What was supposed to be a peaceful morning meditation quickly turns into a disaster.

A/N: WARNING: Vomit, just vomit, and some anxiety.

-linebreak-

The Sound Pillar stood above him, a finger raised with slight hesitation as he stared down at the other Hashira, eyes wide. Well, he...

He didn't expect that. Did Tomioka panic so much he just... Threw up? He's witnessed his fair share of panic when it comes to people, especially thanks to this job but the only time he's seen people ever throw up is due to poisoned food or seeing a corpse, he assumes neither has happened to Tomioka in the few moments they've spent together today. It has to be panic telling by the man's abnormally fast heart rate, he can hear it from where he's standing and he's a very tall man. And that's not even mentioning how fast it's going... Worryingly so.

His brows could only furrow in concern as he gritted his teeth. "Um... I think maybe we're gonna have to get that checked out...?" Tomioka only continues to retch, Uzui sucks in a tight breath through his teeth, glancing away with his arms folded over his chest and impatiently tapping his foot. "C'mon get this over with... I gotta bring you somewhere and I already know Kocho's gonna kill me for this..." And that's being generous he's sure she's going to absolutely slaughter him for this. He will be dead on the floor for this and they will have to mop his blood off of the floor for this.

He already knew he had put the mission in jeopardy by giving away the fact that he had to bring him somewhere, and that's not even mentioning they were doing this under their master's nose as well! He knew if he had found out he had possibly injured himself and the other pillar, or just terrorized the man to some extent he'd either stop this idea completely or they'd all- mostly him- would get reprimanded for it, although he's sure their master would be grateful of the thought they'd put into it. But then again, no one ever said Oyakata-sama had to find out.

Tomioka didn't seem like the type to... Well... Snitch per se, he kept to himself unless the situation somehow remotely involved him and even then he was distant.

The man was unorthodox, a pandora's box mystery except there was no true telling on whether or not they'd ever open the box, and that's not even mentioning it wasn't even that easily accessible. Except that was a good thing to some right.

Uzui liked a good mystery, maybe even loved them, that just spurred him on to learn more about the man even more. Maybe that was a selfish desire of his but mysteries were just things that called him, and the Water Hashira was exactly that and he wanted to figure out why he was that way. It's why he agreed to this so easily, he wanted to know what made Tomioka tick, and why he acted the way he did, he wanted to understand him and wanted to understand what made him come undone and how to do that.

He just didn't expect that answer so quickly. Apparently, throwing him over your shoulders was one of those things, petty, but understandable, some people don't take to it so highly. But for now, he'll have to wait till the man recuperates himself before they can do anything.

The man keeps on puking until there's seemingly nothing left in his stomach before his breath starts to settle and he's supporting himself up on what seems like shaky arms. Uzui is curious about what spurred this on, so, he asks, and the answer he gets is simple.

"I... I didn't eat before I left..." It isn't a lie but it isn't the entire truth either. As more time passes Giyuu finds himself forgetting to do simple things or has no energy to do them in the first place.  He had just forgotten to do it due to thinking about the approaching events that were coming up, all the nightmares.

"That's... That ain't good Tomioka, imagine what Kocho would say," The thought he'll have to tell Kocho about it makes his stomach churn, even more, the anxiety seizes back up for vengeance, stress rips his mind that's already left in shambles and he's left to pick up even more pieces than before. Before he knows it, he's gagging, then there's bile spilling from his lips once more and onto the ground.

"Yeah, your definitely gonna have to see her after this,"

If this is how it's going before he arrives at whatever is planned then he already knows he won't like what's going to happen afterward. A mix between a croak and an inaudible whimper leaves his throat as he coughs, he doesn't want to deal with what Kocho will say to him about this, nothing good and he knows it. The thought makes his body shake even more with the anxiety the interactions will induce. He just wants to go home, go home, and rests even though he knows what's waiting for him when he sleeps. More nightmares, more nightmares about what happened that night and the following at the village, he'll just end up throwing up even more afterward as his sister's corpse brands itself into his mind once more. 

Speaking of which, he should really stop thinking about it because now he feels even worse. His mind keeps spinning, making his stomach churn, it settles not after a long while but it settles enough he can manage to steady his breath.

The memories of the event have now become fresh, the wound has now become fresher than before, this was easier to handle when it was in the form of nightmares, he was aware that he was going to get them which made them easier to handle, he knew when he'd get them but this time he had been caught by surprise. He didn't like surprises.

Thankfully, the Sound Hashira had no more in stock as he stayed silent until he could fully collect himself once more. He isn't quite sure if he's happy about it or not, now, he's just given the other man more time to think about what to say and what to ask him. Though it seems in retrospect, the only thing it really did is run the older man's patience out, as before he knows it, a hand grabs the back of his haori and pulls him up, it's not harsh or roughly just easing him up and making sure he was able to stand straight before he lets go. He felt embarrassed, being treated as if he was some kind of child needing help after he threw up. Giyuu just wants to get this over with so he starts walking only having to turn around since it's the wrong direction.

Why can't people just leave him alone?

"So..." Uzui starts and Tomioka is still trying to get his bearings to process certain things. "What was that about?" He tilts his head to the side and leans down so he can better hear the man. It takes a few moments for Giyuu to process the words, then to be able to force out a response, and even then, he isn't entirely thinking about what he's saying at the time. "Panic," He blandly states, and Uzui raises an eyebrow to that moving in to get a closer look which is when he notices something.

Tomioka has a far-off look to him, his eyes at least, he's not present, not in the daydreaming present but kind of in a mix between Muichiro and some of the people he sees on his missions. And not the good kind of people, the 'I just saw my loved one die', look, or the look they have when they're still in shock.

Yep, Kocho's definitely going to kill him, while Oyakata-sama won't he'll still give him a harsh scolding for partly incapacitating one of his own. "Why'd you panic?" It takes a few moments for Giyuu to respond but he eventually does.

"I thought you were kidnapping me..." So it's a lack of control then that makes him act up, that's one of his ticks. The lack of control makes him spiral, therefore, he behaviors far more irrationally than he would be. It makes...

It makes sense now that Uzui thinks of it. Why he's so distant and secluded from them, he needs that control unless he wants to spiral, and he can partially empathize. When your hearing is as good as his, proper control of your emotions and surroundings is necessary unless you want to be overwhelmed, a proper balance is needed. This means in order for Tomioka to get that proper balance he needs seclusion, privacy, silence, meaning that it doesn't stem from just control over his emotions and surroundings, it also stems from something else and that can easily be a lot of things. Trauma, emotional sensitivity, anxiety, and many more he cannot name at this moment... Or he's just overthinking things and is psychoanalyzing the man for no reason at all.

Damn, he shouldn't have borrowed those books from Kanroji because now he's probably overthinking this and looking too deep into it.

Tomioka can very easily just be a private man who was just raised to keep a calm head which is needed in their line of work. He could have always been like this and it has not been any different. But what good of a mystery does that make it?

Exactly. It's selfish to think of his coworker this way, like a puzzle for him to figure out but it makes it enjoyable as well. This is just his process of how he'll help him, by putting piece by piece together until it's a coherent puzzle, after all, there is no guarantee that this'll work as well, best not put too much thought into it and enjoy it while it lasts.

So Uzui does exactly what he thinks will make this experience a little more pleasant. "And where exactly would I take you, huh? To a social gathering of some kind? I think we both know that'd be good for you," Tengen lets out a chuckle as he rests his arm on the other man's shoulder, his shadow looming over him as he's all too caught up in his joke to notice the darkening to his coworker's expression, at least until it's too late.

"I... I don't wanna go back there..."

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Ah...

Yeah, he's definitely going to get a punishment to some capacity once Oyakata-sama or Kocho hears about this, especially if Iguro hears of it- if he gets in his way of making Kanroji happy he's dead meat- all this to say, he's screwed and not in a good way. But at least he got an answer to his previous question.

It's most likely trauma, definitely trauma. He's heard those words before from so many people he's helped rescue or saved. And to think, he really doesn't like it when things so light take such a sharp and dark tone so early on, it's a shame really. He just wanted to have fun. Guess not.

It's then where Uzui makes the executive decision to keep his head down and his mouth shut for the rest of the way there. Thankfully, Tomioka didn't have anything to say or any questions to ask unlike him. Now he just felt kind of bad. 

On foot, it took a while to get to the Stone Hashira's Mansion, even longer since Tomioka was dawdling behind, sometimes he even had to maneuver him back onto the path, he seemed even more out of it than before, he looked even paler than before, sweating, looking like he was going to collapse of his feet. He hurried in his pace, vehemently ignoring the trepidation bubbling in his stomach, he hoped Tomioka would get the message, and he did. Soon enough they arrived there by the time the sun had risen over the horizon, a little time before breakfast, it was early morning.

To him, Himejima's Mansion was more of a place of relaxation than a place of training, it wasn't what you would expect the strongest of all the Hashira's house to look like. It was expected to have weapons, have the place be chock-full of them, and a large training field but instead, it was anything but. It was large and imposing, sure, two stories, but it was only that way due to the man's incredible height. The Mansion was homier and welcoming, with barely a weapon in sight unless you actively sought them out, of course, they were all placed directly next to his training area, where a shed was present nearby so they could be pulled in at night and shielded during the rain. All this to say, this gave him the same kind of vibes you'd get when vacationing somewhere really nice. 

There was a gate around the house, and it was obviously unlocked. The two went in- or at least he did, he was speeding ahead of the man, and for good reason- not bothering to enter through the front door of the house, instead, going around the side and to the backyard. 

At the back of the house, there was an engawa overlooking the backyard, there was a kutsunugi-ishi resting right next to it, a few zori's resting on it, enough that he wouldn't be able to place his on there, luckily, there was another readily available with just enough space for his. Behind the engawa, the room it was connected to, all of the shoji- with a fair combination of an amado or two on the side of it- were slid open, making the room connected to said engawa have the look of a sunroom. The room had a number of zabuton laying across the floor in an orderly fashion, there wasn't a complete set of nine but instead seven, he could guess who those two that were missing were.

He sighed, loudly enough to gain the attention of the people currently occupying the look-alike sunroom, Kanroji waved along with Kocho, Rengoku giving him a bright greeting as Iguro and Himejima greeted him in a normal tone. He waves back, greeting them back with not the usual vigor he has, he can't force it, not after what he just did.

Uzui stands on the kutsunugi-ishi sliding off his zori's and stepping onto the bamboo flooring. "I thought you said you were bringing Tomioka?" Kyoujurou asks him as he crosses over to the room they're in, he looks confused, they all do to some extent. He hears the distant closing of the gate and can assume Tomioka will join them soon. 

"I did, he just entered through the gate, I told him where to go."

"Typical of Tomioka to be late, even when the event is planned solely around him. I don't blame you for walking ahead of him." Oh if only you knew Kocho.

If only you knew. 

"Yeah... About that..." With the hesitancy in tow, he gains a number of looks. Kocho simply looks at him incredulously, covering her mouth with the tips of her fingers as she stared at him, brows furrowed, while Iguro scoffs, crossing his arms and looking away, shifting the weight of his body from one foot to the other. As they stare at him in displeasure, Kanroji lets out a displeased noise as everyone shares looks of confusion. He can only look away with a rare shred of bashfulness, scratching the back of his neck as he finds himself reluctant to speak. How strange, he usually causes the people around him to have this effect but instead, it's the other way around. 

"...The reason for him being late is... I think I might have broke or traumatized him, my fault, sorry." The looks he got were a mix of shock, bewilderment, and surprise. 

Iguro's eye twitched, hands halfway closing into fists as they shook. How badly did he mess up? How bad and how bad would this be for them, for Mitsuri? "What..." He started slowly, glowering at him with murderous intent. "Did you do?..." Uzui was oddly silent until he replied back, still not looking at them. 

"...Might have made him think he was getting kidnapped or something along those lines... Yeah, not my best work..."

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"How do you make someone think they're getting kidnapped?! No- What did you do?!" And Mitsuri can't help but add on to Iguro's statement.

"I don't think I wanna know what he did..." 

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"Uzui-sa-"

"Snuck up on him without telling him and just... Picked him up and didn't tell him who I was..."

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"...You're an idiot," Uzui expected that kind of reaction from Iguro.

"Yeah, I was made aware of that when he started attacking me..."

"You deserved it," Along with that one as well.

"Then when I let go I kinda... Slammed him into the ground,"

"This can't get any worse..." He kinda feels bad for Kanroji to some extent, because it does get worse. 

"Then he started throwing up..."

"Oh my god," He wasn't sure if Kocho's sigh was from exasperation or surprise but it could have been either. 

"Yeah, I get it, I fucked up big time, don't remind me. Besides, didn't we come here to relax? This questioning doesn't feel so 'relaxing'." As he widely gestures, it's at that moment Tomioka comes slowly walking around the corner. Uzui utters to himself, storming away but being careful not to stomp his feet so as to not disturb Gyomei's flooring.

As usual, Rengoku loudly greets him, Kocho and Kanroji planned to follow if the Water Hashira didn't stutter in his steps at the noise, wrenching itself to a sudden stop almost tripping over his own legs but quickly gained his balance back and froze completely for a few seconds- it didn't even look like he was breathing. After his brain rebooted a few seconds later, he sharply wrenched his head upwards at the bamboo platform and the rest of the Hashira who were present got a good look at him. Needless to say, the overwhelming reaction was a mix of concern and wincing and an ounce of guilt on Uzui's part.

Tomioka was pale, deathly pale, and he looked like a dear in headlights, it seemed like he had been sweating too, not a lot but it was clear on his face and the overall dishevelment of his appearance, he had a leaf in his hair from the looks of it. The hand Kyoujurou had waved with his greeting dropped limply to the side, that smile never leaving his face, instead a corner of his lips turning down as his brows knitted together. No one said anything for a fair bit until Kyoujurou spoke up again.

"I'm... Glad you joined us on this beautiful morning Tomioka..." His voice lowered a grave amount and Tomioka said nothing, staring until his expression calmed a little bit, no longer looking like a frightened animal. He turned ahead and said nothing. Everyone but Rengoku and Kocho ushered themselves inside to talk but along with get things started.

The Flame Hashira leaned to the side, a hand covering his mouth as he whispered to Kocho. "I think he's gonna need a little relaxation too after what Uzui did,"

"Agreed," So with a nod Kocho gets right to work as Kyoujuro joins the others. 

"Yaa~haa! Tomioka-san we've been waiting for you!" Sliding on her zori's she jumped down from the platform and skipped over to him, he didn't say anything and stared ahead unfocused, his hand briefly twitching. "Hm? So shocked that we planned this out for you that you can't say anything? I don't blame you I would be to... o...?" 

She latches onto his arm like a koala to drag him along but is stopped as she notices something adding more to his odd appearance. This isn't good.

"Tomioka-san..." Her voice is firm, it sounds like she's scolding him, like she's disappointed, but she knows it's more worry than anything else, it's just a problem she has. When she's worried her voice will more often than not reflect disappointment than the worry she feels. It takes him a concerningly longer to process what she said before his expression darkens, his pallor somehow dropping more as he looks at her, his brows knitted together. "...What?"

She can't find it in herself to be irritated or mad at his bluntness at that particular moment in time, the man just threw up a while ago after thinking he was possibly getting abducted, and mixing that with the exhaustion that comes with patrol she knows she'd be irritated too. But he might not even be irritated at all, his tone sounded more confused than anything but she can't know for sure, whatever it is, she's worried.

"You're shaking," She informs him, her tone growing softer trying to quell any chances he might think of her being mad at him. "It's nothing," He tells her, but she knows it's anything but such.

If she thumbs briefly over where his pulse would be on his wrist she can feel the irregularity of his heartbeat, it's not too noticeable but it's still there. She can't nail down a diagnosis immediately but she can determine that based on the information she's been given in these past moments it has something to do with what Uzui did or maybe something to do with seeing her. She'll really never know and as much as she hates to admit it, she's scared to find out which one it really is.

"Maybe you should go lay down," It takes him a few seconds before he stiffly shakes his head, it makes her respond by tightening her grip on his arm, making her voice grow firmer than before. "Are you sure? You're not going to slow us down, are you?" The last part isn't needed, and she knows she shouldn't say it but it's her best bet. If she makes him think this is as bad as she sees it, that it'll hurt everyone maybe he'll listen. If it affects someone outside of him maybe he'll listen and start to care for himself. Maybe then he can be selfish.

Please just be selfish, please just indulge yourself for once, please please please- You could due with gaining a few pounds, you need them desperately, please just thinks of yourself for once, please. 

Shinobu is scared to tell anyone, scared of how their master will react and how his Sensei would react if she told them. So she'll keep it to herself, for how long she isn't sure, in the hopes that one day she can talk to him about it. In the hopes that one day he can allow himself the guilty pleasures they permit themselves to even if it's only for a day, even if it's only for a moment.

One day, she tells herself, one day it'll change. But as time progresses she slowly loses hope on if that day will ever come. Kocho never did well when focusing too much on her thoughts so maybe, meditation would help clear her mind a bit, it was about time they joined the other after all. 

The two both step on a separate kutsunugi-ishi, the one her's were on beforehand, while he goes on the one next to it and slips off their zori's then steps onto the engawa's platform. By now everyone has taken to the other room and got seated on their zabuton, Gyomei's was upfront of all of them. It was the obvious choice for him to be the leader of this group meditation and so he was. 

As soon as they were on the engawa she ushered him over to his spot which was at the end of the line, and then let go to sit on her's. As soon as everyone was seated and ready Himejima began. 

The Stone Hashira always liked to start these things, she had learned with an introduction, and acknowledgment of why they did this and she felt that it couldn't have been anymore needed considering who this event was planned around. 

"No one ever said our job was easy, which is why I like to have these despite how infrequent they may occur for even we need breaks, to reflect on our surroundings and be realize despite how flickering life can be at times, we must enjoy it and the only way to enjoy it properly is to take a moment to relax and let the world stand still for a moment." Himejima started, 

"We will spend these next moments in silence, I expect no interruptions, no crosstalk or advice-giving, that can be saved for later. So for now, take a deep breath in..." 

Inhale.

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"...Deep breath out."

Exhale.

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"In..."

Inhale.

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"Out..."

Exhale.

They continued on for this what was a while until Gyomei spoke up once more.

"Now, take these moments to reflect on your thoughts and experiences," And with that they spent their next moments in silence...

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Nice...

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Peaceful...

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Silenc-

THUD!

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No one opened their eyes, everyone stayed silent. 

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But she could practically feel the tension in the air.

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Please for the love of God someone say something.

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Ironically enough, the man who most likely caused all this was the one to speak up, Uzui. 

"...I really don't wanna open my eyes man..."

"...Seconded," Mitsuri said a beat later.

"Thirded," Iguro followed. Shinobu just sighed, feeling all that aforementioned tension she was meant to escape coming back for an act of vengeance.

"Fine I'll open them," And she did.

And she almost screamed.

What the fuck?

Why was Tomioka on the ground?

What the hell happened?

What.

"Alright, what's so bad that- holy shit," Yeah she felt the same.

Soon enough they were all just... Crouched around the Water Hashira, confused about what was going on and what happened to him. Uzui prompted, looking at her confused. 

"I thought you said he was compliant?"

"Yes, why do you think he was?" She poked his cheek and he did nothing, not a twitch, not a single movement. "It's easier to do checkups when he's too tired to retaliate,"

You'd think with people talking above you, and someone poking you if you were asleep you'd wake up, or at least make some sign of it but Tomioka made none. No matter how many times she poked him or they talk he did nothing. It was... Kind of worrying, to be honest. And Kanroji verbalized her concerns.

"Um... Tomioka-san hasn't really moved in a while..."

"I don't think he's moved at all..."

"Did he relax so much that he died?" Uzui grabbed him by his hand, lifting it all the way up and then just let it go, dropped it, the arm fell to the floor with a 'thud!' and Tomioka made no movement. Expression grime, he looked up nodding. "Looks like he did,"

"Probably no thanks to you." Obanai retorted huffing. 

"Nooooo! Tomioka-san can't die! We haven't even seen him smile yet! We were supposed to see him smile!" Mitsuri whined, and Shinobu could only inwardly cringe, that wasn't the point in this at all.

It seemed like that's what Obanai summarised as well since he glared at the Sound Hashira with murderous intent. "Look at what you did." And to top it all off, the man was in a horribly uncomfortable position as well. He had fallen back with his legs still crossed, laying flat against the ground as his arms rested limply at his side, if he was dead, it was an uncomfortable way to die for sure.

With a sigh, she shuffled forward and kneeled next to him, people making way for her by moving. They weren't right at all, she's pretty sure she knew what was going on. 

"No. No, he's very much alive he just sleeps like that, he'll probably snore a bit soon and then roll over. He doesn't do much except look like he's dead," Uzui looked over to her as Obanai laid a hand on Mitsuri's shoulder. "So then what's your diagnosis?"

"Low energy after going on patrol or lack of sleep, especially tired after what Uzui-san did, probably hungry but knowing Tomioka-san... I'm not quite sure given the situation at hand..."

"We could try waking him up?" Rengoku suggested, tilting his head to the side. 

"I was just about to do that," She rose her hand, and Uzui thought she was going to lightly slap his cheek but instead she brought it down rather sharply yet it raised no reaction from Tomioka. Uzui flinched back at the action, the others let out sounds of surprise. "My god woman! Remind me never to fall asleep around you!" He feared her wrath even more. 

Shinobu just shrugged off the comment and moved her hand to feel his forehead, then his neck. The others watched as she clicked her tongue between the gestures, shaking her head disappointedly. "He's not sick either... Sleep deprivation it is then, not the first nor the last."

"There's a lot to unpack right there," As he said this, Uzui pointed at her with finger guns. "But we don't currently have the time to unpack it right now, maybe later over lunch,"

"May we move him to one of my guest rooms? If it's sleep he needs, the least we can do is let him sleep comfortably." Himejima suggested.

"I was just about to suggest that,"

"I'll lead the way," With that Himejima stood up and Himejima looked at where both Kyoujurou and Uzui were sitting. "Will one of you...?" They both stood up and exchanged looks of varying degrees. 

"Well, I..." Kyoujurou started.

"I think I..." Uzui finished off. 

Then they looked at her, both raising their brows, she could only look between them and sighed.

"...Uzui-san if you may?" It's the least you can do after what you did, it's the only thing her mind thinks but she holds back the words on her tongue. 

"Aight," He nods.

Then she looked to Kyoujurou. "I need your help with something else,"

It's a shame really, she almost doesn't want to end up possibly disturbing him while he's asleep like this, who knows what moving him will do.

When he's asleep his face takes a more youthful look, gentle, any creases in his skin have smoothed out completely. His body is slack as if a string had been snapped he was no longer tense anymore. His head bowed a minuscule amount to the side, soft lips open only a meager amount so he can breathe out breaths from his slowly rising and falling chest.

He never does look alive, but he does look peaceful, he looks like how she would assume he'd look in his casket at his funeral, for once at peace, unaware of the world around him. But he's not dead, he has his little telling to show that. The obvious one is when he snores and then proceeds to roll over whether it be on his side or back, but that rarely happens, but then there are the less obvious ones. His eyelashes will give the occasional flicker, sometimes the corner of his mouth with a twitch, or maybe his fingers will quaver but other than that, he's dead to the world around him.

He's so peaceful yet his body is a wreck, overworked, and underappreciated. When she dealt with an injury on his shoulder he had to take off part of his shirt and she saw how prominent his ribs were against his skin. Yes, he was built well, he had muscles, not exactly thin at all but most of the fat in his body had been distributed to those muscles, leaving none for the rest. She'd give him bigger portions than normal, he never did ask why, but Aoi did, her answer stayed the same, he needs more food to sustain his body build, not because the imprint of his ribs worried her. That would always be the answer no matter who asked.

It was like the two's little secret between them, she wouldn't tell nor ask, and neither would he. He didn't know she knew and she would never tell him just like she would never tell anyone else. Not many people in the organization were as subtle as her when it came to things like this, Mitsuri would never be, not if her life depended on it, and neither was Gyomei, Kyojuro tried but sometimes he failed sometimes he succeeded, Tengen was too blunt and Muichiro would forget, the other two just didn't care.

Uzui picks the man up with little to no struggle, this time, he doesn't know him over his shoulder, and instead picks him up carefully in a bridal carry instead. Giyuu's body doesn't do much but be maneuvered however the man desires him to be, his head rolls pliantly around, settling against his chest. As Gyomei leads the way and Uzui follows Tomioka seems entirely undisturbed, not a single sign of waking up insight. But as they leave a small piece of paper seems to flutter from the ground, from the man's pockets, forgotten about and most likely soon to be swept up if no one picked it up from its placement on the ground.

She goes to pick it up and no one pays her much mind, she watches as Gyomei leads Uzui away further into his mansion. Shinobu sighs, she was right about this ending up like last time, if not a little differently.

-linebreak-

A Tomioka whose asleep is far different from Tomioka when he's awake. It really is a sight to see, and he's seeing it.

Despite the paleness of his pallor, he looks peaceful, kind of how a dead body looks at a funeral- sickly paleness of his skin tone isn't helping it- which is admittedly kinda creepy. Though in a way the man almost looks content despite everything that's happened, it's reassuring in a way as well.

He wonders if Tomioka hates him for earlier or whether he's entirely indifferent on the matter, he seemed indifferent but Uzui isn't quite sure when it comes to him. It could be anything and he'd never know. He'd ask him about it later when he woke up which was hopefully soon. 

Uzui veered down the Stone Hashira's house's many hallways, it seemed never-ending, so many twists and turns he was sure he wouldn't make through without the other man, or maybe he was just over exaggerating and it was taking longer in his head. 

They reach the guest room soon enough but it feels like forever, there are three futons laid out, and each of them has a kakebuton tucked in with a makura laid on top of it. Uzui goes for the middle one but Gyomei directs him towards the one left of it, and with a melodramatic sigh he does so. The older man kneels next to the futon, untucking the kakebuton and strewing it aside, he looks up at him, nodding for him to put the man down on it and he does so, making sure not to drop him since he's already done enough as it is. He backs away as soon as he's done and with that, the older man works on getting Tomioka settled in.

Himejima's movements are gentle, they're deliberate. They exceed the need for caution and care, of gentleness, that comes when tucking someone in, let alone a 21-year-old, yet he still does it. He takes his time, the exact opposite of how he'd do it if it came to him.

Himejima on his own accord repositions the Water Hashira from his back to his side, Tengen can't help but scowl at it, there was nothing wrong with how he laid him down and so he raises an objection to it- or lodged a complaint really. Gyomei informs him that's to prevent him from choking if he vomits when he's asleep. Uzui promptly shuts up after that.

He lays the man on his side, head resting elevated on a makura, as he drapes the kakebuton over him, tucking him in the best he could, making sure he was as warm as he could be. It's at that point he leaves and waits outside for Himejima to join him. It's only a few moments later when the Stone Hashira does and the two leave to see whatever it is Kocho has planned. 

-linebreak-

Shinobu's task for Kyoujurou was to help her in making lunch for them all, they'd work together on the primary meal, and she'd be focused on working on that a little more than him as he focused on making a meal for Tomioka which was okayu. Needless to say, the progress was far easier with help. In fact, the two had taken to a conversation as the food was finishing up, it was nice despite how awful the day had started out beforehand, but that didn't mean she had no room for concern, no, it still wasn't over. 

"Make sure you give Tomioka-san a bigger portion than you usually serve," He could only look over at her for that comment confused. 

"Why's that?"

Because his ribs are far too prominent than they should be Kyoujurou, she thinks, I wish you could have seen it for yourself but you don't see half the things I do. It's all she can think but she doesn't voice it, she never does. "Well after what Uzui-san did he's probably more hungry than usual thanks to that. Wouldn't you be if you threw up your last dinner?"

"It had slipped my mind. Thank you for the reminder Kocho! I'll make sure he gets a fair portion to suit said need."

"Speaking of needs, don't be afraid to give him more than you usually do,"

"Are you planning something Kocho?"

"No, not at this moment, no, I just noticed when sparring with him one day it'd be more suited to his regimen, yes?"

"I'd be willing to teach him some recipes if it worries you that much," He chuckled as he said this but it didn't relieve the stress from his voice. 

"Recipies are not the problem, he's a fine cook-" But before she could finish her sentence, Kyoujurou cut her off with a loud exclamation. 

"Tomioka cooked for you? Why am I finding this out now? I'd love to see what he can share with me!" With the rising smile on her face, she was sure he would love to share them with him, and maybe Tomioka would like that too.

"Ah... You'll have to take him up on that, it was just a mere coincidence that I was there while he was, but credit is where credit is due." Despite what few ingredients he had in his pantry he made do with what he had and cooked up an excellent meal, and none of them were relatively expensive either, cheap would be the way to describe them yet the meal tasted absolutely delicious despite that. It seemed like wasn't the ingredients that mattered when it came to cooking, it was the cook themself. 

"I'll be sure to talk to him about it after all this is over. I guess the saying 'people are not always what they first seem' is true." With a chuckle, Shinobu retorts: 

"Never judge a book by its cover as they say." Not seeing the hypocrisy behind her own statement. "Speak of people not being what they seem, I found that Tomioka has been getting letters, he had one with him on when he..." She still wasn't quite sure what he did this morning, it was a cross between collapsing of exhaustion or falling asleep, she'd need to run more tests. 

"Collapsed...?" The Flame Hashira finished with some noted hesitancy, she nodded. "Yes, but I found this letter, I plan to return it when he wakes up." To show she was telling the truth- even though she knows that Kyoujurou would believe her nonetheless- she pulled the letter from her pocket, still folded to show him. Then someone picked the letter right between her fingertips and from the scars on his rough hands she didn't have to second guess who it was. 

"Shinazugawa-san! I thought you weren't coming- wait give me that back, that isn't even mine!" She reaches for the letter and it was pulled from her reach, the Wind Hashira unfolding it as he turned away from her, a look of displeasure on his face. "I came by to see how things went, ended up just how I thought they would, all that planning for nothing. Now your housing the bastard, great, fantastic," His voice drawled with sarcasm, poison if she was to say, ironically enough. She just continued to motion for the letter, it was not her business nor his, who knew what it contained.

She hadn't planned to read it so she certainly wasn't going to allow him to read it either. She may have wondered what caused Tomioka to act like this but not to the extent she'd reveal things that were obviously private, that's why she never revealed the fact about his ribs, excluding the fact that there were rules against it, doctor-patient confidentiality if she remembers it correctly. She couldn't reveal it unless it became desperately critical no matter how bad she felt about it. So she wasn't about to let Sanemi reveal this either. 

He kept turning away from her just in the nick of time, unfolding the letter so he could read it, the Flame Hashira watched on not exactly sure what to do. With a sigh, she turned on her heels sharply to look at him, an annoyed expression on her face. "I'll deal with him, you just go deal with making sure Tomioka gets his lunch." Ignoring the scoff that follows from Shinazugawa unlike Kocho, he busies himself fixing his- hopefully!- soon to be friend a plate of okayu and taking the glass of water that Shinobu had prepared, it wasn't much but it was most likely all he could handle. He placed it onto a plain tray and made his way to find the room Tomioka was placed in.

As he exited the room, he heard the Wind Pillar briefly say: "So this is from his Sensei then, huh? Knowing that old man it'll be..." But it faded out with the more steps he took, but all he knew is that if Tomioka was awake to hear it- assuming he wasn't- he'd certainly have something to say to the man, and it certainly wouldn't be the nicest of words. 

The Water Hashira's food on a tray in hand, he wondered what his Sensei had done to get in his good graces and what he'd have to do to achieve it.

A/N:

kutsunugi-ishi - A a flat-topped stone used for taking off one's shoes before entering the entrance, this are placed typically in the backyards as the entrances of houses have a genkan. 

engawa - in the simplest terms i can explain, it resembles a porch.

shoji - a door, window or room divider.

amado - a sliding storm shutter. 

zabuton - a cushion for sitting, however it can be used in meditation. 

zori - typically shoeware for this era, sandals in simple terms. 

futon - a quilted mattress laid out on the floor, underneath it there are typically wooden slats to support it. 

makura -  a pillow. 

kakebuton -  similar to comforters or western duvets. 

okayu - a  steaming bowl of simmered rice porridge, it's not much, its' what's typically eaten when sick from my research.