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˗'ˏ chapter 43 ˎˊ˗
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"𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐎𝐍𝐄'𝐒 𝐁𝐄𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀 𝐒𝐀𝐋𝐓𝐘 𝐇𝐎𝐄."
"Tch."
She snickered. Gaze falling on his panting figure, Y/N nearly pitied Tsukishima for his exhausted look. He was sweaty, with small bruises and wounds littering his face and body. He refused to look at her and opted to stare at the moon's reflection on the creek instead, small ripples distorting the image. He creased his brows, trying to regain his breathing.
That was the first rule she ever told him. Always have a steady breath.
And Tsukishima respected and trusted her enough to follow through her advice.
Y/N let him rest. Coming here to train right after volleyball practice would be extremely taxing for a regular person. And though they had to work on his endurance, she wasn't that cruel. He's an ass but- but. . .
She sighed, an uneasy smile on her face. 'I can't think of any 'buts.' He's an ass. That's it.'
The cool, dark night sent a gentle breeze down their way, loosening up Tsukishima's tense composure. He was quiet, most probably because he was upset to lose against her for the umpteenth time, so the girl decided to 'lift' his spirits up by teasing him.
"If it makes you feel any better, I'm really just a hundred times better than you. So don't get too pissed about your inevitable loss Tsukki." she teased. Glancing at him, her cocky smirk widened by a fraction at the sight of the irritated look on his face.
He clicked his tongue, removing his glasses as he leaned down near the water. "You're too cocky," he grumbled, cupping his hands and bringing it over the creek, dousing his face with water.
She scoffed. "Says you."
His hands hid it, but he cracked a smile.
Raising the hem of his shirt, he used the fabric to dry his face, exposing his lean yet muscular stomach. She looked away with a blush. Training really was doing wonders to his body.
Because of school, she could only train him at night. He'd train by himself at dawn, climbing the trap infested mountain- which, I mind you, he's getting incredibly better at, and by doing a bunch of sword exercises. But when he's with her or sometimes even Tanjiro, that's when he focuses on cultivating his breathing style, along with the occasional sparring against either of them.
The breath of the firefly.
A derivative of the breath of the insect, his breath consists of swift and precise stabs and thrusts. When you see it from a distance it would seem too slow, too gentle. But really, don't let that fool you. His swings seemed slow but it masks how quick and lethal it is, most especially now that they've begun coating his blade with wisteria poison. Not to mention, Zenitsu once told them a very interesting fact about Kei's breath.
