I'm not particularly interested in you

"Black Flash!"

Black and crimson light exploded around Kashimo's fist like a sinister flower blooming in a bloodred dusk.

At that same instant, the cursed energy throughout Kashimo's body surged out, converging on a single point, compressing again and again until it reached its limit.

Then it detonated.

Splat-!

A huge hole burst open in Shuten-dōji's abdomen. Purplish-black blood and shattered organs gushed out, spilling into the golden river of sake and stirring eerie ripples. His enormous body staggered backward, his few remaining arms flailing wildly as he tried to grab something to steady himself.

He opened his mouth, trying to repair his body.

But a sudden chill swept across his neck.

The next second, he saw his own mangled belly.

The angle was wrong.

His headless body still stood where it had been, blood pouring like a fountain from the severed neck. His hideous head tumbled through the air and fell, disbelief still lingering in those deathly pale eyes.

It was a slash that severed space.

Fenghua stood behind Shuten-dōji's headless corpse, holding the Soul-Devouring Blade, her red robes snapping in the wind. Her sword hand still trembled slightly, but the smile on her face was dazzlingly bright.

She smiled at Kashimo.

The gold around them began to fade.

The river of sake dissipated, the spider lilies withered, and the inverted sake vessel in the sky dissolved into nothing.

The domain.

Collapsed with them.

Back on familiar ground, Kashimo took two deep breaths.

The soil beneath his feet was solid, the vegetation around him was real, and the faint scent of blood in the air was being scattered by the mountain breeze. He stood still, slowly circulating Reverse Cursed Technique to repair his mangled body bit by bit. Torn skin healed, broken bones knitted together, and wounds deep enough to expose bone closed at a visible pace.

His white shirt was ruined beyond recognition, hanging from him like rags and exposing the skin beneath, which still gave off white wisps of steam.

Kashimo looked down at himself, then up at the real moon overhead.

He had killed the Demon King whose fame rivaled Sukuna's, too.

Next.

Only Mahoraga remained, then.

"M-Master..."

A stammering voice came from beside him.

Kashimo turned his head.

Fenghua stood a few paces away, still holding the Soul-Devouring Blade. Her face was so red it looked ready to bleed, and steam seemed to rise from her head. She had no idea where to look, glancing at Kashimo before quickly looking away, then glancing again and looking away again.

"Your clothes... your clothes!"

After struggling for ages, she finally managed to squeeze those words out.

Kashimo looked down at his shirt, now reduced to strips of cloth, then at the blushing girl, and blinked.

She was an eighteen-year-old young lady from a respectable family, after all! She had hardly ever seen a man's bare upper body!

"What's the big deal?"

Kashimo waved a hand, utterly unconcerned. The only thing bothering him was his loose hair. Having it hanging everywhere was a nuisance.

Fenghua opened her mouth, wanting to say more, only to find she couldn't get a single word out.

"Since we're finished here-"

Another voice cut in, carrying that trademark amusement.

Kenjaku stood a short distance away, the transparent membrane around him already gone. Moonlight fell on his face, illuminating his perpetual smile.

"I'll be taking my leave."

He paused, his gaze settling on Kashimo.

"I will fulfill my binding vow with you."

Kashimo didn't concern himself with where Kenjaku would go.

It didn't matter.

He rolled his shoulders and looked down at his healing body. The drunkenness that had seeped from deep within his marrow was gone. Those invisible tendrils had vanished without a trace, as though they had never existed. With its owner's death, Shuten-dōji's Assimilation technique had naturally dissipated as well.

He raised his head and looked at Fenghua.

"Let's go."

Fenghua was still standing there in a daze. She looked up at his words.

"Where?"

"I remember Kyoto having private baths."

With that, Kashimo turned and walked off.

What!?

Fenghua stood rooted to the spot, her face instantly turning scarlet. The redness spread from her cheeks to her ears, then down her neck. She looked as though she had just been pulled out of a steamer.

A private bath!?

A private bath with Master!?

She lowered her head and sniffed herself. The smell of blood mingled with sweat and the foul stench of cursed spirits, clinging stubbornly to her body. If she didn't wash, she definitely wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

But a private bath with Master!?

"Remember to bring the Ruyi Staff."

Kashimo's voice drifted back from ahead without him even turning his head.

Fenghua opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but her mind was completely blank.

She glanced down at the Ruyi Staff planted in the ground, then up at his already distant back. Gritting her teeth, she bent down, pulled the staff free, and jogged after him.

Shimogyo, Kyoto.

Night had deepened, and only a handful of shops still had their lights on along the streets. Kashimo walked ahead, wrapped in a blanket he had casually bought by the roadside to cover his ruined white clothes. Fenghua followed closely, carrying the Ruyi Staff and the Soul-Devouring Blade, the blush on her face still not entirely gone.

The entrance to the private baths was hidden behind an unremarkable shop. When they pushed open the wooden door, a kimono-clad attendant approached, her gaze sweeping over them-a disheveled man wrapped in a blanket, and an absurdly red-faced girl carrying a sword.

The corners of the attendant's mouth lifted slightly.

There was something ambiguous about her smile, as though she had seen straight through them-or hadn't seen anything at all.

Interestingly, Fenghua had only ever visited places around Edo and had never been to Kyoto. Studying that unfamiliar face, the attendant failed to recognize the red-robed girl as the Shogunate's missing Princess.

"This way, please."

The attendant led them down a winding corridor and pushed open the wooden door at the end.

"Please enjoy yourselves."

She stepped aside, her gaze moving between them once more as her indulgent, knowing smile deepened.

Kashimo ignored her and stepped into the room.

The room was small, with a bath built from blue stone in its center. The water was clear enough to see the bottom, and faint wisps of steam rose from it. A charcoal furnace stood in the middle of the bath, its fire burning brightly to warm the water. With no natural hot springs, many baths in Kyoto were heated this way.

Kashimo swiftly pulled off the blanket, revealing the white clothes beneath, already reduced to rags. Without even looking at them, he stripped them off and tossed them aside, then walked barefoot to the edge of the bath.

Splash.

He sank into the water, leaned against the side, and let out a long breath.

The water reached above his chest, warmth enveloping him from every direction and gradually soaking away the blood and sweat clinging to his skin. He closed his eyes, his loose, pale blue-green hair drifting gently across the surface.

Fenghua stood motionless in the doorway, holding the sword.

"What are you standing there for?"

Leaning against the side of the bath, Kashimo turned his head and glanced at the person still rooted in the doorway. Rising steam flushed his purple-marked face slightly red.

"Do you need me to help you bathe and change, too?"

Fenghua's gaze settled on the man in the bath, his muscular upper body exposed. Droplets slid along the line of his shoulders, glimmering faintly in the moonlight. His freshly healed wounds still left faint traces crisscrossing his taut muscles.

Her brain had completely shut down.

How could... how could he do this...

"Hey!"

Kashimo suddenly called out. His voice wasn't loud, but it rang especially clearly through the quiet bathing room.

Fenghua shuddered and finally came to her senses.

"Ah..."

Looking at her face, so red it seemed ready to steam, Kashimo suddenly smacked his forehead.

He seemed to have realized something.

"It's fine."

His tone was flat, as though he were stating a fact.

"I'm not particularly interested in you."

It would have been fine if he hadn't said anything.

But once he did.

Fenghua got fired up.

What did he mean, not interested?

What did he mean, not interested!?

Without another word, she set the sword and staff aside and stripped off her clothes in a flash.

Splash!

Water flew everywhere.

She sank into the bath, hot steam rushing into her face, and then...

Then she realized there was only a fist's width between her and Kashimo.

His face was right there.

Droplets clung to his eyelashes, and his purple-marked eyes were looking at her, his expression unreadable.

Fenghua's breathing stopped for a moment.

"Gulp."

She swallowed.

All right.

She still didn't dare.