Beach. Everyone has been working so hard lately so why not take a break and enjoy the beach? You can make sand castles, play in the water, and there are even umbrellas for those who'd rather just relax in the shade. There's a nice row of water melons ready to be smashed later in the day and when the sun goes down, that's when the sparklers come out.
Suffering. It's the hottest time of the year and the citadel doesn't have central air conditioning. The few air conditions that were installed have given up on life after being used so much and now, we really have to make do with what we can while the Konnosuke try to fix it. There's a limited number of fans, plenty of ice cream to go around, and the citadel should be built to circulate air, right? ... Right?!
Spooks. In Japan, summer is a time for horror. Gather around the camp fire and hear some spooky ghost stories or maybe head out into the woods just outside the citadel for a good ol' fashioned test of courage. It's all good, harmless fun! Of course, with so many spirits gathered in one place, what's to say a stray or curious outsider spirit won't join the mix...
Rain. Summer is also known for sudden and torrential downpours of rain. The clouds always seem to grown and darken suddenly and the next thing you know, it's raining sheets and the ground is shaking from thunder. Once it starts, it never seems to stop. Maybe you were caught out in the rain or maybe this is day 7 stuck inside.
Other! It's summer and there are tons of things to do. Go to the general store and stock up on ice cream, wake up in the middle of the night uncomfortable with heat, or run around screaming because cicadas are dying and flying at your face.
There's a rumble, and a roar, and the earth shakes—
—but there's no now-familiar clap of thunder, or the bone-bright spark of lightning. Rather, it's a boisterous laugh and a gleam of too-sharp canines in a mouth full of teeth; with his face slick with rain and his grin spreading his face in two, it isn't difficult to mistake the naginata for an oni freshly deposited from heavy stormclouds.
What betrays his fearsome image, ultimately, is his joviality. Shaking water from his eyes (like a big dog, really), he ducks under the awning next to Tonbokiri and greets his fellow touken danshi with a surprisingly reverent tip of his head.
"Gahahaha! Powerful as we are, we're still helpless against a bit of rain!"
His smile widens as he flicks his gaze downwards at Tonbokiri. Quite possibly the only sword in Honmaru who can manage this particular feat.
Tonbokiri's eyes widen at how near that thunder sounds-- and widen even further when Iwatooshi appears at his side, as if the storm had blown him there.
Of course, it is easy to get caught up in the naginata's powerfully jovial atmosphere. Even as he gives a low bow of his head in return for that acknowledgement, he is already smiling.
"These bodies are resilient against many things, but surprisingly weak against others."
It's one thing to have Tadakatsu's pride of 'never taking an injury' bound to him, but ... never getting sick? He has to be careful.
"Aruji can't repair illnesses from us. Would you like a towel?"
Always prepared, this one. Iwatooshi can't say that he's spent too much time with Tonbokiri since arriving in Honmaru, but he's seen enough of the spear to know that he should take the offered towel without protest. It would be an insult to show humility in the face of generosity, he thinks.
So, as always, Iwatooshi laughs. One gloved hand reaches out to receive whatever is given to him, graceful despite the hooked clawlike nails that curve the ends of his covered fingers.
"Haha, I'll take it! A naginata like me would take too much space in the infirmary, if I were to end up in there."
The towel Tonbokiri offers is small, little more than a hand towel to keep around his neck as he worked in the stable. Therefore, it certainly smells of horse and is a little dusty, but is truly the best he can give at the moment.
He is rather touched when Iwatooshi takes it without hesitation.
He is about to reassure him that even a naginata would surely be no trouble for Aruji to accommodate if needed, but then he is hit with that expression. Tonbokiri is very much unused to being the subject of such an honest, openly fond expression, and before he can even think of a reply he feels his face warming.
Ah, no, such a reaction might cause a misunderstanding?
Turning quickly to walk further into the stable he answers, "There's a few over here. They're meant for the horses, but they're dry." And full of horse hair, which Tonbokiri doesn't mind one bit. But he wouldn't offer it to another, especially a sempai.
If it's good enough for a horse, it's good enough for Iwatooshi. He's never been one for decorum or propriety, which is something he takes after from his previous Master. Musashibou Benkei, a monk who happily went the way of the sword; Musashibou Benkei, a man who balanced his mind with his might.
Iwatooshi is mid-gesture when Tonbokiri steps into the stables, towel poised and ready to scrub at his head. He stops before he can get it wet. Glances between the item in his hand and the spear dripping puddles onto stone flooring and hay.
For someone who cuts such a large figure, Iwatooshi is quick on his feet. One, two strides take him right behind his companion, and the flat of his large palm is on the crown of Tonbokiri's head before there's so much as a warning.
"Gahahaha! Then I'll use those!" Here he goes... drying Tonbokiri off with the formerly-gifted towel. It's a practiced motion, deceptively careful despite the wide sweep of his range— he's done the same to Imanotsurugi often enough that he knows his strength and how to curb it. "Stay still, stay still."
At the weight on his head Tonbokiri staggers to a stop, bewildered once again.
It's unusual enough that someone can so easily reach the crown of his head, never mind so casually (and surprisingly gently) rub a towel through his hair! He stays still more out of a loss of what to do than Iwatooshi's command. The fact that he very much enjoys the feeling of someone else working his hair is not helping.
Finally he gathers himself to say, "No- I couldn't possibly let you use those..." Which is a statement clearly belated.
This is embarrassing on so many levels. He can't even move forward to get a towel for Iwatooshi right now. "P-Please, take care of yourself as well."
"Ha! Certainly— I wouldn't hear the end of it, if I were to go back sick. Imanotsurugi would have my head!"
He laughs at his own assertion, still running his hand over Tonbokiri's hair over the obstruction of the towel. It isn't self-sacrifice that prompts him to continue to dry his companion off; rather, it's the fact that Iwatooshi can be a bit of a busybody when he wants to be.
It makes him smile, at any rate. A lot of things do.
"No, of course not..." He's tense because he's awkwardly evading letting himself enjoy the feeling of having his hair rubbed. (Spoiler: He's not great at evading.)
The other busybody in his life is more the trouble-making kind, so Tonbokiri really doesn't know what to do with this kind of attention.
'Of course not', huh. Funny— he wouldn't have minded being called fearsome, but this is valid as well.
The question prompts a surprised sort of half-hum, one that's quickly replaced by his natural effervescence.
"Gahaha! Dry others' hair? Not at all!" Straight-shooting as usual. He ruffles Tonbokiri's hair a little more roughly this time around, speaking to the affection he's putting into the gesture. "It's not every day that I'm given an excuse to, after all!"
Imanotsurugi is an exception to his rule, but it's not as if any of the other tantous or swords rush to him for help.
(Tonbokiri is just thinking in practical terms. Like, Iwatooshi wouldn't be able to open his mouth that wide. Or something.)
His head rolls around with that extra exuberance, Tonbokiri giving in a little more to how nice it feels.
"Ahh... Well... Thank you for the favour of your attention. I suppose it's not every day I am in this situation either. It's been..." His voice trails off softly, as he seriously tries to remember the last time someone dried his hair for him. -- He remembers. And his face immediately warms.
??? What is this hesitation about, Tonbo!!!!!!!!!! Iwatooshi is an old soul, he's every much a jiji as Mikazuki is...
Which means that he sometimes doesn't choose his words very wisely (or, well, he doesn't think to choose them so delicately). As much as he knows how to read the atmosphere, he is, after all, Musashibou Benkei's naginata.
"Hm? Ah, was your previous master the last one to stroke you properly?"
So, so earnestly....................... he means well...............
Tonbokiri moves his head abruptly in reaction to that question, trying to look around- which of course doesn't go well with him as the naginata is still drying his hair. Ahhh, he let his guard down, being in this mood!
"That is--" Yes, and no... But there will be no getting away from this without an explanation, will there. Why are the old blades so lewd difficult to understand sometimes?
"S-speaking casually about such things as humans is improper... However as a Touken Danshi, you will understand... Yes, my former master handled me well. However, on the previous, long, mission that we were on... ... ... My wife was the last one to dry my hair for me."
That's the point of this conversation, right? (It also leaves out a lot of details. RIP, Tonbo.)
Rambunctious and effervescent as Iwatooshi may be, he's still an old soul; it takes him a bit to wrap his mind around the concept of swords having wives. Since when?
The expression on his face says everything Iwatooshi doesn't. His eyes widen, then flit from surprise to confusion.
"A wife?" A low hum, considering. "Haah, that's an auspicious event, to be sure! But how?"
Now that he can see Iwatooshi's face... Tonbokiri starts to realize just how much deeper he's dug himself by saying something so confusing and abnormal. At least he saw it as auspicious?
"It is a very long story." It was a very long mission. "At least let us dry off further while I explain?"
He slips away from Iwatooshi for a moment to get the towels (small and full of horse hair, but dry), and hands two to the naginata. He uses one to dab at his yukata, and therefore only glances at Iwatooshi occasionally as he speaks.
"We were on a mission recently to restore the history around Ieyasu Tokugawa. All the men who were to father Ieyasu's great Generals had been killed so... In brief, we accepted the idea to take on the roles of those men ourselves, and protect Lord Ieyasu as he grew up." Perhaps Iwatooshi-dono can see where this is going now.
"Although full of misgivings about being able to live that great man's life, I took on the role of Honda Tadakatsu. But what I hadn't thought ahead to at that time was the fact that I would have to live his entire life-- That is, including his personal life." Despite the powerful encouragement that Monoyoshi had given him, Tonbokiri still could not entirely shake the nerves of walking in that great man's footsteps. Especially the steps where he hadn't been literally at Tadakatsu's side.
"That is how this spear came to have a wife. It was Tadakatsu... but it was me."
Right, missions— the things and roles they have to assume to protect the present and futures of the here and now. Confusion makes way for understanding, and Iwatooshi sobers only enough for his grin to turn a touch sentimental. He's experienced something similar in the past, after all, though his own trials were less elaborate.
He stops tending to Tonbokiri to muss his own hair. It's easy enough to dry; a few rough scrapes and he's back to looking mostly like himself, long strands of bangs in the front perked up and all.
"Haha! A challenge, if I've ever heard one. To take on the role of your past master—"
His smile spreads.
"—Was it fun?"
"That was some good acting, Honda Ta-da-ka-tsu~" "Stop teasing me, Muramasa! This is not for fun!"
"Fun?!" Tonbokiri looks up sharply, a flare of indignation clear in his tone and expression. "That is not a word I would ascribe to such a thing, no. On the contrary, I took it very seriously!"
...Too seriously, according to Monoyoshi. With a disgruntled sigh under his breath at himself, Tonbokiri looks back down at his damp yukata.
"My apologies. There were... enjoyable moments, I suppose, but I was far more concerned with ensuring that great man's history was properly honoured."
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rain.
—but there's no now-familiar clap of thunder, or the bone-bright spark of lightning. Rather, it's a boisterous laugh and a gleam of too-sharp canines in a mouth full of teeth; with his face slick with rain and his grin spreading his face in two, it isn't difficult to mistake the naginata for an oni freshly deposited from heavy stormclouds.
What betrays his fearsome image, ultimately, is his joviality. Shaking water from his eyes (like a big dog, really), he ducks under the awning next to Tonbokiri and greets his fellow touken danshi with a surprisingly reverent tip of his head.
"Gahahaha! Powerful as we are, we're still helpless against a bit of rain!"
His smile widens as he flicks his gaze downwards at Tonbokiri. Quite possibly the only sword in Honmaru who can manage this particular feat.
no subject
Of course, it is easy to get caught up in the naginata's powerfully jovial atmosphere. Even as he gives a low bow of his head in return for that acknowledgement, he is already smiling.
"These bodies are resilient against many things, but surprisingly weak against others."
It's one thing to have Tadakatsu's pride of 'never taking an injury' bound to him, but ... never getting sick? He has to be careful.
"Aruji can't repair illnesses from us. Would you like a towel?"
no subject
So, as always, Iwatooshi laughs. One gloved hand reaches out to receive whatever is given to him, graceful despite the hooked clawlike nails that curve the ends of his covered fingers.
"Haha, I'll take it! A naginata like me would take too much space in the infirmary, if I were to end up in there."
His eyes narrow, expression fond and open.
"And you? Where's a towel for yourself?"
no subject
He is rather touched when Iwatooshi takes it without hesitation.
He is about to reassure him that even a naginata would surely be no trouble for Aruji to accommodate if needed, but then he is hit with that expression. Tonbokiri is very much unused to being the subject of such an honest, openly fond expression, and before he can even think of a reply he feels his face warming.
Ah, no, such a reaction might cause a misunderstanding?
Turning quickly to walk further into the stable he answers, "There's a few over here. They're meant for the horses, but they're dry." And full of horse hair, which Tonbokiri doesn't mind one bit. But he wouldn't offer it to another, especially a sempai.
no subject
Iwatooshi is mid-gesture when Tonbokiri steps into the stables, towel poised and ready to scrub at his head. He stops before he can get it wet. Glances between the item in his hand and the spear dripping puddles onto stone flooring and hay.
For someone who cuts such a large figure, Iwatooshi is quick on his feet. One, two strides take him right behind his companion, and the flat of his large palm is on the crown of Tonbokiri's head before there's so much as a warning.
"Gahahaha! Then I'll use those!" Here he goes... drying Tonbokiri off with the formerly-gifted towel. It's a practiced motion, deceptively careful despite the wide sweep of his range— he's done the same to Imanotsurugi often enough that he knows his strength and how to curb it. "Stay still, stay still."
no subject
It's unusual enough that someone can so easily reach the crown of his head, never mind so casually (and surprisingly gently) rub a towel through his hair! He stays still more out of a loss of what to do than Iwatooshi's command. The fact that he very much enjoys the feeling of someone else working his hair is not helping.
Finally he gathers himself to say, "No- I couldn't possibly let you use those..." Which is a statement clearly belated.
This is embarrassing on so many levels.
He can't even move forward to get a towel for Iwatooshi right now.
"P-Please, take care of yourself as well."
no subject
He laughs at his own assertion, still running his hand over Tonbokiri's hair over the obstruction of the towel. It isn't self-sacrifice that prompts him to continue to dry his companion off; rather, it's the fact that Iwatooshi can be a bit of a busybody when he wants to be.
It makes him smile, at any rate. A lot of things do.
"Don't be so tense! I won't swallow you whole."
no subject
The other busybody in his life is more the trouble-making kind, so Tonbokiri really doesn't know what to do with this kind of attention.
"Do you... often do such things for others?"
no subject
The question prompts a surprised sort of half-hum, one that's quickly replaced by his natural effervescence.
"Gahaha! Dry others' hair? Not at all!" Straight-shooting as usual. He ruffles Tonbokiri's hair a little more roughly this time around, speaking to the affection he's putting into the gesture. "It's not every day that I'm given an excuse to, after all!"
Imanotsurugi is an exception to his rule, but it's not as if any of the other tantous or swords rush to him for help.
no subject
His head rolls around with that extra exuberance, Tonbokiri giving in a little more to how nice it feels.
"Ahh... Well... Thank you for the favour of your attention. I suppose it's not every day I am in this situation either. It's been..." His voice trails off softly, as he seriously tries to remember the last time someone dried his hair for him.
-- He remembers.
And his face immediately warms.
no subject
Which means that he sometimes doesn't choose his words very wisely (or, well, he doesn't think to choose them so delicately). As much as he knows how to read the atmosphere, he is, after all, Musashibou Benkei's naginata.
"Hm? Ah, was your previous master the last one to stroke you properly?"
So, so earnestly....................... he means well...............
/dies XD
"That is--" Yes, and no... But there will be no getting away from this without an explanation, will there. Why are the old blades so
lewddifficult to understand sometimes?"S-speaking casually about such things as humans is improper... However as a Touken Danshi, you will understand... Yes, my former master handled me well. However, on the previous, long, mission that we were on... ... ... My wife was the last one to dry my hair for me."
That's the point of this conversation, right? (It also leaves out a lot of details. RIP, Tonbo.)
sanjos........ sanjos.
Rambunctious and effervescent as Iwatooshi may be, he's still an old soul; it takes him a bit to wrap his mind around the concept of swords having wives. Since when?
The expression on his face says everything Iwatooshi doesn't. His eyes widen, then flit from surprise to confusion.
"A wife?" A low hum, considering. "Haah, that's an auspicious event, to be sure! But how?"
no subject
"It is a very long story." It was a very long mission. "At least let us dry off further while I explain?"
He slips away from Iwatooshi for a moment to get the towels (small and full of horse hair, but dry), and hands two to the naginata. He uses one to dab at his yukata, and therefore only glances at Iwatooshi occasionally as he speaks.
"We were on a mission recently to restore the history around Ieyasu Tokugawa. All the men who were to father Ieyasu's great Generals had been killed so... In brief, we accepted the idea to take on the roles of those men ourselves, and protect Lord Ieyasu as he grew up." Perhaps Iwatooshi-dono can see where this is going now.
"Although full of misgivings about being able to live that great man's life, I took on the role of Honda Tadakatsu. But what I hadn't thought ahead to at that time was the fact that I would have to live his entire life-- That is, including his personal life." Despite the powerful encouragement that Monoyoshi had given him, Tonbokiri still could not entirely shake the nerves of walking in that great man's footsteps. Especially the steps where he hadn't been literally at Tadakatsu's side.
"That is how this spear came to have a wife. It was Tadakatsu... but it was me."
no subject
He stops tending to Tonbokiri to muss his own hair. It's easy enough to dry; a few rough scrapes and he's back to looking mostly like himself, long strands of bangs in the front perked up and all.
"Haha! A challenge, if I've ever heard one. To take on the role of your past master—"
His smile spreads.
"—Was it fun?"
"That was some good acting, Honda Ta-da-ka-tsu~" "Stop teasing me, Muramasa! This is not for fun!"
...Too seriously, according to Monoyoshi.
With a disgruntled sigh under his breath at himself, Tonbokiri looks back down at his damp yukata.
"My apologies. There were... enjoyable moments, I suppose, but I was far more concerned with ensuring that great man's history was properly honoured."