"I don't understand for what." That grumpy voice rose in the great infinite room, exempt from any law. "Why do we meet again?" he roared.

Kokushibou stayed away from the younger demon, completely ignoring his complaints and keeping his six eyes hidden under his tousled and parted bangs. He raised the head slightly just before Nakime's strings vibrated and rang in his ears, giving way to the presence to who they swore allegiance.

"For good reason, Kaigaku."

Muzan's voice spun the rough demon. Only three Moons remained; the First, the Fourth and the Sixth. Ironically, two of them were swordsmen.

"My lord..." he showed respect.

"Who is she?" Kokushibou's soft voice rose slightly in the echo of his dimension. The thick-browed demon looked at him in confusion, for he saw no one else.

"As sharp as ever, Kokushibou. Although not so much this time." Kibutsuji always ended up satisfied with him despite being wrong about the biologic sex of the new one. Behind his body, and pushing him lightly with one hand on his pale back, he advanced the young man until he was positioned next to him. His colorful and familiar eyes caught the attention of demons, but they said nothing. They could not interrupt their leader. "Inosuke Hashibira, born the night we closed our attack on the Demon Slayer Corps. Despite his demonic young age, he has been shown to match the strength and power of the Upper Moons. And for a short time... match my own." That would have been taken as a joke if it wasn't for Muzan never joked. If he said that tadpole was so powerful... then it was true. They were afraid to hear that he managed to match his leader for a moment. Kaigaku wanted to scream, annoyed, how was that possible. And ask why they didn't kill him there before he could charge each of them and risk dying one by one. He felt weird, he couldn't stop looking at that little boy. The agile fingers of the leading demon slightly opened the lips of the smaller and showed with it the peculiarity of its fangs; huge, sharp, brutal. He left it after two seconds of inspection and an aggressive growl that did not please the remaining duo. "Inosuke Hashibira dies today to make way for the official birth of Kiba, the Beast Demon. Direct descendant of the former Upper Second Moon Douma, he will replace the position of his... -He remained silent for a second, widening his filthy smile and raised his head to the front. -Creator. One of Douma's assassins and the young slayer who has exterminated more of our own. His food isn't humans, but the demons themselves." Kaigaku was so close to interrupting, the vein in his neck swollen with misunderstanding and possible fear. "Are you scared, Kaigaku?"

For the first time in all the time, Inosuke smiled an almost imperceptible sly smile. That demon was afraid of him, and that made him feel good. Was holding back himself a lot, he saw them as delicious aperittives despite being the weaker at the time. Kibutsuji was aware, and was, in some strange way, proud of that self-control. But he could not relax, it had to be perfected so that he was not a threat to his Moons.

"No, my lord!" He knelt down and almost hit the forehead against the ground, slightly shaking. He couldn't be afraid of a guy with a girlish face and a slim body. It was impossible. "I'm restless! If he's so powerful, is it not a risk that he will devour us?"

"No." fast and concise. "He's our ultimate weapon, and as such we must keep him in good care until the day comes again..." he paused. "Kokushibou." he called firmly, to which the other kneeled. "You will be in charge of feeding Douma's boy in conditions and training him to help regain his strength. The slayers have been bad at care him. With him here, we don't need to be numerous." He tore a piece of meat off his arm under the surprised and confused looks of his subordinates. Quickly, he regenerated himself and offered the chub, without any intention, to the younger demon that was still at his side.

The wild kid raised an eyebrow at him as took the gift in his hands. And without thinking twice, he bit and pull, ripping off skin and bloody raw meat. He felt so satiated with just that bite, so calm. And disgustingly delicious. The slight blush of pleasure on his cheeks was more than enough to let him know that he was very satisfied and happy with his appetizer. Although it was disgusting in the eyes of others, he devoured like an animal, very quickly, as if someone could take it away of him at any moment. Made the other young demon swallow hard. That was much worse than a demon, he was a damn monster.

"I will comply with his care, my lord." Kokushibou accepted the orders without question, still kneeling on the floor.

"I didn't wait something less." He paused and squinted at Inosuke, who delighted in his meat. "That will be enough for two weeks without hunger. And you will regain half your strength." such a small piece... It was evident that its meat was pure. "Are you feel it, Kiba? That energy that multiple lunches and dinners could not give you. Now you will feed properly. And it will continue to be so while you are under our tutelage."

Evidently he felt it, he could feel every tissue in his body vibrate, filling his cells with an activity that seemed infinite. Muzan's poisonous blood did not work with him at this point, being a demon from before taking it as sauce for that piece. The only thing this could offer him was power and strength, and he didn't even need the first, but it always good. Kibutsuji had made a wonderful investment in obtaining it, nothing else mattered. Even if all his Upper Moons were exterminated, as long as the wild boy was with him, would never be defeated even by the slayer with the most Breaths on Earth.

Tanjirou ran into the estate, desperate, about to spit out his tense heart that threatened to burst his entire diaphragm. He was holding Inosuke's four weapons under one arm, the ones that lay on the ground when he reached him. Looked for Kanao everywhere, but did not find her. He needed her to raise the alarm from her Pilar title. Desperately reporting that Kibutsuji had taken Inosuke to have him in their ranks, that something had made him accept, since the wild man would never have said yes to joining him. Blackmails, threats... Anything could have influenced him. The little demon was like that; very influenceable.

"Tanjirou!"

He heard Zenitsu's voice come from a few corridors beyond, so followed with tears burning his red spheres. Sped up the speed, taking long, quick strides of agony until he saw the blond.

"Zenitsu, he's taken him!" The saline rivers flowed again. "Muzan has taken him!"

Ce crashed head-on into him, without throwing him, hugging with helpless force with one arm, yelling unutterable insults against the other's shoulder. He could barely speak, his tears easily spread. Zenitsu wanted to talk, tell everything, but the redhead had cried out, seeing him so devastated. He could only manage to gradually take away the weapons, without the redhead objecting.

"I told Inosuke to do it."

Genya's deep voice boomed in the red swordsman's ears, analyzing every word as best he could. Slowly released Zenitsu and looked at the other boy, leaning lightly against the wall, staring at him without blinking with his terrifying black eyes. But Tanjirou was not afraid of his appearance. The disbelief took a couple of steps toward the man, his eyes dry and the cheeks wet.

"Tanjirou, let him-"

"Zenitsu." The deep, hoarse tone was enough to silence the blond, without breaking violent eye contact with Genya. "Why? What did you say to him?" he growled, clenching his fists. "You're not supposed to be a bad guy, I trusted you!" They had not tried much between them, but the redhead always saw kindness under that black armor. Now, he was no longer sure.

"I just followed orders."

"What orders?!" That tedious day seemed to never end, and he had already reached his limit. Without controlling himself too much, he hooked the other by the clothes, pulling hard towards himself. Their heights currently resembled. Zenitsu took Tanjirou's arm and stepped forward as he spoke.

"The Pilars decided! He just gave you the message, it's not his fault!" the blond did not want a fight between those two, both were very difficult to stop when they really started fighting. He thanked heaven when the redhead released the other and proceeded to look at the blond in surprise, unpleasant surprise. "He told me when you came out after him..." He slightly tightened the weapons, turning his golden gaze away.

"It's a mission, let him do his duty as a slayer. You can't claim to protect him from his own work." the dark boy snorted.

He didn't understand it. What kind of suicide mission was that? Go with the enemy. What the hell were the Pilars thinking about? Inosuke was still weak, they would kill him with one hit if something went wrong! Couldn't sit idly by, and he wasn't going to wait for the next day.

"I want explanations, and I'm not going to wait until dawn." sentenced, leaving the other two alone. In the midst of his thunderous steps, he took out of his haori that pink bow he had given him long ago. Looked at it and brought it to his chest, squeezing it in the fist. His eyes sparkled, hot and dissatisfied.

Destroying the enemy from within, those were the keywords that kept Inosuke's head focused on his mission. One that only he could execute. Muzan's intense desire to get hold of him was obvious from the first moment, he wanted the wild demon in his hands as a weapon, did not have to be very intelligent to realize it. His constant appearances around the estate were sufficient. If the Pilars had been his goal, he wouldn't have risked visiting the same place over and over again. After a long time of indecision, the fact that Inosuke gave himself up was considered the best. Infiltrating as a spy and extracting information was not the only thing they obtained, but they took advantage of the fact that Kibutsuji himself would help the young man regain his power and strength. The adult demon was not stupid, he would have unleashed his plan completely and could have killed him, it was a risk they needed to take... But Tanjirou's sudden appearance and the genuine feelings of pain, anguish, love and betrayal were the perfect veil for Muzan bit the hook. And it had been by sheer luck. It wasn't planned, which made Inosuke's performance more credible towards the bigger demon. Demons would properly instruct him to become a much more lethal creature than he originally was. And the freedom conditions he enjoyed were perfect for communicating with the Demon Slayer Corps. If Muzan broke his agreement and tried to control his exits, would only lose his precious weapon, or worse, he turned against him again. He didn't rent to try to mess with the wild kid, and that made him very angry. Was on the ropes and there was nothing he could do. Although nothing bad had to happen, he just had to help him become powerful again and then take advantage of him. The young man also couldn't break his promise after having gotten his part, you couldn't have so little sense of honor as to destroy such an agreement in the middle of payment, not even Kibutsuji would do.

Walked in silence through clear and dark paths bathed by the moon, inclined and descending, after the light footsteps of that demon with a rowdy ponytail. He was a swordsman, his appearance was more than evident, and even more so because of his sword on one side of his hip. He had no idea where he was taking him, just ignored a slight "come with me". Hardly an hour had passed and he already hated him to death. He was too quiet. Inosuke got on his nerves. Although he had not deigned to speak to him either. Until got tired.

"Who are you?" asked, annoyed, stretching the boar's head down to cover his nose and completely forgetting what he had decided on his face. He received no immediate response, which made him growl.

"Kokushibou, Upper First Moon." was the only thing he said, because he knew that the younger was not deaf and he perfectly heard why they should be together from that moment on.

"Only that?" He crossed the arms, not believing he was having a conversation with a demon and it was not to swear to kill him. It seemed strange and uncomfortable to him, but it must be so.

"Like you." didn't look at him, he just walked and walked without stopping.

Inosuke didn't understand immediately, it took him a few long silent seconds to realize that this meant that all demons acquired a new name when dealing with Muzan.

"Ah... and where are we supposed to go, Kukobasi?"

"Kuko... What?" for the first time since he made an appearance in his rainbow eyes, the adult turned his head slightly, without looking at him completely, with a confused expression multiplied by three.

"Where the fuck are we going?!" struggled internally not to bite off his head. He was really upset, had a terrible day.

"I won't respond to disrespects." he put the head back to the front, gently wagging that ponytail.

"What respect? You're a demon." he spat scornfully.

"You too."

Silence.

It had been a double-edged sword and he had been cut. Ducked his head and pressed into his jaw, gnashing the teeth.

"I'm not like you." murmured, trying to hold back the anger so as not to screw up the plans. Luckily, Kokushibou did not reply, allowing him to have the last word and remain moderately at ease.

They did not mediate more words the rest of the trip. They reached the slopes of the mountain that were descending, without haste. Beyond, the wild kid could glimpse an old house, although in good condition. The slightly gnawed wood seemed to have been treated, the roof was not sunk despite having been there for decades, or even centuries. It had doors and windows, and not a single piece of its outer walls rested on the ground, untied. To his surprise, they were heading towards it. His pulse began to race and hit the chest hard. There could be a family, or a couple, who had kept that home by inheritance. Oh, no... He knew what was coming, what all the demons did when they approached human civilization, and he was not going to joke that way. Stopped dead in his tracks, not knowing exactly how he was going to deal with the situation. He was trying to think, to consider what Tanjirou would do in his situation, but he couldn't. Wasn't as smart as him. Mentally he repeated himself over and over again to think, to no avail. He growled under his breath and decided to just let his body work. It was impossible to ask his brain for help. His legs strayed out of the way and he made an attempt to run away, but when took the first stride, he hit the chest of the greatest demon. The bounce sent him back to avoid falling, and he narrowed his eyes at his obstacle. It made her sick to see those three pairs of marbles. If he had only one pair wouldn't mind. It painfully reminded him of Spider Father who almost ended his life just because he had so many eyes. Felt indirectly threatened by memory and likeness.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Kiba." His soft voice echoed with the whistles of the night wind. "My duty is to take care of you, so go ahead and enter at home."

At home? That changed the grimace of the boy, who showed by his lips that he was slightly confused. There were no humans, then. Was that where that demon spent his time when he did not provoke massacres? Bit the lower lip, still suspicious. But he didn't resist when the adult pushed him lightly with the hand. It was strange, all his touches were gentle... Didn't understand anything. They stopped in front of the door and it was unlocked. Could not believe it. Had a key and a lock, too! He had never heard of a demon that really had a home of his. It was unheard of. The hinges creaked softly as the door opened. He entered slowly, guided by the hand that touched his back above the fur. Moonlight illuminated the old but preserved furniture. The old kotatsu gave it that familiar touch. It was small, a three-room house. it was worth it to Inosuke even if had only one. Or none, the houses were not in his life until he met his friends. He was so distracted inspecting the place that he didn't notice when Kokushibou had closed and lit some candles to improve the lighting.

"Do you really live in a house?" He still found it hard to believe. He was not answered because of the silly question he had asked. Didn't like being ignored. Showed his disagreement with yet another grunt. He didn't know how many times he had done it in less than a night. Sat violently on the ground and crossed his arms and legs. Then, what? All he could do was watch the demon slowly come and go around the house. He furrowed his eyebrows hidden under the questionable acts of the other, who had left another room with... a futon? Yes, he could see that it was when he placed it on the wood of the floor. Ah, not only had he taken out a futon. Kokushibou leaned down beside him and left a yukata looking as old as the house, but still in good condition and clean. Upon seeing him up close, he made sure that the adult was now wearing a similar one.

"What the hell are you doing?" He was extremely confused with his behavior.

"This is your refuge now. As such, you can use its amenities." He gave no further explanations. Got up and moved through the rooms again. Behind the thin wall of one, he could be heard again. "If you have shame, you can change in the bathroom." and returned to the main room. He seemed to be looking for or preparing something.

"Shame?! Me?! Hah! That's a human things." He did not say it because he was a demon, but because he considered himself more a wild creature, and they did not need those emotions of shame regarding the body.

Confident and without any rush, he quickly undressed and donned the yukata, somewhat open at the legs and chest. Although at least he tied it up. Well, the boar head didn't budge from his head. It concealed insecurities from him and he did not plan to let an Upper Moon notice them through the windows of his soul.

"You should rest."

He spun around, surprised to have the adult demon beside him, sitting with his lap and legs under the cloth of the kotatsu. Inosuke had neither heard nor seen him. Haven't even felt his vibrations until now. It was evident that he was the Moon with more power... His rainbow eyes descended into each other's rough hands. He would run the edge of a razor over a piece of wood, dropping the fine curls and splinters onto the table. It was all too uncomfortable. Should be trying to cut off his head! And instead, he was gawking at the graceful movements that peeled the surface of the shapeless figure. He clicked his tongue, annoyed.

"Why should I listen to you?"

"The strenght that Mr. Muzan's flesh gave you will settle more efficiently if you rest."

Inosuke rolled his eyes. He didn't have to lie to them, they were supposed to be trying to make him really strong, without cheating. More than anything because they also needed that power.

"I will do it because I feel like it, not because you told me, Kabokusho."

"You are not very good at names..." he murmured, without looking at the smaller at any time.

"What do you care?!" roared and opened the futon behind him. He growled nonstop as settled himself carelessly under the blanket.

"You're very similar to Kaigaku." For a moment Kokushibou thought they could share blood ties because of their personalities and neither of them knew it.

"Who the hell is that?" He propped up his elbow only to twist his torso and look the other way, more specifically, at the demon's broad back.

"It doesn't matter now." He could know his answer was not to the boy's liking. "There's little left for dawn."

He knew it, that meant he would be locked up with that guy for a whole day. It was an ordeal to think about it, he did not imagine living it when the sun came up. His only and best option was to fall asleep and not be aware of that pedantic guy. He turned the back on his again and the house fell into a deep silence accompanied by the soft sounds of the razor peeling the wood. Kokushibou was not someone easy to disturb, his mettle was enviable. A humble and self-critical demon, without problems to accept his mistakes. But cold and strict. He was not manipulated by blackmail or tantrums. And if he set standards, they had to be followed. He abandoned his task for a moment, turned on his knees and took the boar head with enviable subtlety. It was not his belongings, therefore he would treat it with the greatest possible care to avoid damaging or staining it. He got up and picked up the scant clothes that the youngest had thrown on the floor. He left it all together and placed in one of the closest corners. He returned to his seat in the kotatsu, but before continuing his artistic craftsmanship, he glanced at the sensation of movement. The boy had wrinkled the entire blanket by positioning himself on his back with one leg stretched out. Disastrous, but not enough to make him upset. He took the bottom edges of the blanket and snapped them into place. He grabbed that slim leg and inserted it back into the futon, visualizing the top and noting how wrong he was wearing the yukata. He seriously wondered if he had ever dressed in one. First of all, caught the edges of the garment, brushing the pale skin of his chest and opposing clavicles with the hard knuckles, and closed the clothing with light pressure. Without being very conscious, remained observing his appearance. There were already beautiful Moons in the ranks of Kibutsuji, as was the case with Daki. But she could not be compared, the beauty of Daki loaded sensuality and narcissism, while that of this strange young man exuded purity, naturalness and sweetness. Not only his attractive image, but in his way of being he could also notice the same characteristics, except for the last one. He didn't understand... How did someone like that boy end up becoming a demon? He knew Douma was in the problem, but not in what way. He would let it be, it was none of his business.

"Rest good, Kiba."

Without further ado, he turned around and returned to his entertaining vigilante post, smoothing the cuts much more to keep the younger's dream intact.