Rokuro: Lower Moon 2

Well, I actually beat my time; it didn't take me a month to finish another chapter, hehe.

Not much else to say so I'll leave you with the chapter; I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Kimetsu.

Inosuke was annoyed.

In his experience, people would have been knocked out at least three times by the strikes he delivered but this guy just kept coming at him.

Every time he parried the naginata and kicked him back, he just got up before dashing again; not even giving some form of acknowledgment that he was in pain, and he should at least be in a bit of it.

Inosuke wasn't trying to kill him but he wasn't holding back his strength so much that it wouldn't hurt.

"Grr, you're annoying; get out of the way already!" Inosuke roared as the man tried to stab him with the naginata. 'Second Fang: Rip and Tear! (1)' He swung both his blades in an X and cut the Naginata's pole with ease. 'Now go to sleep!' He grabbed the man by his kimono top with one hand and head-butted him as hard as possible before kicking him back. '…my forehead does not hurt.' Inosuke said to himself, biting his lip under his mask to avoid making a sound. "…oi, are you serious?"

The man got up once more although this time a bit staggered.

"Just stay down already, I'm not so nice that I won't break something if you don't stop." Inosuke huffed but there was no response other than moving towards the blade of his broken naginata and picking it up to use as a knife. "…you give me weird vibes." He aimed one blade at him. "Flame haori told me not to kill you but if you don't stay down then I will end up breaking a leg or something to stop you from moving."

The man simply dashed forward again.

"Tch, don't say I didn't warn you." Inosuke clicked his tongue as he counter charged.

Zenitsu is certain that he must have done something terribly wrong in a past life.

Really, there was no other possible explanation.

"WHY IS A HUMAN TRYING TO KILL ME?! I HAVE ENOUGH WITH THE DEMONS TO HAVE TO ALSO WORRY ABOUT THIS!" He yelled as he dodged another slash from his assailant's naginata.

That had pretty much been the entire fight; that human would try and slash or stab him only for Zenitsu to dodge them.

If that human was in his right mind, he would have likely screamed in frustration by now because, no matter how he tried to hit the blonde, he just kept dodging.

And it wasn't even close, it wasn't like he was barely moving his head out of the way of a stab or ducking under a slash; every time the blade of the naginata came close, Zenitsu dashed away and put a good distance between them.

He may not have liked it but all the spars with Rengoku certainly helped; the naginata user was no slouch but compared to the Pillar, he might as well have been moving in slow motion. If this was any other person fighting him, they would have already knocked him out at least three times.

"GYAA!" Sadly, while some people know he isn't as weak as he thinks, Zenitsu absolutely believes that he can't fight; that, combined with the fact his opponent is human, stops him from retaliating in any way.

'The orders were to keep them occupied until he dealt with the demon; please hurry and deal with him already!' He thought as he dashed away from another attack. 'Just leave me alone already… huh?'

To his surprise, the naginata user stopped his attack, his eyes staring as if dissecting the swordsman.

"Wh… what?"

Without a word, he turned back and began running in the opposite direction.

'He is leaving? HE IS LEAVING!' Zenitsu almost put his arms up and yelled in joy until he saw where the naginata user was running. 'That's… ah, dammit!'

Using his speed, he quickly caught up and moved in front of the other man.

"Why do you have to run towards Rengoku-san? Can't you just leave?!" He said in a mix of a whine and an order.

The naginata user simply prepared his weapon once again.

'Ahh, I have to do this now, don't I?' He put a hand on the sheath of his blade and moved the other to the hilt. 'I want to go home-'

His thoughts were cut short when the naginata user lunged towards him, forcing Zenitsu to dodge out of the way but, unlike the times until now, he only dodged enough to avoid the hit instead of putting a few feet of distance between them.

'Fine! I just have to keep you here until Rengoku-san deals with the demon, right?! Right?! I'll do it!'

Kyojuro stared at the demon, noting the '2' carved in his left eye, as he prepared his stance.

'His ability seems to allow him to move objects and he even has guards.' The Flamer Pillar thought as he remembered the path until getting here. 'I'm not sure why but that's something I can think about later; he may not be the type to fight directly but…' He stared at his stance, both arms raised and ready to lash out. 'He must have some skill in close combat.' Taking a deep breath, he moved his sword just above his shoulder and took a step forward with his right leg. 'Well, it doesn't change what I have to do. Flame Breathing, First form.' In a flash of movement he closed the distance, his sword already swinging to connect with his enemy. 'Unknowing fire!'

Rokuro's left index finger twitched and Kyojuro quickly jumped back, three knives passing through the area he was in a moment ago.

'He can react, I expected no less from a member of the Twelve Moons.' The Flame Pillar prepared his stance again.

'He is fast.' Rokuro thought, keeping his expression neutral. 'If I was even a bit slower to use my ability, I would have been hit but…' His right hand twitched and a wall behind Kyojuro suddenly flew towards him.

The Flame Pillar's eyes widened in surprise for a moment but he turned around and cut the wall in half to let it pass him harmlessly.

Rokuro took the opportunity and closed the distance to strike the swordsman.

'Flame Breathing, Second Form.' Kyojuro already expected it and was turning around as soon as he cut the wall, his sword moving in an upwards slash and covered in flames. 'Rising Scorching Sun.'

"Tch." Rokuro clicked his tongue and jumped back, the sword barely grazing his clothes. 'Looks like I won't be able to strike him unless I catch him completely off guard.'

'This entire place seems to be under his control but there seem to be conditions to what he can move; if I stay in close range, then it will minimize his options.' As soon as he thought that, Kyojuro dashed forward once more.

Rokuro's finger twitched and several knives came flying behind him and towards the swordsman.

Instead of stopping, Kyojuro increased his speed, deflecting the knives as they approached and closing the distance.

The lower moon stepped back to avoid the first hit and both his fists twitched, sending two walls from his left and right towards his enemy.

'Fourth Form: Blooming Flame Undulation.' Kyojuro swung his sword in a circular motion, starting from his left, cutting both walls as well as attempting to decapitate Lower Moon 2 but before his sword could connect against him, Rokuro's fist twitched once more and a wooden pillar got in the way, giving the demon enough time to jump back. 'You're not escaping.' Seeing the demon from between the two pieces of the pillar he just cut, Kyojuro dashed forward once more.

'Crap!' Rokuro threw a hook with his left arm at the air.

'Hm?!' The Flame Pillar's senses flared up and he looked to his right, seeing what looked like an entire room from the building flying towards him, far faster than the previous attacks. 'I can't dodge it.' Stopping his dash forward, he used his left leg and kicked the ground towards the room, cutting a hole in the wall to pass through. 'This is-!'

Inside the room there were several knives and wooden stakes floating in the air, less than a second after he entered the room, all of them suddenly moved towards him.

'The four knives from the left will reach first.' He thought as he saw the projectiles move. 'Followed by the stakes above me, then the ones to the right and another set of four knives… now!'

He deflected the first four knives with one sweep of his sword, jumping to the side to avoid the group of stakes, which managed to graze his haori, cut three more that moved after those, jumped above the next set of knives and caught one extra one with his left hand while he swung his sword with the right to create another hole on the opposite side of the room; getting out of it and immediately throwing the knife he caught towards Rokuro.

Lower Moon 2's eyes widened that he came out completely unscathed which delayed his reaction to the knife for a moment; he raised his arm and batted the knife away but there was an instant where his own arm blocked his vision when he did.

The Flamer Pillar did not miss that chance and by the time Rokuro noticed, his sword was moving towards his neck.

'Damn it!'

'I got him!' Kyojuro was certain his sword would connect but he felt the ground move beneath him and the next thing he knows, he is flying in the air.

'That was close.' Rokuro let out a sigh of relief before smirking. 'But, in mid-air, you can't dodge this.' He opened his arms wide and every knife and piece of debris that was scattered across the area began floating. 'Die!' He moved his arms towards the swordsman and all of his weapons flew at his command.

Gravity was beginning to do its job and making Kyojuro fall, shortening the distance towards the projectiles.

'Not a problem; I have my sword.' He tightened his grip and prepared to meet the onslaught.

He deflected the first few knives that reached him, moved his head out of the way of a piece of debris aimed at it and spun to avoid a wall aimed at his side, kicking it to fly to the side and avoid another volley of projectiles.

'Hm?!' Rokuro seemed to have predicted that move since five knives were flying exactly in that direction.

He managed to deflect the first two and dodge a third one but the last two managed to graze his left arm and make a shallow cut on the right side of his neck.

Not having any time to rest or feel relieved, Kyojuro saw another volley of attacks directed towards him; including half of the pillar he cut earlier.

'For now, I have to get back to the ground.' Taking a deep breath, he reeled his sword back. 'Third Form! Blazing Universe!' He swung his sword downwards, cutting through the pillar and using the strength of the impact to force any other projectiles away.

'He will fall there.' Rokuro thought, looking at the place his enemy was about to land. 'As soon as he does I'll send him back up; he can't dodge in mid-air forever!' The moment the swordsman made contact with the ground, he raised two fingers and a column meant to catapult Kyojuro upwards shot up.

Meant to being the important part.

It might have been instinct or just caution, Rokuro can't know, but the Flame Pillar had immediately dashed away from his landing spot.

'It doesn't look like he can control all the ground around him.' The swordsman thought before immediately starting to dash around the entire area, making sure to not stay in one spot or move in a predictable manner as much as possible.

"You damn…!" Rokuro roared as he moved his arm towards the outer wall of the building and then towards Rengoku.

The entire thing coming off the ground and flying towards him and destroying the building as it passed.

'I can cut this without any issues but he must be wanting to make me stay put for a moment to send me flying again.' Kyojuro thought as he saw the wall come closer. 'In that case…' Smiling fearlessly, he turned towards the demon and dashed towards him.

Rokuro saw him coming and forced the wall to accelerate, at the same time jumping to avoid being hit by it.

'I just have to cut both of you together; Fifth Form!' Flames began to surround his blade. 'Flame Tiger!' Rengoku began to swing his sword repeatedly, the flames gathering and adopting a form similar to a tiger that broke the wall and raced towards the demon.

Caught completely off guard and in mid-air, Rokuro had no way to dodge and the flames met their mark; cutting off his left arm and burning the stump left in its place as well as his left side.

"GAAAAA!" The demon cried out in pain as he fell to the ground. 'Damn you! It hurts! It hurts!' He gritted his teeth and moved his gaze towards Kyojuro.

The swordsman was already charging against him, his sword poised to deliver the finishing blow.

'Damn you! Get away! Get away!' He raised his right arm and several knives were sent flying against him but Kyojuro simply increased his speed even further. 'DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!' The ground began to move and tried to block or launch the swordsman up.

'A last ditch effort like that won't be enough to stop me!' He thought as he continued closing the distance, moving in zig-zag to avoid the ground.

'Why?! Why am I hurt?! I'm a demon! We may regenerate but wounds still hurt! So don't make me experience any more pain, you damn human!' Rokuro watched as Kyojuro approached, just one more step and the sword would come down and cut his head off. "DAMN YOU!"

"Wha-?!" Kyojuro was about to finish off the demon when he suddenly fell to the ground face first. 'What is… something is pulling me…'

"Damn you! Do you have any idea how much this hurts?!" Rokuro yelled, looking as if something was trying to force him into the ground. "I hate pain! And you dared to cut my arm!"

Slowly, Lower Moon 2 rose to his feet, his arm regenerating fully by the time he was up.

'This is part of his ability… but it also affects him.' Kyojuro thought. 'If he is able to get up under this weight…' He focused on the breathing technique and pushed himself up. 'There is no reason why I can't do the same!'

"You damn swordsman! DIE!" Rokuro reeled back his fist and brought it down towards the back of the Pillar's head.

'Rising Scorching Sun!' Forcing himself to a kneeling position, he slashed upwards and met the fist with his sword, cutting through the arm.

"AHHH! DAMN YOU!"

Rokuro strengthened his ability to its limit, the increased gravity almost crushing him but also forcing Kyojuro's arms down and unable to block his left fist.

'There will be no retaliation this time!' The demon was convinced of this but even as he swung his fist, Kyojuro grinned.

"Get away from Rengoku-san!"

"Wha-?!" He barely had time to look up before a body came flying down at inhuman speeds and cut his left arm off.

"Genya! Now!" Tanjiro yelled before feeling the impact of Lower Moon 2's ability and falling to one knee.

Genya rushed from behind Rokuro; feeling the same thing as Kyojuro and Tanjiro did when he was about 5 meters away from him.

'It's alright, I saw what happened to Rengoku-san and I knew it was coming; I can endure it!' Genya gritted his teeth and forced himself to keep advancing. "Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha was staying in…" He began to chant sutras to increase his strength, the increased gravity barely stopping him.

"What?! How?! You two retreated!" Rokuro yelled in a panic.

Shortly after Tanjiro and Genya 'retreated'.

"I thought there was something weird when he told us to go back." Genya chuckled as they passed the town gate.

"Did you realize?"

"Yeah, it took me a sec, though." He nodded.

"This will make things easier then, Nezuko." Tanjiro called out and his sister came out of the box.

"Hey… I'm sorry for being a bother but can you give me a bit of blood?" Genya asked.

Nezuko smiled and nodded before approaching him and make a fist on her left hand, her nails cutting into her skin.

"Thanks… and sorry about this, I'll try to be more careful from now on." Genya said with a frown as he made a cup with his hands to catch the blood.

"Do you want me to take that piece of metal off?" Tanjiro asked.

"Don't worry, I can take it off after I turn." Genya assured him as he drank the younger Kamado's blood in one big gulp.

A few seconds later, his features became demon-like and he pulled out the slab of metal on his side; his wound closing almost immediately after.

"Thank you, Nezuko." Tanjiro patted her head before letting her get back inside her box. "Let's go; we should circle around the place to try and avoid the demon's detection."

As soon as he said that, the two started running around the edge of the town.

"How will we catch up with Rengoku-san and the others?"

"They will be going towards the demon, I'll focus and smell his location; I'm sure we'll find them where the demon is."

'It took us a while but we finally made it!' Genya thought with a snarl as he closed the distance.

'Damn it! I have to-GAH!'

Rokuro looked down and saw his right leg had been cut from an horizontal slash from the Flame Pillar.

"You damn swordsman!"

Genya did not pay attention to his roar and instead finished closing the distance.

'Got him!'

"Genya, duck!"

Genya reacted on instinct when he heard Tanjiro's words and a blade passed precisely where his neck was a moment ago.

A strike that, had the gravity not being increased at the time, would have definitely cut Genya's head off.

Rokuro took the chance and de-activated his ability and jumped away from the three swordsmen.

Kyojuro immediately dashed forward and blocked a second strike from Genya's assailant, another man in the same clothes as the two 'guards' that Inosuke and Zenitsu should be fighting right now.

The man jumped back and moved to stand in front of Rokuro, his naginata pointed at the swordsmen.

"That person… he is human." Tanjiro muttered.

"Yeah, we found two others on the way here; Inogashira and Golden boy should be fighting them as we speak." Kyojuro said as the three stared at the new opponent.

"…let me handle the human."

"Genya?" Tanjiro turned to him.

"There is no way for him to kill me while I'm like this; I'll make sure he doesn't bother you while you deal with the Lower Moon."

"What do you think, Kamado my boy?" Kyojuro glanced at Tanjiro.

"…I think Genya is right; it's better to have the advantage in numbers against a demon." Tanjiro said before grinning. "Besides, I know from Natagumo, if Genya says he'll make sure he doesn't bother us then I can completely focus on the demon."

"Um! I like that plan!" The Flame Pillar declared. "We don't know the circumstances so try to not kill that human; Shinazugawa my boy."

"Understood." Genya nodded.

"Well, it looks like he finished regenerating." The Flame Pillar said, his sword pointing towards Rokuro whose leg just finished re-growing. "Let's go!"

The three immediately dashed forward and the guard move to stand in their way.

Genya accelerated and clashed his sword with the naginata's blade before grabbing the pole with his free hand.

"Let's change locations!" He roared as he lifted the human and threw him towards one of the many holes Rengoku's battle had caused before following behind him.

"He can throw anything around at us, move the ground and increase the gravity, be careful!" Kyojuro quickly relied the information.

"Yes!" Tanjiro nodded.

'Tch… I hate using the gravity control, it hurts me as much as it hurts them.' Rokuro growled. 'But I don't even care anymore! That Pillar and the kid! THEY'RE BOTH DEAD!' Lower Moon 2 dashed forward in a counter charge, aiming towards the Kamado. 'You're in my range!'

Both swordsmen suddenly felt their bodies turn heavier.

'Crap!' Tanjiro lost his footing at the sudden increase in weight and saw Rokuro's fist closing in on him.

Kyojuro swung his sword upwards, cutting off the arm.

"Tch." Rokuro clicked his tongue as he deactivated his ability and jumped back; then swung his remaining arm and punched the air, sending a room towards the two.

"Kamado, get behind me!"

Tanjiro immediately did as told and followed as Kyojuro charged, cutting the entire room in two with, what Tanjiro can only guess, is a technique from Flame Breathing.

"Hm! Rengoku-san, inside-!"

"I see them!" Kyojuro interrupted as several knives began flying towards them.

"I got them!" Tanjiro yelled as he moved to the front. 'Water Breathing, Third Form, Flowing Dance!' Tanjiro intercepted all the knives coming their way.

Kyojuro grinned and took the opening to dash forward and quickly close the distance to Rokuro.

Lower Moon 2 immediately increased the gravity but.

'I'm getting used to it.' The Flame Pillar thought, the increased burden on his body hampering him a lot less than at the start.

'This bastard!' Rokuro noticed and dodged to the side to avoid a downwards sword slash and tried to retaliate with a jab.

Rengoku saw it coming and ducked under it, immediately unleashing the second form of Flame Breathing in an upwards slash right after.

Rokuro managed to step back just enough to avoid a serious cut, the sword just gracing his torso instead.

Tanjiro approached the fight but Lower Moon 2's ability stopped him from assisting the Pillar.

'The range… is about 4 meters.' Gritting his teeth, he took a step back, getting out of the area. 'I can't get close, I can't believe Rengoku-san is able to fight with this weight on top.' He shook his head. 'I can think about that later, I have to find a way to help; what can I do…?' Tanjiro's eyes widened and he turned towards the knives he had deflected earlier and grabbed four. 'They should at least be able to distract him for a moment… but that area will affect them if I throw them…' He looked once again at the two exchanging blows as he continued to plan. 'If it will affect them…' The Kamado looked up and prepared a knife.

"Rengoku-san, move!" Tanjiro yelled out just before throwing a knife high into the air and towards the direction of Rokuro.

Kyojuro saw it from the corner of his eye and did as told but the knife fell before it could reach the demon.

'Damn it, less height and more impulse.' He was throwing a second knife even as thought about it.

'Wait, I've been thinking about this in the wrong way.' Rokuro smirked manically. 'Instead of focusing on killing the Pillar, I should have gone for the kid with the hanafuda earrings! He is far weaker!'

Changing his objective, Rokuro began to punch the air several times, causing all of the walls in the area to lunge towards Kyojuro before dashing towards Tanjiro.

"Kamado, watch out!"

Tanjiro threw another knife towards Rokuro's face but the demon parried it by sweeping in front of his face with his arm; he immediately prepared his sword to meet the demon head-on.

'That Pillar may be adapting but you haven't yet!' Rokuro activated his ability and the Kamado suddenly felt like his body get twice as heavy. 'I got you!' He threw his right fist forward, aiming to destroy Tanjiro's head. 'Kgh!'

But, in his impatience to kill Tanjiro, Rokuro had completely ignored his surroundings.

It wasn't entirely his fault, even for Rengoku it would take some time to cut through all the walls and get to him while under the effects of the increased gravity and Tanjiro clearly wasn't able to fight under the effect of his technique like the Pillar had. It was understandable for him to think that this was a certain kill.

So when a knife suddenly fell from above and pierced through his right shoulder, he couldn't help but be shaken.

'This kid; when?!'

It had been at the same time he had thrown the third knife and Rokuro had deflected it, blocking his view in the process.

Tanjiro knew that he couldn't keep up in a head-on fight like Kyojuro had, he was barely able to move under the increased weight, but that doesn't mean he couldn't find a way to land a hit.

Ever since meeting Giyu, he has fought against many enemies that were stronger than him; this was no different.

'I may not be able to trade blows.' Tanjiro took a deep breath. 'But that doesn't mean I can't swing my sword! Dance of the Fire God, Waltz!'

Flames covered his blade as he forced his body to move by using his family's dance.

'Don't look down on me!' Rokuro raised his left arm and intercepted the slash with his fist, his arm being cut in the middle from the attack.

'Not yet, before the recoil hits and from this position.' Instead of stopping, Tanjiro quickly began to move his sword in an horizontal slash. 'Waltz can be used as a two-step technique!' He aimed directly towards Lower Moon 2's neck.

Rokuro watched helplessly as the blade approached him, trying to move his arm to block it but knew that he couldn't make it in time.

"Wha-?!" Before Tanjiro could connect with the attack, someone dashed from his left side and struck, sending him flying and crashing against one of the few remaining walls in the building.

"Took you long enough, Mukago!" Rokuro roared with a snarl.

Mukago didn't answer and simply walked forward calmly, a human wearing similar clothes to the guards that appeared before in the place where Tanjiro was before, except his clothes were completely black.

Kyojuro, who cut through all the walls in time to watch Tanjiro being hit, didn't give them any time to think and immediately rushed towards the newly arrived demon.

His blade was stopped when the black cladded warrior moved in the middle, a short sword in his hands, and locked blades with him.

'Another Lower Moon!' He noticed as he saw the kanji for 'Four' on her left eye.

Instead of worrying about that, he stepped back and quickly ran to put himself between the demons and Tanjiro.

"Kamado, are you alive?"

"…yes." Tanjiro called out weakly as he got up. 'I barely managed to block that stab but…' He looked at his left arm that he had moved between the blade and his neck at the last second. 'It hit bone, my arm is definitely broken and when he kicked me…' He grimaced as he tried to take a deep breath and his body protested. 'He kicked me when I avoided the fatal blow… I have a cracked rib.' The Kamado moved his gaze towards the two new arrivals. "Rengoku-san, the one in black… he is a human too."

"I noticed." The Flame Pillar answered grimly. 'Not only that, but he was fast; he is leagues above the three we found before.'

'Kgh… the recoil.' Tanjiro closed his left eye in pain as the consequences from using the Dance of the Fire God hit him. 'Endure it; I have to at least keep the human busy so Rengoku-san can fight the demons.'

"You finally show up, Mukago!" Rokuro snarled as he moved beside her. "What the hell took you so long?"

"…we should retreat." She said, completely disregarding his outburst.

"…huh? What did you just say?"

"My other pets were already defeated or will be soon, the kids aren't that weak and you were having trouble fighting that Pillar alone; you have a good head on your shoulders, do you really want to face that Pillar and four other swordsmen at the same time?"

Rokuro gritted his teeth, his body shaking with rage.

"Tch, fine!" Without saying anything else, he threw all the debris around him towards Kyojuro.

The Flame Pillar easily deflected them all but by the time he was done, there was no sign of the demons or the black-cladded human.

'Where… hm?' He relaxed his stance. 'They really escaped so far away so quickly… no, if it's that Lower Moon 2's ability then it could be possible; using the ground to catapult all three away is within his capabilities.'

"…they're gone." Tanjiro muttered as he fell to his knees. 'There were two Lower Moons… is this similar to Natagumo? Demons don't usually band together…'

"Kamado." His thoughts were interrupted when Rengoku called out, standing kneeling in one leg in front of him. "How are your wounds?"

"Not so bad, all things considered." He answered through the pain. "My left arm is broken and I'm almost sure I cracked a rib but nothing else."

"Um! That's good then!" Kyojuro smiled. "But you should go to the Butterfly Estate and let Kocho take a look; you will recover faster that way."

"I understand…"

"What's the matter?" The Flame Pillar asked when he saw his downcast look.

"I'm sorry that I got in the way."

"What are you talking about? You and Shinazugawa helped me when that demon was about to hit me; I'm grateful!"

"Still, when we were fighting Lower Moon 2…"

"…you are aware of how strong the Twelve Moons are, aren't you?"

His fight with Rui immediately surfaced in Tanjiro's mind.

"Yes."

"Most members of the corps die when facing one." The Flame Pillar said grimly. "Even if they win, there are many that receive severe wounds or die after killing it; the fact that you managed to survive a fight against one is no small feat."

Tanjiro unconsciously straightened his back as he heard his words.

"Even when caught off guard, you were able to react and avoid a fatal wound; you survived, do you know what that means?"

The red haired teen thought for a second before shaking his head.

Kyojuro smiled his signature smile and said.

"It means that you can grow stronger."

"…yes!" Tanjiro nodded.

"Rengoku-san! Tanjiro!" The two turned to the voice and saw Genya, in his human form, running towards them. "Are you two alright?"

"We're fine, more or less." Tanjiro called back.

"Oi, where is the demon?!" Inosuke yelled as he also ran appeared.

"Ah… is it over?" Zenitsu called out, walking towards the group while constantly looking around as if something would jump at him at any second.

"Um! I'll give everyone an explanation later but I'm afraid the demon escaped."

"Ehh, but I kept that guy at bay for so long; I thought that when he left it meant the demon was taken care of." Zenitsu whined.

"Wait… Zenitsu, what did you just say?" Tanjiro asked.

"Hm? I was fighting a guy that was on the demon's side but he suddenly left."

"The same happened to me." Genya added.

"That guy finally realized he was no match for Inosuke-sama and ran with his tail between his legs!" Inosuke boasted.

"That's strange… another demon showed up, the one controlling those humans I believe, and said that they had been defeated and you three were approaching."

"Why would she lie like that?" Tanjiro wondered.

The five frowned in thought but couldn't come up with a response.

"Well, for now; we managed to repel the demon, our mission isn't over since we couldn't defeat him but we can go back and rest!" Kyojuro smiled. "Everyone, good work!"

Far away from the town.

"Your ability is truly useful, Rokuro." Mukago praised as she shook off dirt from her kimono. "I didn't think you could make a tunnel like that."

"Yes, yes, thank you." Lower Moon 2 said with a bored tone. "For now, let's go look for another town; I'll turn it into my territory and we'll try again, we should probably try with a different Pillar so they don't know about my abilities."

"Wait." Mukago called out. "I have a proposition."

"What is it?"

"Instead of moving to another town, why don't you come to one of my territories?"

"…why?"

"I have workers that can prepare it better than you could on your own." She said before grinning. "And this time I will prepare several of my pets to keep most of them busy; in a one-on-one battle, I don't think you will lose if you use the full extent of your power, will you?"

"Hm… hehe; you know Mukago, I was hesitant at first but you really are useful." Rokuro smiled widely. "Alright, let's do that; this time I'll kill anyone that approaches."

"Then let's go, we should move as much as possible before the sun comes up." Lower Moon 4 said before leading the way.

'Tch, dammit.' Now that Rokuro couldn't see her, her smile disappeared. 'I was hoping he would manage to kill the Pillar with the assistance I gave him but to think he would be that strong; not only that that Rokuro almost got killed by that kid.' Mukago grimaced. 'If only he had killed either of them before we retreated and then say that he won't uphold his end of the deal… no, it's no use thinking of that now.' She let out a sigh and focused once again. 'It will be harder now that they know his abilities but the plan should still work.'

Unknown to Rokuro, she chuckled darkly internally.

And done!

1: Until it is done (I couldn't resist, haha)

Alright, another chapter done.

And while I usually don't give spoilers, I'll make an exception this once.

Because in the next chapter I'll be writing something I've been waiting to write this entire time; do you know what it is? Say it with me.

TanKana scenes! Hahaha

All jokes aside, for any fans of TanKana, or Kanao, she is about to get a lot more involved in the story (and you have no idea how much I've been waiting to do that)

Alright, just two more things.

One

I made a discord server for TanKana; if you're interested in joining, please send me a PM at my account (Manu259) or the twitter account 'TanKana Estate ( TankanaW)'

Two

There is a TanKana fanzine in the works as we speak; if you want to follow it, look up 'Efervescenes: A TanKana fanzine' in twitter or tumblr.

There will be applications for artists and writers opening soon if you want to apply!

I hope you enjoyed the chapter and please don't forget to leave a comment; even if short, they always make me smile :D

Until next time!