KNY Fanfic: Priceless Smile

Chapter 67: River Side with the Moon

It has been a week since Kano and Haruna died. Kazumi's now on her current mission. As she enter the village, she roamed around as usual to gather information. As she walk around, a glimpse of someone familiar caught her. She saw Muichiro from a distant.

As he turned around, he saw Kazumi standing from a distant. His eyes slightly widened. Despite their dispute at one another, Kazumi just gave him a closed eye smile before walking to the other direction. Muichiro expected and thought that she would give them the cold shoulder too and a glare but, to what he saw just now, he's wrong.

If he were to say it, he felt warm inside. Not seeing her for a long time and meeting her now made him want to follow her. But the thought of what happened and what him and his fellow Pillars just found out made him stop. Now he's thinking whether to approach her or not. He just looked down and decided to leave.
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"Ara~, seems like the demons near here is not that much." Kazumi said as she put her sword back to its scabbard.

This is the third demon roaming around the area of this village. She already killed the other two. As she hear the sound of waters from her spot, she decided to follow it. Getting closer, she saw a river. The waters are shimmering like they have diamonds as the full moon's moonlight shine above.

But along the sound of the river's water rushing along the bank, another sound caught her. As she gets near the river some more, she hid behind the trees and saw a figure sitting at the river side. His long hair tied in a high ponytail and a sword lying down beside him.

"Good evening." Kazumi whispered to his right ear.

The figure snapped his head to see her and tried to grab her in a swift movement of his arm, but he caught no one.

"That's fast. Only a second late and you've caught me." Kazumi said.

He then stood up and grabbed his sword. Fully facing the slayer who just suddenly appeared beside him and greeted him then dodging his hands. He stood tall, his hair swaying along the cold wind passing by. Three pairs of eyes looking at the slayer.

"A demon slayer. I didn't even notice you." The demon muttered out.

Just from the sound she could hear from the start, she doesn't have to look at this demon's eyes to know his rank.

'An upper moon.'
Kazumi thought now looking at his eyes.

"You managed to surprise me like that, you must be a Pillar." The demon said walking closer to her before stopping in front of her.

"Yes I am. Guess I'm lucky enough to meet you, upper moon one." Kazumi replied looking at him.

Every slayer when seeing a demon instantly kill them or get theirselves in a fighting stance. Their expressions changing into anger then fear when seeing an upper rank demon, even the former Pillars he had faced. But this time, not her. Her smile not faltering, her calm aura not fading and turning neither to anger nor fear.

"A very young one I see. Perhaps you are twelve."

"Woah there! You even guessed my age!"

"I'm Kokushibou, and you are?"

"Kazumi, just call me Kazu for short."

Neither of the two are getting into their fighting stance or trying to make a move to kill the other. They just stood there looking at each other.

"Tell me, you know that I'm a demon but why didn't you attack me?" Kokushibou asked looking at her arms placed on either of her side.

"Let me see.... perhaps because I haven't seen you devouring anyone? Or maybe it's just that I'm not in the mood to take the first move of the fight." Kazumi answered simply her arms folded and raised into the air beside her.

"I don't get what you wanna say but.... you're different."

"How?"

"I didn't notice you, not until you approached me and talked to me. And to add that up, you're the shortest and youngest Pillar I've ever seen." Kokushibou answered pointing his right index finger at her.

"I am? Oh well, that's very unusual then. But don't worry, I'm not the only one who's short and is the youngest amongst the group."

Right after her answer, in just the blink of an eye, Kokushibou's figure is just inches away from her towering her with his tall figure. He stared down at her with an expressionless yet curious face.

"Not even afraid of me being near you? You know I could just kill you right now."

"I know but...." Kazumi walked closer to him and looked up to his eyes.
".... if you really wanted to kill me, you could've done that from the start, right?"

Kokushibou fell silent hearing her words. She's right. If he really wish to kill her, he could've done it by the time he saw her. But he didn't. As he trance off his own thoughts, he didn't notice Kazumi's no longer in front of him.

"Did my words hit you that hard you have to look down that long?" She asked.

Her question made him snap back to reality and turn around to see her standing beside the river. Out of every slayer he met before, all of them would charge at him without any second thoughts. Without hesitation. Even when he's just alone taking his own time, any slayers who would pass by him would always interrupt him by attacking and trying to kill him. And yet everyone of them always ends up dead and lifeless on the ground. This kind of attitude just annoyed him more.

"Kokushibou-san, as an upper moon tell me...." Kazumi crouched down to touch the water before looking at him over her shoulder.
".... was the reason you decided to turn into a demon acceptable?"

Kokushibou felt his own body tense up. His own eyes widened.

'Acceptable? My reason?.... Why the hell is she even asking me that?'
He questioned himself in his mind.

Kazumi soon felt the cold blade of his sword beside her neck. In just a single move, he could chop her head off. But she refused to unsheathe hers even if she could.

"I see, are you confused? Your sound tells me so." Kazumi said as she kept on staring down the water.

"Just what and who are you really? Why ask me such a question? Is it to report it back to your Master?"

"Don't get the wrong idea there Kokushibou-san, I'm simply asking because I wanna know. And who said that I'll report it? Do you see anyone with me?"

Kokushibou thought for a while sensing his surroundings. He soon pulled back his sword and put it back to its scabbard sensing that there's no one other than the both of them there.

"Tell me why then?"

Kazumi stood up and faced him fully.

"It's because there's a certain sound I get from you."

"And what is that?"

"Regret and longing. You regret something that you've done, while longing for a certain person."