Enemy territory

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Guest reviews answer

Guest: Thank you! I do like to expand more on what other people are doing; I think I said this before but, while the Sense Squad is the main focus, it's not like everyone else is just sitting on their thumbs and waiting for them to move (no worries about the double reviews, it happened to me before; the site just takes a bit to show them)

Thank you for the comment, I hope you continue to enjoy!

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Here is another one!

Without further ado, on with the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Kimetsu no yaiba.

"Is everyone ready?!" Kyojuro called out, standing in front of his home's front door in his corps' uniform, with his sword strapped to his side and his haori on his shoulders.

"Yes!" Tanjiro and Genya answered in unison, both in their respective uniforms plus Nezuko's box and the fox mask in Tanjiro's case.

"Let's do it!" Inosuke said with a grin under his boar mask.

Zenitsu just looked down with a pale face, looking resigned to his fate.

"Be careful everyone." Senjuro said.

"We will!" His brother answered before turning around. "Let's go!"

The four waved at Senjuro as they followed the Flame Pillar.

"Alright! I told you yesterday but I will be explaining our mission while we walk there." Rengoku said before suddenly dashing forward.

"Wha-?!"

After a second of shock, the four picked up the pace.

"Our objective is a town to the south, we hadn't heard anything about any demons but a kid one day appeared in a different town, he was covered in blood and kept repeating how a 'demon killed everyone'; our network caught wind of it and sent some swordsmen to investigate." His expression turned sour. "None of them have reported back."

The four remained silent, aware of what that most likely means.

"Do we know anything else about the demon?"

"A lot, actually." Kyojuro answered, to the surprise of everyone. "Most important, the kid said that he had something written in one of his eyes."

"One of the Twelve Demon Moons?" Genya frowned.

"Ha! Time to get some payback for the spider mountains!" Inosuke bellowed.

"Why are we going to such a mission?! We're just Mizunotos!" Zenitsu yelled, tears falling from his eyes.

"Because you're with me!" Rengoku said as if it was obvious. "Aside from that, it's a male demon and has the usual appearance, save for the number in his eye; the kid couldn't tell us anything about any strange abilities… he apparently killed everyone there with just brute strength and told the kid to go say what happened."

"…doesn't that mean he wants to be found then?" Tanjiro questioned, pushing down his anger.

"Most likely." The Flame Pillar nodded. "I don't know why a Lower Moon is blatantly exposing his location but we can't leave him be; we will go there and exterminate the demon as soon as possible!"

Tanjiro nodded.

'It will be a good opportunity to gather demon blood.' A part of him noted.

'This… will be the first time I fight while trying to chant sutras.' Genya grimaced. 'Don't panic, like Himejima-san said, just think of it as a part of the battle not something unrelated.'

'I'm going to pay back what that spider dude did back then with this guy!' Inosuke thought with a feral looking grin under his mask.

'Why?! Why is it a Lower Moon?! Don't show your position and make us go to you!' Zenitsu cried out in his mind.

"At our current pace, we should get to the town in about three days; we'll be camping outside and take a break just before reaching the town to make sure we are well rested, then we find the demon and bring it down!" Kyojuro said confidently. "Then we'll go back home and eat the food Senjuro has prepared, everyone together!"

Maybe it was the tone or the way he spoke as if that is the obvious result, but his words managed to bring everyone from his thoughts.

"Yes!" And have them answer in unison.

Three days later.

'…how boring.' Rokuro thought, laying on his side with his head resting on one hand.

The room he was in looked like a large box lit only by a single lamp and it didn't look like there were any ways in or out.

"Hey, can't you do something to entertain me?" The demon asked to the only other person in the room.

He is an unremarkable looking man, the type you could find in any city, with dark hair and eyes and wearing a simple grey kimono.

If there was anything noteworthy about him, it was the strangely shaped tattoo on his forehead.

It looked like two lines with a hand at the end reaching for each other that warped and chained as if having a handshake.

"…" The man simply continued to stand there, looking at nothing.

"Tch, next time I'll tell Mukago to give me someone that can at least hold a conversation." The Lower Moon yawned. "Guess I could take a nap-" He stopped himself and his eyes widened. "Heh, new prey, huh?" Rokuro moved to a sitting position. "Well, it should help me kill some boredom… now that I think about it, how much time has passed since I sent that kid?" He frowned in thought for a moment but shrugged. "Ah, whatever, I have better things to do than tracking one human down." He closed his eyes and focused. 'Muzan-sama is blood is truly amazing, to think my range would increase so much.' He chuckled as his consciousness flew somewhere else and he saw a group of five resting near the edge of his territory.

'Members of the corps…wait.' His mind focused on two of the swordsmen that entered and his mouth twisted into a grin. 'A kid with hanafuda earrings and… hehe, that guy is definitely a Pillar.' He couldn't help but chuckle, what were the chances that both his objectives would come to him at the same time? 'Well, I better… oh?' He stopped the link and opened his eyes. 'At the end… it felt like they were staring at me…' Rokuro growled, no one had ever been able to tell where he was when using his Blood Demon Art. "Bah, whatever, it doesn't change a thing." With those words, he got up and walked to the man with the tattoo. "Well, as promised, I'll inform Mukago of this."

Almost boredly, he punched the man's head, making it explode and killing him instantly; his body falling limply to the floor.

"You better keep your word." With that, he flicked the blood of his hand and sat back down. 'Now then, I wonder how long it will take them to reach the town.'

"Hm, is something wrong?" Kyojuro asked.

Tanjiro and Inosuke had suddenly stopped eating the rice balls Senjuro prepared for them and moved their hands to their weapons while staring at empty space.

"Just now… I smelled a demon." Tanjiro answered, his gaze still fixed in that place.

"Someone was definitely watching us." Inosuke added. "Tch, looks like they ran away."

"Wh-what? How can a demon be watching us? The sun is still up!" Zenitsu complained, pointing at the sun. It still had at least another hour before it completely hid.

"He is right, it doesn't make sense." Genya supported. "But if you two felt that…"

"Is it still here?" The Flame Pillar asked.

"No, like Inosuke said, it looks like it ran away." Tanjiro answered, relaxing his stance slightly. "But I'm certain that someone or something was watching us."

"It's like Tontaro says!"

"It's Tanjiro."

"Um! I believe you!" Rengoku declared with his usual smile. "However, there is nothing we can do now so don't let it bother you! Let's keep in mind that the enemy's technique could be what you two felt, though!"

Everyone nodded and quickly finished their food.

"We're almost at the town, we should get there just before the sun sets!" Kyojuro informed them as they prepared for the last track of their journey. "We don't know the enemy's abilities but it's a member of the Twelve Demon Moons; be prepared for anything!"

'…they're here.' Rokuro thought as he sensed the swordsmen enter the town. 'Still no sign of Mukago…' The demon scowled. 'Whatever, it's not like I can wait for her to get here.' He transferred his consciousness to the entrance the DSC members used. 'For now, I'll test them and see if I can get rid of those kids accompanying the targets.'

"…there is the scent of blood." Tanjiro muttered with a frown. "A lot of it."

Genya scowled, able to pick a trace of that scent even without Tanjiro's sense of smell.

Inosuke looked uncomfortable and was constantly looking around the place, as if waiting for something to jump out.

Zenitsu was standing behind Tanjiro, whimpering and mumbling about 'not going too fast to avoid making noise.'

Rengoku's smile had faded from his face and he was staring straight ahead as he walked, one hand on his blade and ready to unsheathe it at a moment's notice

"…this place feels weird." Inosuke commented.

"You think?!" Zenitsu seethed. "Why is no one here?! I didn't know this town was abandoned."

"It wasn't; at least, not until that demon appeared." Kyojuro answered.

"Then…" Genya trailed off with a scowl.

"What do you mean that it's weird, Inosuke?" Tanjiro asked, trying to ignore the scent of blood all around him.

"I feel like someone is constantly watching us." The masked teen said. "It's the same feeling I got when we were having lunch; can't you smell it, Monjiro?"

"It's Tanjiro." He said by reflex. "And… yeah, now that I'm focusing I can… the scent of blood was masking it before." The red haired teen frowned. "I'm not sure if I would have been able to detect that scent if I hadn't caught it before."

"…I think it's safe to say that we're inside that demon's territory now." The Flame Pillar said. "We're not entirely sure what this ability is, everyone stay on your guard."

As one, they unsheated their swords before continuing to walk; except for Zenitsu due to his fighting style.

"…there aren't any bodies?" Genya thought out loud.

"I'm sure there were before." Tanjiro answered with a scowl.

"T-this place is a d-demon's territory so, th-the bodies of humans…" Zenitsu trailed off there, not wanting to finish that sentence.

If their expressions were any indication, none of them wanted to hear the rest of it either; even if they know what he was about to say.

"Hm- from the right!" Inosuke suddenly yelled.

Everyone turned in that direction and saw several knives and sharp pieces of wood flying in their direction from inside a destroyed house.

Tanjiro deflected the first few before jumping inside a house and taking cover behind a wall.

Zenitsu ducked before scampering after Tanjiro.

Inosuke laughed as he ran towards the place the knives were coming from, deflecting or dodging all the projectiles.

Genya managed to dodge out of the way of the knives but a piece of debris managed to hit his side; thankfully, he was able to move behind a wall before anything else got him.

Kyojuro simply deflected the knives and cut the debris sent his way, barely even moving from his position.

About five seconds after Inosuke entered, the attacks ceased.

"Oi, there is no one here!" He called out as he got back out.

"No one?" Genya wondered while he held his injured side. 'Shit, I need to react faster.' He scowled.

"I didn't get any particularly strong scent from there either… did you hear anything, Zenitsu?"

"N-no, I heard something just before the knives came out but Inosuke called it out before I could."

"So what?! Knives can't throw themselves!" Inosuke huffed.

"Why not?" Kyojuro asked as if the answer was obvious. "We're inside a demon's territory, what is to say that his ability isn't to 'make knives throw themselves'?"

"…" Inosuke could do nothing but remain silent.

"I doubt his ability is just that, though." Tanjiro commented.

"Me too!" The Flame Pillar nodded. "But it's most likely a part of its ability, the debris also came flying towards us so maybe it can move objects?" He brought a hand to his chin in thought. "Well, either way, we have to continue; make sure to be even more alert from now on."

They all nodded.

'Well, I didn't expect that to kill them.' Rokuro shrugged in a 'what can you do?' manner. 'Although, it seems I just found their weak link.' His consciousness momentarily focused on Genya. 'Hmm… if I kill him, then the others will get angry and come rushing at me but… if I wound him, then one of them will have to stay and treat him; two less people to fight at the same time would be good.' The demon frowned in thought. 'The Pillar wouldn't be the one to stay behind but it would be annoying if the kid with the earrings is the one to stay or, even worse, carry him back; maybe I should let them all come to me…' Rokuro suddenly slapped himself. "That's bad, I can't get conceited it would only serve to get me killed."

Rokuro, unlike many other demons, doesn't look away from facts when it comes to the Demon Slayer Corps and, like it or not, the fact was that Pillars have killed many Lower Moons in this long war.

'I only need to kill either the Pillar or the kid with the earrings, even if one of them leaves, they would certainly come back later to avenge their fallen comrades; worst case scenario, I can track them down later.' Focusing on his approaching enemies again, Rokuro considered his choices. 'Wounding that guy so he can't move is the best choice… actually, giving him a wound that requires a doctor would be best, one of them will have to stay with him; if they stay in my territory then I can just throw some more weapons at them until they're overwhelmed once the others move away, if they leave my territory, then that's still getting rid of two enemies and having an easier time.' He grinned. 'It doesn't have to be a wound that will kill him instantly, just one that would need him to be removed from the battlefield; I certainly don't care if he dies after, though…' Lower Moon two chuckled darkly.

As the group continued to move, attacks became more and more frequent; from the obvious knives and debris to pots and even pieces of tatami floor.

None of them were really a threat to them, even less so now that they were expecting it, but they were certainly-

"ANNOYING!" Inosuke bellowed as he deflected a knife with one of his swords. "Stop throwing shit at us and come fight us!"

"I don't think that will work." Tanjiro commented. 'Is he trying to tire us out before we reach him?' He ducked out of the way of some debris. 'Well… it would have probably worked before we learned to maintain the breathing technique at all times but…' He looked at Rengoku who was continuously walking as if taking a stroll, his sword constantly moving around and stopping everything from reaching him. 'I feel like we could do this all night and Rengoku-san still wouldn't be tired.'

"Um! It certainly won't work to call them out but it's true that this is getting annoying!" Kyojuro said, his usual smile in place. "So, where do you think is the most likely place for that demon to be?"

"How would we know?! I'm already busy trying to dodge these things!" Zenitsu shrieked as another group of knives shot towards him. "Are those knives focusing me?! I feel like they're going at me more than you guys!"

"It's just your imagination." Genya said dryly as he dodged out of the way of some debris flying his way. "Are we sure the demon is even here? Maybe it can control these things while not been near this place."

"I don't think so." Tanjiro said. "The scent of the demon is getting stronger as we walk, it must be somewhere here."

"Can you pinpoint his location, Kamado my boy?"

"Not at this distance b-"

"Gah!" The four turned to Genya who suddenly screamed. "Damn it!" He cursed, a large slab of metal stuck to his side.

"Genya!" Tanjiro called out as he ran towards him, he managed to reach him and deflect a group of knives sent his way.

Zenitsu quickly grabbed him and use his shoulder to support him and move him behind a wall.

"Shit, sorry, I thought I only had to worry about knives and the like, I didn't expect this thing." The teen cursed as he sat down and looked at the piece of metal stabbed on his left side. "I was hoping to wait until we found the demon but-"

"Shinazugawa should retreat." Rengoku suddenly spoke, making everyone look at him. "That wound won't let you fight properly, it's dangerous to leave you alone so someone should go with you too."

"W-wait!" Genya yelled. "I know I screwed up but this isn't enough to put me out of the fight."

"Shinazugawa." Kyojuro walked forward and knelt so they were at eye level. "I know you heal fast but all of us going forward like this would only make the demon focus even more on us." He turned to Tanjiro. "Kamado, you take him out of the town, we will continue forward and, hopefully, get his attention so you two can go unnoticed."

"Eh…?"

"Do you understand?" Rengoku stared, his smile nowhere to be seen.

"…I understand." The red haired teen nodded. "Genya, let's do what Rengoku-san says."

"But-"

"Genya!" He closed his mouth. "I know you heal fast, the best thing we can do is make sure you heal as fast as possible so you're back in fighting shape."

"…why doesn't he just-hmph?!"

"Shut up, boar head!" Zenitsu seethed.

"The hell, Monitsu?!"

"Just stay quiet! It's not my fault if you don't understand what's going on but don't drag others with you!" He turned back. "Wait! Let me bring Genya back instead! I-"

"Enough!" The Flame Pillar bellowed. "The three of us will continue forward while Kamado and Shinazugawa retreat, let's go."

"Come on, Genya." Tanjiro said as he moved to his side and supported him.

"I can walk on my own… just cover me from attacks and I should be fine." The swordsman sulked as he got up. "Sorry for this; be careful, you three."

"Ha! That demon is the one that should be careful!" Inosuke boasted.

Zenitsu just cried while mumbling about how 'Rengoku hates him'.

'Hm, the hanafuda kid is the one retreating.' Rokuro frowned. 'Unfortunate but nothing particularly bad.' He focused once more on the three that were still walking forward. 'Now then, they're about to pass the second threshold; let's see how they deal with this.'

Rengoku, Inosuke and Zenitsu ran forward as they continued to avoid different types of prjectiles being hurled at them.

"Oi! Give me a few seconds and I can find that demon!" Inosuke shouted.

"You can do that; Inogashira my boy?"

"Inosuke!"

"How does it feel to be in the receiving end for once?" Zenitsu laughed but it turned into a shriek when a knife went flying near his face.

"Just keep those annoying things off me for a bit!" With that, he stabbed both of his swords on the ground, took a knee and extended his arms to his sides, palms out. 'Seventh Form: Spatial Awareness.' The swordsman focused completely on his sense of touch, feeling every vibration in the air in a wide radius. 'This guy… it feels like there is something wrong everywhere around this place… there!'

"Did you find it?" Kyojuro asked as he deflected a set of knives that were flying towards Inosuke.

"I got a weird vibe from that tall building in the center of this place! I bet the demon is there!" He pointed with his sword.

"Alright, let's go!" Kyojuro ordered as he dashed forward.

Inosuke and Zenitsu quickly running to keep up with the Pillar.

The amount of projectiles flying at them increased dramatically as they approached the building Inosuke pointed at but numbers alone didn't mean anything.

Zenitsu, for all of his whining and crying, hadn't been hit once yet; they were moving in slow motion compared to the blows Rengoku threw during training.

Inosuke could always tell when something was flying towards him with his sense of touch and react with the least amount of wasted movement which let him keep up, for the most part.

All things considered, he would probably be the only one keeping up with the Flame Pillar if Zenitsu's Breathing technique didn't emphasize speed.

Kyojuro didn't seem to even recognize the knives and debris as threats, he simply continued to run forward, never stopping or slowing down; whenever something looked like it would hit, his katana would move so fast the two teens almost didn't see it and scatter or cut in half anything it touched.

'This guy… he was holding back when fighting us!' Inosuke said with a mix of respect and bitterness.

"…what is that sound?!" Zenitsu suddenly yelled as he looked to the sides.

The other two did the same and their eyes widened in shock as several houses were rapidly moving towards them from both sides.

'Let's see if you can deflect that-hm?' Rokuro momentarily turned his consciousness to another part of town. 'Ah, Mukago and her reinforcements, good.' He grinned. 'It doesn't look like I really need… well, never mind.' The demon sighed. "Of course it won't be that easy."

As the two houses approached Kyojuro jumped back so he was next to Inosuke and Zenitsu.

"Get down!" He yelled as he moved his blade to his side.

"Huh?! You don't give me-"

"Don't be an idiot!" Zenitsu yelled before grabbing his arm and forcing him to do as told.

Kyojuro waited until the houses were almost upon them and…

'Flame Breathing, Fourth Form.' Flames surrounded his sword as he prepared to slash. 'Blooming Flame Ondulation!' He swung his sword in a circle, breaking a large hole on the two houses that were going to crash against them.

"Wh-wh-wh-"Zenitsu mumbled as they suddenly found themselves in the middle of the two houses, the two keeping their balance thanks to the roofs but the walls that would have crushed them, completely destroyed.

"Um! These houses are really resilient; they haven't broken down after crashing against each other!" Kyojuro said happily. "Let's go! We need to find that demon!" Not waiting for an answer, Kyojuro dashed forward, cutting a path through the houses.

"I won't lose!" Inosuke bellowed as he followed behind him.

"…why am I the only normal person here?" Zenitsu wondered as he got up and followed them. 'Wait… if I'm normal, would I still be following them…?' He decided it was better to not think too much about it.

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"Alright, we're almost at that building!" Inosuke yelled as he saw the building at the center of town.

It looked as if someone took the Flame Estate and made it twice as big.

"Um! We will have a lot of ground to cover to find the demon in there! Can either of you pin-point his location?"

"I might be able to-GYAA!" Zenitsu yelled and stopped just before a spear was impaled in front of him. "What is it now?! Can that demon stop throwing things at us?! I want to go home!"

"…those aren't demons." Kyojuro said grimly as he saw two figures walk forward from the entrance of the mansion.

Two males, wearing identical grey kimono tops and hakamas, their faces covered by a wrapped cloth obscuring everything but their eyes.

"Why the hell are humans attacking us?! Are they idiots?!" Inosuke bellowed before pointing with his swords at them. "Listen, you morons; the great Inosuke-sama is here to kill that demon so just move out of the way!"

The only response the two humans gave was to prepare a naginata and take a stance.

"It doesn't look like they'll let us pass." Kyojuro concluded. "Alright, the two of you will keep them occupied while I deal with the demon; make sure not to kill them."

Inosuke and Zenitsu were about to protest, the former because he wanted to be the one to fight the demon and the latter because he didn't want to fight.

"I'm counting on you." He turned to look at them with his ever-present smile before and halted all of their protests.

Without any more words, he dashed forward; he was ready to deflect any attacks sent his way but the two humans didn't even react, they just let him pass and stared an Inosuke and Zenitsu.

"…"

"…"

"…Hmph." Inosuke exhaled. "Alright! The great Inosuke-sama will knock you down now! I had practice fighting without injuring my opponent already!"

"Eh? Eh?! Are you crazy?!"

"Come on, Monitsu! Let's show flaming haori what we can do! Pig Assault!" With that, he dashed forward, the human on the right charging back with his naginata ready.

"W-wait! Then let's fight them in a 2v2- HIII!" His sentence was cut off when the other human closed the distance and almost cut off his head with his naginata. 'Ahhh! Just leave me alone already!' He thought before jumping back to put distance between himself and his enemy.

Kyojuro wondered why the two guards had just let him pass for a moment before dismissing the thought; whatever the reason, it doesn't change what he has to do.

'Now… where could that demon be?' The Flame Pillar wondered as he ran through the house.

He may not have a nigh supernatural sense of smell or touch but after fighting for so long, he has grown accustomed to detect demons just by their presence and killing intent.

'…nothing.' That made it even more suspicious. 'Where could he-?!' A couple of knives sent his way were quickly deflected. 'Is he planning on tiring me out with these attacks…? Alright! I guess I'll simply search everywhere then!' With that, Kyojuro began searching around the mansion.

The place was mostly empty with the exception of a few rooms that, if the Flame Pillar had to guess, were prepared for some sort of reunion before the demon attacked.

As he searched each and every room, more and more projectiles were sent his way.

The usual knives were the main ones but furniture and even entire walls were also moved and shot towards him.

For Kyojuro they were a nuisance more than an actual threat but, no matter where he searched, the demon was nowhere to be seen.

'Could he be controlling this place from somewhere else?' Rengoku wondered as he opened another door, leading to yet another empty room. 'Inogashira said that he felt a weird vibe from this place, not that the demon must be here.' Just as he thought that, he reached the last room and, like everywhere else, there was nothing there. '…no, that doesn't make sense, Kamado and Inogashira both felt that this entire town was covered with a demon's presence, he must be here.' Kyojuro saw the walls around him all break and fly towards him; forcing him to dash forward and cut a path, getting into another room in the process. 'I already searched every room here so… maybe a hidden room somewhere?'

The Flame Pillar thought back on the rooms he searched.

'Not all of them had the walls try to attack me… I'll start there.'

Doubling back, he began to search each and every room that didn't have walls, until he noticed something.

A hidden door on the floor.

He was about to open it but he jumped back when he felt a presence on the other side and something came out of it, punching through the floor and landing a few feet from the Pillar.

"Found you." Kyojuro said simply.

'Well… I knew it was a matter of time.' Rokuro thought with a shrug. 'Now then…' He raised his fists in a stance. 'Time to kill a Pillar.'

And done!

I had a lot of fun writing this one since I pretty much had to come up with everything by myself.

I did have some trouble with Rokuro's Blood Demon Art, not because I couldn't come up with one, I had already thought about Rokuro and Mukago's abilities a while back, but I was breaking one of the 'rules' of writing: 'show, don't tell' so I had to go back and re-write certain parts.

I believe the chapter came out better because of it.

Anyway! The battle between the Flame Pillar and Lower Moon two is about to begin but remember, there is another demon lurking around, hehehe.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter and don't forget to leave a comment!

Until next time!