and then quickly gave up on it when her plan was ruined by cackles. “Gyohomehehei, nohohot thehehere!”
“Not there? Alright, then how about here?”
Mitsuri screeched and kicked out, trying her best to twist away from Gyomei’s hand. Given her limited moving space, surprise, it didn’t really work. “NAHAHAHAT THEHEHERE EITHEHEHEHER!”
“Why, is it bad there?” Gyomei smirked as he squeezed her hip.
“YEHEHEHES!”
“Oh, I hope it is.” Sanemi had made himself comfortable on the grass together with Tengen - apparently they had made up, which, good for them, but also, Mitsuri would’ve very much appreciated their help. Although she probably didn’t deserve it, if she was being completely honest with herself.
Gyomei clicked his tongue softly. “Be nice, you two. I don’t want to have to get back to you.” The snickering from the sidelines stopped immediately and the Stone Hashira nodded. “Good. So, it’s bad? How bad?”
“VEHEHEHERY BAHAHAHAHAD!” Mitsuri squealed, feeling the first tears prick at the corners of her eyes. “PLEHEHEHEHEASE!”
“Alright, alright.” Gyomei chuckled softly and finally let her go, taking his hands off and even helping her sit up. “How are you? Was that too much?”
“No, no, I’m good.” Mitsuri took a deep breath and dried her eyes, trying to stop the after giggles that were still spilling out of her mouth. “Jeesh… are we even now?”
“If you ask me, we sure are.” Gyomei stood up, the corners of his mouth slightly twitching up. “I don’t know about your fellow culprits over there.”
As the Stone Hashira walked away, Mitsuri looked over at said culprits and seeing the playful sparks in both Sanemi’s and Tengen’s eyes was enough for her to know that it would probably be a good idea for her to run once again.
