Chapter Text
When he coughs up the first petal Giyuu is not really surprised.
He knows immediately what it is, and knows he's dying. He might already be dead, actually.
He notices Kanroji watching him and immediately hides the petal in his closed fist in the red sleeve of his haori. She meets his eyes with a small smile and he feels inadequate under her somewhat fond gaze. He always has.
On his right Iguro makes a growling sound at the back of his throat and Giyuu knows it must be because he must be annoyed with his coughing.
Kocho also sends a glance his way but Giyuu keeps his features perfectly even, looking right in front of him, waiting for their master's arrival.
He knows Kocho will interrogate him as soon as the meeting is done and there's nothing he can do about it, it's heartwarming in a way, that she worries. Even if it's just out of her unending sense of duty.
When Oyakata-sama walks in Giyuu forgets all about the petal squashed in his hand, worrying about their master's condition like everybody else in the garden at this moment.
Oyakata-sama starts by thanking them, like is usual, and like always Giyuu tries to keep his attention somewhere else without looking uninterested, the master's praises are not for him to receive, he knows that. Then his name is called and he immediately feels like running away.
A stupid, paranoid part of his brain tells him the master knows of his illness and who the recipient of his affection is and is going to expose him to the other hashira, but his master does something that might be even worse.
“Kamado Tanjiro and his sister have proven yet again to be a valuable addition to our corp, thank you for putting your life on the line to give them the possibility to prove themselves. - Shinazugawa scoffs under his breath somewhere to his left - You did well, my child.” And with that the master goes on, talking about the new sightings and news that come from all parts of Japan.
Giyuu should really listen, but his ears are still ringing loudly, the praise wasn't necessarily directed at him, he barely did anything, it was more directed at the Kamado siblings, but Giyuu still feels his skin tingle at the attention. His eyes are glossy with tears and he feels a his throat close up with the need to scream.
He stays perfectly still where he is and pretends like he is where he should be.
When the master leaves he bows like his fellow hashira and immediately gets up. He coughed more during the meeting and he's still holding the white petals in his hand. He needs to leave quick, before Kocho can interrogate him and figure out what's wrong with him before he even opens his mouth.
“Leaving already, Tomioka?” Obanai calls, his voice filled with annoyance. Giyuu wishes that he would just ignore him like he does most of the time.
He doesn't trust himself to speak so he just ignores the man and starts walking away.
He feels more petals rise in his throat when he hears Shinazugawa mutter something about ungrateful bastarts.
He can't leave fast enough.
—
It's only when he gets to his house that he gets rid of the small white petals, he doesn’t really look at them, doesn't need to know what kind of flower is growing inside his lungs, ready to kill him slowly and painfully.
—
That night, in the emptiness of his house he cries for the first time in a while, he thinks of his sister, of what she might say when she sees him again. And he thinks of Sabito, of the sacrifice he made to let Giyuu keep his life only for him to die so young and in such a dishonorable way.
He's a Hashira, he's supposed to die in battle, giving his life to save innocents, but even in death he will fail. He'll die choked up by nature's most delicate creation, his own body betraying him.
For the umpteenth time since he survived his final exam, Giyuu wishes he had died instead of Sabito.
—
Kocho comes over unannounced the next day, Giyuu was expecting her to. She probes and pushes him to let her visit him, claiming that even a cold is too much of an inconvenience when demon sightings have been so frequent these days.
Giyuu doesn't let her touch him but agrees to take some foul-smelling concoction she pushes in his hands with a solemn look. He also promises to come straight to her if he starts feeling worse.
He humours her, mostly, wishing for the visit to be over as soon as possible.
Kocho hasn't even fully left his property when Kanzaburo caws loudly right outside his window. Giyuu wastes no time getting his katana and running in the direction his kasugai crow guides him towards.
Kanzaburo stops in the middle of absolutely nowhere, Giyuu looks around, but nothing seems to indicate the presence of demons around him.
He's still quite confused when he hears shuffling behind him, he turns with his sword drawn, ready to strike anything coming his way when he sees a pair of very familiar green eyes, and even more familiar two toned hair. He relaxes slightly while Kanroji smiles brightly at him, lunging at him.
Giyuu catches her despite his surprise. Kanroji stays like that for what feels like hours but realistically is about a couple of minutes. Giyuu feels himself slowly relax in her hold when Kanroji starts sniffling quietly.
Now worried, Giyuu removes the girl from his arms to look at her face, when he notices tears in her eyes he starts checking fon any injuries he might have missed.
“Are you hurt anywhere?” He asks, but is only met with more sniffling before Kanroji starts fully crying and throws herself at him yet again.
“Kanro- Mitsuri - the name is foreign in his mouth, but it seems appropriate in this situation- are you okay?” He asks, worry now clear in his voice.
“I am.” Kanroji confirms and Giyuu relaxes slightly.
“Then what-”
“I know of your flowers.” She says in the crook of his neck and Giyuu feels himself stiffen in her hold.
She detaches herself from him after a few more sniffles and looks at him with shaky breaths and wet eyes. Giyuu is not good at comforting people, but he still reaches for her face and dries her tear stained face for her. Kanroji's lower lip wobbles at the gesture and Giyuu starts to retract his hand as quickly as he can.
“Who is it?” she asks, reaching for his hand. Giyuu has a half mind to lie, but he knows that any name out of his mouth will have the same weight for the Love Hashira, so he just tells her the truth.
“Shinazugawa.” the name burns his tongue on its way out and is followed by small white petals.
Kanroji's eyes widen in shock and then she glances at the petals on the ground, her eyes fill with more tears when she looks at Giyuu.
“Chrysanthemum.” she says, and it sounds like a death sentence. It's then that it truly hits him. He's going to die.
Tomioka Giyuu is a dead man.
—
Tomioka Giyuu wishes he was a dead man.
After that night, when Mitsuri lured him into the forest just to tell him she saw him cough up petals, she has barely left his side. She stands uncomfortably close during Hashira meetings, earning him death glares from Obanai, and she visits him almost once a day, just to check on him.
The only times he had peace was when he was out on a mission but lately Oyakata-sama has decided to pair them together to check out an alleged demon hideout, a dark road where multiple travelers seem to have disappeared into thin air at night.
Oyakata-sama tells them that they suspect that there's either more than one demon or that this demon has to have some kind of blood demon art, given the big amount of people that disappear every night.
Mitsuri takes his hand when Oyakata-sama dismisses the Hashira and Sanemi makes a biting remark about the Love Hashira having to do all the work. She squeezes his hand almost painfully as Giyuu feels petals rise in his mouth.
He does his best not to cough, and when Mitsuri meets his eyes they widen in shock. She turns as Shinazugawa approaches them and stands fully in front of him.
“I would love to stay here and chat Sanemi, but the master was clear, we need to leave as soon as possible.” and with that the Love Hashira is dragging him away at a pace so fast it could be defined as running.
As soon as they're out of sight Mitsuri turns around and cleans his face with the sleeve of her haori.
The petals are not that frequent but they are mandatory whenever he's in close proximity of the Wind Hashira. So the Love Hashira has made it a point to always stay close by in case some petals get stuck on his face.
It's embarrassing, needing Mitsuri to clean his face, but she's so tender with him when she does and Giyuu hasn't felt a soft touch in so long that he doesn't really find it in himself to complain at the gentle ministration.
“Will you ever listen to me, Giyuu?” That is also new, using their names, Mitsuri had insisted that no friend of hers should ever call her by something other than a name, or nickname.
Giyuu heart had stuttered a bit at hearing the word ‘friend’.
Before Kocho had pointed it out he hadn't realised the other Hashira felt such way about him, but after that day he'd started noticing the subtle way he was always the odd one out.
He knew it was his fault, but the realisation stung still.
Mitsuri had never outright treated him badly, but he had assumed she also felt the same way the other Hashira did, and he couldn't blame her.
So, when Mitsuri called him a friend, Giyuu felt something in his chest slowly loosen.
Now, as she stands there, waiting for his rebuttal, she looks at him with fond exasperation, and Giyuu knows that until the day his last breath leaves his infested lungs Kanroji Mitsuri will stay by his side, begging him to let her do something, anything.
Is a familiar song and dance, one that they have gone through multiple times since Mitsuri first found out. She will tell him that there has to be something they could do and he will remind her that the man he loves hates him more than anyone else in the world.
She will then ask him to seek help from a doctor, or anyone that could offer a solution other than his death, and he will tell her that there is no solution.
He will also lie to her then, because the other way exists, it's just that Giyuu would rather die than take it.
—
The treck to their destination is not silent like Giyuu is used to. Mitsuri talks to him the entire way, and Giyuu answers in short, clipped sentences, it seems to be enough for the other because her smiles turns brighter everytime Giyuu shows that he is listening.
He would usually run to his destination, but Mitsuri had insisted they walk, her reasoning seemed to make sense.
They had departed really early in the day, and their destination was close enough that they reach it long before the sun set. Once on site they both start looking for any visible signs of a demon being in the area.
By the time the sun actually sets they only have the faint smell of blood and the heavy feeling something is hiding in the shadows.
Mitsuri sees it first. She calls out his name from where she's standing behind him.
Giyuu feels the demon before he's even seen it. He unsheathes his katana and turns around, but then a second demon appears behind him and slashes at his back.
He doesn't fall, but loses his footing long enough for the other demon to kick him in the chest and send him straight to the floor. The two demons then pounce on him, he holds one back with his forearm while he slashes the other’s throat.
The demon dies with a growl and the other bites down on his harm hard enough for his rotten teeth to get to his skin and draw blood. He hisses quietly before lunging his sword into the demon's shoulder and pushing it down, effectively slicing its arm off.
The demon lets go of his harm then, wailing in pain, and he uses the moment to push himself up and kill it.
As soon as he's on his feet he turns to where he last saw the Love Hashira, Mitsuri is battling her own pair of demons. And when Giyuu is about to make his way to her he feels his throat close up.
He starts coughing painfully, until a bunch of petals come out of his throat onto the floor, the white stained by little droplets of blood.
He doesn't think too much about that though, after he regains his composure he lunges for the Love Hashira, using his second form to cut straight to both demons attacking Mitsuri.
When the demons are dead he notices Mitsuri has blood splattered on her cheek, no doubt from the demons she killed already, he reaches out to clean her up before he thinks it through.
Mitsuri's smile dies when her eyes focus on something behind them and she pushes him to the side with her.
A big flame burns the floor where they were standing and Giyuu wonders how he could have missed the presence of such a strong demon.
Him and Mitsuri don't take much to kill the demon. His Water breathing mashes surprisingly well with her Love breathing. The demon is dead before the night is even halfway through, but dread fills Giyuu for the rest of the time it takes them to find the demons hideout.
When they find the cave it's impossible to mistake it for anything else, blood stains its entrance and the stench of blood and death is so strong to make the woman next to him gag a little.
When he looks to her he notices her eyes are glossy, and he tells her to busy herself sending a message to the Ubuyashiki Estate while he buries what's left of the people the demons slaughtered.
It's so many people, but there's so little left, and Giyuu finds himself crying while burying the corpses of men and women who had no fault other than being in the wrong place at the wrong moment.
When he emerges from the cave Mitsuri is waiting for him with her waterskin in hand, offering it to him.
Giyuu gladly accepts, and then they start making their way back home.
When they have to separate Mitsuri makes him promise to send Kanzaburo to her if he needs anything, and he humours her, knowing he will just deal with the flowers himself if he was to cough them.
—
The weeks pass slowly, but the petals keep coming up, sometimes there's blood on them and he's quick to hide those from the Love Hashira.
And then Kocho finds out.
It goes like this:
He's at the butterfly mansion to make an injury report, he's walking down the familiar path when he hears the Wind Hashira's voice. He doesn't sound as angry as Giyuu is used, he sounds quite pleased actually, talking with Aoi.
The little girl is telling him something about a full recovery and Shinazugawa thanks her quite nicely, for his standards. When he rounds the corner he finds himself face to face with the white haired man and his expression immediately turns sour. Shinazugawa glares at him before smacking his shoulder into him and walking away. As he hears his steps recede and Aoi smiles sympathetically at him, Giyuu feels something lodge in his throat.
He makes a run for it and locks himself in the first room he can find.
Giyuu coughs up his first full flower in front of Kocho Shinobu.
She puts the pieces together immediately, her eyes scan his face while her mouth turns into a straight line, worry and anger etched onto her features.
“I take it this is what brought upon your newfound friendship with Kanroji?” she asks, and Giyuu feels his cheeks burn.
“Maybe she just enjoys my company.” He says through broken breaths. Kocho sighs before raising to her feet and guiding him to sit on the floor.
She hands him some water when Giyuu's breath keeps coming ragged. He downs the water avidly and nods his head at her in thanks once he's done.
“Is it Shinazugawa?” Giyuu looks at her with wide eyes and she hums. Sometimes she scares him more than any demon could.
“Have you talked to a doctor yet?” She asks.
“Kocho…” He starts. She doesn't let him finish though.
“You can't survive this if you don't let them take it out. Giyuu.”
When Mitsuri first said his name she said it with gentle affection, her worry seeping through the sound, making his heart constrict painfully at the thought of bringing her pain.
When Kocho says his name she does so with authority. It's like she wants him to hear her. And he knows she's right but he can't bring himself to care.
“I won't let them take this away.” He says. He knows Kocho wants to say more but he leaves before she can.
He's good at running away.
—
If Mitsuri attention was overwhelming sometimes, her and Shinobu make for Giyuu worst nightmare.
He wakes up one night, flower petals already in his mouth, and he only registers the soft hand on his back when the bud is out of his throat. He jumps away in surprise, only to find Shinobu kneeling down next to his futon.
“What the fuck - a cough wreaks through his body - are you doing in my house?” He asks, Shinobu watches him without answering. Her eyes a tad wider than usual.
When he brings his hand to his face he feels his fingers touch the blood staining his chin.
Shinobu sighs when she passes him some water, and her eyes betray the words Giyuu asked her not to say.
He knows what she wants him to do.
—
It would be easy, to listen to Shinobu, she already found a doctor willing to help him.
But Giyuu can't.
When his sister died he thought he would never smile again, but then he met a boy with peach hair and gentle eyes, and Sabito became like the sun of his life. He was pulled out of the shadows one smile at a time.
What Sabito died he swore to never fall in love again, clearly love wasn't meant for him.
But then he met the Wind Hashira, with his short temper and the ability to find something offensive in everything he says.
Whenever Mitsuri asks him why Shinazugawa of all people Giyuu never knows how to answer. He doesn't know how to verbalise the pull he feels towards the other man. The fire burning in his core makes Giyuu feel alight, and his unyielding sense of justice reminds him of Sabito while still being impossibly unique to the white haired man.
Giyuu didn't think he had still love to feel before he met the Wind Hashira, and it shouldn't make sense for him to love him. But he does, uncomfortably so.
Shinobu says it makes sense, that Giyuu would be attracted to Sanemi's loud and aggressive character, she says it's like he was looking for someone to drag him out of his quiet and miserable existence.
Giyuu ought to be more offended by the things Shinobu says to him, but he finds that he doesn't really mind, when he knows she's only partially telling the truth.
Mitsuri cries everytime they talk about it. So they stop talking about his feelings altogether.
—
Iguro finds out casually, and Giyuu kind of expected him to.
He's in Mitsuri's house, with Shinobu prodding at his chest, she says it's to study his illness, Giyuu thinks she just wants him to cough the flower stuck in his throat since that morning.
Iguro comes in unannounced, and they don't notice him immediately, they actually don't notice him at all until Giyuu finally chockes on soft white petals and throws up in a bucket Mitsuri gave him hours prior.
When he looks up he meets Iguro's wide eyes, and he feels like throwing up for an entirely different reason.
Mitsuri is quick to get up and shield him with her body as more and more bile rises up his throat along with petals. But it's late now, Iguro has seen the flower coming out of his mouth, and if his expression is anything to go by he knows what that means.
“How long..?” discomfort is clear in his voice, as he looks from Mitsuri to him and back to the Love Hashira. Shinobu's hand is still on his back, and she's tense, like she's ready for an attack.
“A while.” He answers, cleaning his mouth with the sleeve of his uniform. Iguro looks at him with something akin to sympathy and nods.
“Have you confessed yet?” He doesn't ask who it is, and Giyuu is grateful for that. He shakes his head and sees Mitsuri's hands start to shake again.
“Let's not talk about that.” He tries.
“What about the operation? I'm sure Kocho could do it for you, or find someone to do it.” He says, and Mitsuri turns to look at them, anger and shock in her green eyes.
“Operation?” she asks, doubtful.
“Yeah. They take away his flowers and the memories of the person he loves, it's not a common practice, but I'm sure we could find a good doctor to-” Iguro talks like he cares. But Giyuu's blood is frozen in his veins.
“No.” He says, stopping the Serpent Hashira in the middle of his sentence.
He sees Mitsuri's eyes turn glossy yet again, and his heart pangs with guilt at seeing the girl cry again because of him. Iguro takes her hand in his and squeezes.
“Tomioka that would kill you.” Giyuu looks at him with unshead tears in his eyes and Iguro drops the subject. Opting to tell Mitsuri what he actually came to do.
—
Obanai's less aggressive with him after that.
Giyuu doesn't know what to do with himself the first few times Obanai offered a tissue for him to hide petals in, or when he catches hie eyes from across the garden during meetings and rather than a sneer he has a question in his eyes.
At first he thought he was acting out of pity, it would make sense, but when Obanai showed up at his house and spent the whole evening introducing Giyuu to his snake he knew it was something different, maybe it wasn't friendship, but with time it could be.
He asks him, one day, as he's sitting across from him in his room, why the sudden change.
“Mitsuri cried for you, and you looked guilty about it. It was more emotions I've ever seen on your face since meeting you.” He says, and Giyuu wonders if they could have been friends sooner if he wasn't the way he is.
—
Mitsuri decides he has to go on dates.
Obanai finds it hilarious.
Shinobu thinks it might just save his life.
Giyuu hates every second of it with a burning passion.
—
The first date he goes on goes horribly, the guy is some random man who had flirted with Iguro in a shop while he and Mitsuri where shopping. Mitsuri barely knows his name, but she thinks he seems nice.
Giyuu doesn't want to go, but Mitsuri plays the distressed friend and he relents.
The man tries to kiss him within the first two minutes of the date, and then spends the rest of the time commenting on how his long hair makes him look so feminine and pretty.
Giyuu has a half mind to stab him and claim he turned into a demon.
When he gets to the butterfly mansion he finds Iguro and Mitsuri waiting for him.
“So?” She asks expectantly. Giyuu glowers at her and throws the closes thing he can find at Iguro when he laughs.
—
Mitsuri keeps finding him dates, and some are not even that bad. Giyuu is just not interested in any of these men.
The last date he goes to, he's met with a man with a gentle smile and soft eyes, he's a slayer, and he seems to be good company enough. He brought him flowers.
It goes surprisingly well until the man asks about Giyuu's last mission and while Giyuu is briefly telling him he starts to pet his head.
Giyuu looks at him, he doesn’t know what his face is doing but it must be a mix of surprise and offended.
“It's okay now. You don't have to worry.” tha man says.
And Giyuu has been on his best behavior the entire time, but ir reaction is instictive, even before he can remember his promise to the pink and green haired girl.
He leaves the man fith food in his hair and takes the flowers out of spite.
—
When he walks into Iguro's house, where Kanzaburo said he would find the other Hashira, he slams the flowers on the table in front of Mitsuri. She looks surprised at the flowers before smiling cheekily up at him.
“Are these for me?” she asks.
Giyuu looks to Iguro for help but the man has tears already streaming down his face.
“He pet my head.” he says, as if it's all the information Mitsuri needs to know how bad the date went.
Iguro's laughter becomes even stronger but he's busy staring at Mitsuri as she stifles a laugh behind her hand.
“I take it the date went well?” she says. And Giyuu deflates, sitting on the ground next to her and kicking Iguro on his way down.
“Date?” It's only then that he notices Shinazugawa sitting right across from them. He feels his face burn with embarrassment immediately.
He looks at Mitsuri whose smile has turned apologetic. And Iguro regains his composure to explain that Mitsuri has just gotten it into his head that she wants Giyuu to find love.
The Water Hashira is grateful for that, and meets Iguro's eyes with what he hopes looks like gratitude. The curve of the other's smiling eyes tells him he knows.
Shinazugawa clears his throat and Giyuu realises he's beeing stared at by a really worked up Wind Hashira who hastily takes his leave when his eyes meet Giyuu's.
For the first time since that morning Giyuu throws up flowers.
—
After that Shinazugawa is somewhat colder towards him. And glares far more at any interaction he has with the Snake Hashira.
—
Missions come and go, and Shinobu, Mitsuri and Iguro always make it a point to go with him.
It makes him feel weak but he knows, as the illness progresses, that he needs it.
Most of the time a well placed hit on his chest sends him into a coughing fit that completely stops his breathing techniques.
If it wasn't for his friends he would have died on almost every single mission.
Shinobu came up with some explanation for their behaviour and Oyakata-sama took it without question, just wishing his fast recovery. Giyuu didn't even ask what she told him, he's just grateful he can still help his fellow slayers as best as he can.
He can't say any of that to Shinazugawa, though.
So everytime someone offers to go with him Shinazugawa makes his dissatisfaction with Giyuu known, and Giyuu chokes on fully bloomed chrysanthemums while turning away and ignoring the pain embedded into his chest.
It's how they find themselves in this situation.
Iguro standing defensively in front of Giyuu, while he chokes petals and blood into a tissue.
Shinazugawa hasn't attacked just because he's shocked, and Giyuu feels guilt rise up his throat together with the flowers.
“Let it go Sanemi.” Iguro says, voice tense like his shoulders. Mitsuri is standing next to him, rubbing at his back in soft, circular motions.
“Why the fuck does he nees to be chaperoned huh?” the white haired man demands. And Shinobu goes to stand next to Obanai.
“It's for medical reasons,” she starts, but doesn't get past the first sentence.
“Then he shouldn't be on the field! - the Wind Hashira thunders, pointing at him- Look at him! It's pathetic!” More flowers come out of his mouth and he can't possibly hide all of them.
“What is the meaning of all of this?” Oyakata-sama says. His voice even and peaceful as always. Giyuu lifts his face to him and Mitsuri is quick to clean some residue of blood from his chin, he sees the red hue stain her white haori.
There's so much guilt burning inside of him.
—
Oyakata-sama sends him and Shinazugawa on a mission together.
The striped demon who had almost killed Rengoku a few days prior had been seen right outside of Tokyo, and the master though it would be a great way to help Giyuu and Shinazugawa see eye to eye.
Shinobu gives him some vials to drink if his throat itches, and Mitsuri hugs him like he's about to die. Iguro looks him dead in the eyes and tells him not to.
Giyuu feels loved.
Except that Shinazugawa doesn't love him, and never will. His pace is brutal and Giyuu has to use all of his strength to keep his breathing even. He stops before Shinazugawa when their crows tell them that's where the demon was last seen.
Shinazugawa starts immediately looking for traces of demon activities. While Giyuu needs a couple of seconds taking deep breaths. On his last exhale a petal flies out of his mouth and falls slowly to the floor. Giyuu watches as it falls and feels heavy in his lungs.
“The fuck are you doing?” Shinazugawa asks. Giyuu didn't even realise he was stuck in place for that long. But time is starting to escape him more and more lately.
He shakes his head and turns away from the Wind Hashira. Looking around to find any sign of a demon.
He feels Shinazugawa's anger like it's a physical force. But then the man seems to give up because he walks the opposite direction.
Giyuu can hear him somewhere behind him, then he feels it. He turns around to see Shinazugawa with his sword already drawn. The demon studies the white haired man before he turns to him.
“I like your friend, he seems like a fighter.” The demon says. Shinazugawa makes a grumbling sound.
“You don't seem like you have much fight left in you. What is it huh? What's killing you?” Giyuu doesn't react past gripping his sword tightly.
He recalls Tanjiro's story of the attack and knows the demon will try to eliminate him quickly to have a fair fight with Shinazugawa.
“Hey dipshit!” the Wind Hashira calls. And the demon's eye flash with interest before he turns.
He tilts his head and avoids Shinazugawa's second form like it's the easiest thing in the world. Shinazugawa grits his teeth.
Giyuu doesn't have his breathing under control enough to use his water breathing, but he still charges at the demon. He somehow manages to slash his hand off, but it grows back in a matter of seconds.
Shinazugawa attacks again and Giyuu finds himself filling the openings he leaves in his haste. He blocks most of the hits meant for Shinazugawa and the man never once seems to realise that he would have died if it wasn't for him.
After a while the demon, Akaza, seems to get bored and grabs Shinazugawa by his neck with a speed that none of them could ever match.
He then throws Shinazugawa behind him and kicks Giyuu straight in his chest.
The hit leaves him reeling. His throat spasm around a flower. Giyuu folds at his middle as his hands fly instinctively to his throat. Shinazugawa has yet to get up and Giyuu worries he might have hit his head.
The demon watches with a smirk as Giyuu throws up blood and petals, and laughs delighted when a fully bloomed chrysanthemum falls from his lips.
“Oh you're a dead one.” the demon says and then turns around ready to kill Shinazugawa, no doubt.
Giyuu doesn't have time to think. He forces his lungs to cooperate as he gets up and calls out for his eleventh form.
The demon falters for a second and it's all Giyuu needs to. He decapitates the demon. Who doesn't die, and regenerates quite quickly. Giyuu stands there, shocked, breathing heavily as blood fills his mouth,he spits it to the floor, trying to breathe as he prepares to attack again, just then the first ray of lights hit the ground and Akaza uses the time it takes for him to steady his breathing to run off.
As soon as the danger is gone Giyuu starts heaving again. He falls to his knees next to Shinazugawa when his lungs fail him completely.
He shakes the other Hashira and gives him a tonic Shinobu made for him. The liquid has an immediate effect on the man who sits up with a start. Looking frantically around him.
“What the fuck happened?” He asks, but Giyuu's busy trying to survive the flowers festering in his lungs.
“Tomioka what..?” Shinazugawa seems concerned when he realises Giyuu's breath comes short and quick.
“Breathe asshole, what are you doing?” Shinazugawa grows more frantic the more Giyuu stays not breathing.
He can feel the stem of the flower scathe his windpipe, and when the flower finally comes out it's with stem and leaves. Fully covered in blood.
“Tomioka!” Shinazugawa grabs at his face and turns him towards him. His eyes are wild with something that Giyuu deliriously thinks it's fear.
His vision blurs but he can hear the kakushi get to scene clearly.
The last thing he feels is a pair of arms wrap protectively around him, and distantly wonders how Shinobu manages to always be there when she's needed.