Muichiro exchanged a look between the strawberry shortcake and you, specially how your yukata was covered in flour and other substances of unknown origin. He had never received a gift from anyone, he didn't remember so. And the fact that you had tried to bake something for him despite he knew you had never in your life cooked, was a sign of how much someone cared for him. It was a little something in return for his care while you were sick and how patient he had been with you lately.

Granted, he never told you that he was being softer with you because he understood your desire to protect the weak and stopped deeming you as useless or a waste of his time. Besides the fact that Oyakata-sama had tasked him with your care, and Muichiro wouldn't want to disappoint him.

Your presence wasn't bad either. Having someone clean the house due to not being able to stand the dust was nice.

He took a bite of the cake, the flavor quickly spread through his tastebuds. If it wasn't for his incredible ability to stay serene, he would've spit the damn thing right away. And if it weren't you, he would've spit on the person's face for giving him something so salty and weird.

He was being a merciful master, at least.

You were facing down and playing with your fingers, a little embarrassed. You had spent two days trying to bake a perfect thank-you gift for him. Your first attempts got burnt and the last before that one looked like a monster instead of a pastry. You had put a lot of effort in doing something acceptable, just to be able to show him that you were grateful.

"It's disgusting"

"...Yeah, figures" you buried your face between your folded arms over the table "I-I'm so sorry, it's my first time baking"

You lifted your head up, feeling a hand over it, gently patting it. Muichiro had seen Shinobu do the same to you yesterday.

"There, there"

You're making the whole 'trying to be friends' thing hard for me, you know?

Like a turtle hiding inside its shell, you didn't waste a second to bury your face again, mostly to hide the blush that Muichiro had seen so many times, something he didn't mind even though you were ashamed of it.

"Thank you for having me as your tsuguko, Tokito-sama"

It wasn't like he had another choice in the first place, but right now, he didn't dislike the idea of having you around him.

He simply affirmed with his head, although you couldn't see it, he did it anyway.

『 °*• ❈ •*°』

"Mist breathing; second form: Eight-Layered Mist" you shouted as you unleashed several slashes.

Muichiro observed the movements you made and pointed out what was slowing you down and how you could fix it. While his body was lighter than yours allowing him to move faster, it wasn't impossible to almost match his speed by adjusting the degree angle in which your toes pointed.

The second form was in another level compared to the first one, that had taken you two weeks to master. This time, watching your surroundings and the slightest motion in your joints was key. Without the excessive training during the first two months, you wouldn't have had enough strength, speed or flexibility to do the second form (in the lackluster side) in your first attempts.

The moonlight bathed your tired body, the darkness surrounded the place. Muichiro sat cross-legged, his palm resting agaisnt his cheek while waited for you to finish your cooldown.

He was satisfied with the result of that day, you had managed to learn the form. Flawed, no doubt, but it worked. Guess that after learning the first one, the others wouldn't be a hassle.

The rarity you were would surprise the other pillars. A girl not used to running or walking freely, whose muscles were those of a wet noodle before his training, was able to learn two forms in the span of a month, considering the fact that the second was within a day and only needed polish.

His eyes narrowed as he thought about it. The boredom of his features died down, a hint of intrigue sprouted and stayed.

There wasn't a trace of rage in you like the others slayers harboured. No sorrow, no emptiness. One could say that you were similar to the love pillar in that sense: a huge ball of kittens and love and hope.

That's what he would think if he didn't know better.

He thought you were nothing more than an idiot for getting into that cruel world. Even when he had given you a dirty room, gave you an insane schedule and had no intention of actually teaching you properly, even then, you hadn't dared to utter a word in protest. He was sure you were the kind of person who would let herself be stepped on.

However, how could he believe any of that when he had seen you had thorns? From the moment you had shouted at him how angered you were at the hidden unfairness of the world, the hollow dept of his eyes had taken a different shape.

He had came to the conclusion that, as ridiculous as you were, you had infinite potential. A kind, naive girl who just wants to protect the weak.

[Y/N], the mist pillar's tsuguko... it had a nice ring to it.

"Tokito-sama, I'm done!" you exclaimed, waving your hand at him even though he wasn't too far away from you.

You rushed to him, making him wake up from his dazed state.

Seeing him staring so much at you made you blush and question what was wrong. Before actually asking, he answered.

"I didn't realize before... you aren't shying away as much as you used to"

You took a couple of steps back in realization. Didn't waste a second to cover your flushed face, embarrassment running wild inside your poor steaming head.

Millions of thoughts of how you had acted with him surged in your mind, all of them resulting in the inevitable idea of having crossed the line or considering how bad your master thought of you for being so bold.

It wasn't like that in reality, but your imagination was greater than that.

Muichiro set a foot inside the house, looked over his shoulder to see you having a serious mental breakdown.

"What are you doing? Come on inside, I'm making udon for dinner"