The special-care ward at the Butterfly Mansion had gone through two new doors.
The first had been nailed into place the night Yaha was brought in, by trembling Hidden Corps members with Kyojuro Rengoku holding them at swordpoint with the communication blade from his hip.
The second had been replaced with thicker cedar planks at Shinobu Kocho's orders after the Ubuyashiki battle report arrived from headquarters.
She had said it was just in case.
That sturdy cedar door had lasted six hours at most before Yaha kicked it in.
The door slammed into the inside wall, then bounced back and settled half-open.
An iron hinge on the frame lost a rivet, which rolled into the room amid tiny wood splinters.
The two Hidden Corps attendants waiting in the corridor each took a large step to either side of the doorway in perfect unison, barely daring to breathe.
Yaha sat on the edge of the bed.
He was bare-chested, with remnants of dark gray cursed markings still clinging to the side of his neck.
The marks had not faded completely. They looked like a totem carved into his flesh, and he could not be bothered with them.
One leg rested on the bed, the other hung to the floor, and both hands lay on his knees.
His chin was slightly raised as his gaze swept over from the far end of the corridor.
There was no killing intent, but his air of looking down on everything as a matter of course was even more suffocating.
"Where's the food?"
His voice was quiet and hoarse from sleep, every word steeped in laziness.
The two attendants exchanged a glance. Neither dared take the first step, each hoping the other would speak.
"I made it clear to you Ubuyashiki people last time. Unlimited food,