Another test

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Guest review answers

Ali: Thank you so much! It makes me really happy to hear that~ I hope you continue to enjoy my fanfics!

White: I'm afraid I can't make comments about your first comment since it would be spoilers for my own story.

For your second comment: The way I see. Tanjiro fell unconscious almost immediately after Akaza died and then encountered Muzan, so thinking about why Akaza attacked himself wasn't exactly important for him at the time.

For the third one: I already know about the Fanbook 2's taisho rumors; some elements of this fanfic may not match them since, when I started to write it, they weren't out but even then, this is a fanfic, there is no reason to get too fixated on making everything like canon.

Thank you for the comments! Until next time.

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And here is another one everyone!

Not much to say so let's get right into it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Kimetsu no Yaiba

I hope you like the chapter!


Rengoku Kyojuro sat in his room, a lamp providing light and read the note sent by Shinobu's crow.

'This is… unexpected.' He thought as he finished reading it.

While not completely aware of Kanao's circumstances, he knows enough that seeing the Insect Pillar say that her Tsuguko requested to join his squad was more than slightly surprising.

To begin with, a Tsuguko going to another Pillar for training or missions was practically unheard of; there wasn't any rule or anything against it but when a Pillar took in a swordsmen to make them their disciple and, possibly, successor they usually stayed together unless they were sent on missions on their own.

Sending two Pillars together to a mission was far more common but those, like before the Squad system was implemented, were usually a case-by-case scenario.

'Well, if it was her request and Kocho is fine with it then I'm not going to reject her without reason.' The Flame Pillar decided as he turned off the lamp. 'I'll give her the same test as the others and see how she does; from what Kocho told me she should at least be on par with Kamado and the others.' With that thought, he went to sleep.


At the Butterfly Estate.

Aoi is used to waking up early, while the amount of work she has usually depends on how many patients the Butterfly Estate currently has, for her, it's always better to have extra time.

It's not strange for her to be the first to wake up, even before Shinobu or Kanao, but she could feel something was strange that morning.

For starters, Kanao was supposed to help her out with some chores today but was nowhere to be seen; the Tsuguko may not do anything by herself without her coin but if she has orders or has already agreed to help, she will unless she happens to get sick or a mission comes up.

As far as Aoi knows, Kanao isn't sick and she just came from a mission so she should have at least a day or two before receiving a new one.

'…could she have overslept?' Walking towards her room, that was the first thought she had. 'I mean… there is a first time for everything.' As she thought that, she reached the room to Kanao's door and slowly opened it to peek inside.

Her eyes widened and she threw the door open a moment later when she realized there was no one in the room.

"Wh… what…?" Shaking her head to get over the shock, Aoi ran towards Shinobu's room.

Not bothering to knock, she threw the door open.

"Shinobu-sama!" She yelled.

The Insect Pillar immediately jumped from the bed and rushed towards her blade.

"Kanao is gone."

Shinobu froze for a moment, looking out the window and saw the sun rising.

"Ah, I knew I should have told you last night but you were already asleep." She said, letting her sword back down. "Please calm down Aoi, I know where she is, I'll explain everything after I get changed; can you leave my room for a minute, please?"

"Oh… alright, just… is she okay?"

Shinobu smiled a rare, genuine smile.

"Yes, I believe she is."


"Kanao."

"Yes?"

"Why did you ask to join Rengoku-san's squad?" Tanjiro asked about half an hour after they left the Butterfly Estate.

It was a normal question to ask, he doesn't remember her mentioning anything about joining so he was fairly curious.

"…" The Tsuguko remained quiet in a way Tanjiro had learned it's her gathering her thoughts. "It's… hard to explain." She said with a frown. "After you told me I should listen to my heart… I still use my coin but, sometimes, I flip it more than once… so I'm wondering if I'll be able to stop using it if I spend more time with you."

"I-is that so?" Tanjiro couldn't help but feel a bit self-conscious when he told her that but recovered quickly. "So you want to stop using your coin, then?"

"I think Kanae-nee-san and Master would be happy if I did."

"Will you?"

Kanao flinched at the question

"I…" She trailed off, her eyes widening and shivering slightly.

"It's okay, Kanao." He patted her shoulder. "You don't have to answer right now."

"…hn." The black haired girl nodded.

"Does Rengoku-san know you're coming?"

"Master sent him a letter, it should have arrived by now."

"I see… by the way, do you know Rengoku-san?"

"Not really, I've heard of him sometimes from Master and we exchanged greetings the few times he has stayed at the Butterfly Estate but not much else."

"I should tell you now, there is a chance he won't let you join the squad."

"…eh?"

Tanjiro almost regretted saying that when he saw a bead of sweat from in Kanao's forehead and her eyes widen.

"Ah, wait, it's not that he has something against you or would tell you to go back without reason!" He quickly explained. "It's just that when we first went to the Flame Estate, Rengoku-san tested us and said that Genya and I wouldn't be allowed to go on missions and that he would dismiss Inosuke and Zenitsu to go somewhere else if he didn't believe we were strong enough; I just mean that he will likely test you in the same way!"

"O-oh, I see…" Kanao trailed off.

"I wouldn't worry too much, though." Tanjiro spoke, once again calm.

"Hm?"

"You're strong Kanao, if we were able to pass Rengoku-san's test then I'm sure you can too." Tanjiro smiled reassuringly.

"…I'll do my best."

.

.

It was almost time for lunch by the time Tanjiro and Kanao could see the Flame Estate in the distance.

"I wonder how the others are doing." Tanjiro thought out loud. "That reminds me; Kanao, you haven't talked with Genya, Inosuke or Zenitsu much, have you?"

She shook her head.

"I'll introduce your properly, I'm sure you'll get along."

The Tsuguko nodded.

"Ah, I'm not sure if Rengoku-san will test you as soon as we get there but you should be ready for a spar sometime today."

"…I'll keep it in mind." Kanao answered as they reached the entrance of the house.

"Hello, I'm back." Tanjiro called out.

The two could immediately hear footsteps of someone that seemed to be running.

"Ah, Zenitsu!" The Kamado called out happily as the blond turned the corner. "It's been... a…" He trailed off and barely dodged out of the way when he dashed forward and almost kicked him in the face. "What was that for?!"

"Damn you, Tanjiro!" He cried out, tears of blood falling from his eyes. "You leave for two weeks and you already come back with a girl!"

"…eh?"

"Not only that but you kept Nezuko-chan away from me while you were flirting with Kanao-chan! I won't forgive you!" Zenitsu yelled before dashing forward once more.

Tanjiro barely moving out of the way of his dash.

"Wait, Zenitsu! You're clearly misunderstanding something-"

"Shut up! You goody-goody forehead! I-what?!"

From behind him, Genya grabbed the back of his shirt and lifted him up.

"Rengoku-san already explained what she's doing here, calm down!" Genya yelled before turning to Tanjiro. "Hey, it's good to see you again, Tanjiro."

"L-likewise." The red haired teen answered. "Hm… what exactly happened?"

"Monjiro!" Inosuke suddenly jumped from the top of the roof and landed between Genya and the new arrivals. "Fight me!"

"…what?"

"I've trained, my forehead is finally stronger than yours; prepare yourself! Pig Assault!" Without waiting for an answer, Inosuke dashed forwards.

Tanjiro sighed but prepared his stance, reeling his head back at the same time Inosuke did and the two head-butting each other at the same time.

"See? I'm stronger now!" The masked teen celebrated, crossing his arms in an X shape in front of him with his thumbs pointing at himself.

"That's great, Inosuke." Tanjiro answered with a smile.

"Ah, I was wondering what all the ruckus was about!" Rengoku Kyojuro said as he walked around the corner. "It's good to see you again, Kamado my boy!"

"Likewise, I'm glad to be back." Tanjiro said with a bow.

Kyojuro nodded at him before turning towards Kanao.

"And you're Kocho's Tsuguko, correct?"

She nodded.

"I received a letter from her saying that you want to join my squad; I don't have a problem with it but I'll have to test you to make sure you can go on missions!"

Kanao nodded once more.

"Before that, though; it's time for lunch and Senjuro already made the food. Let's go eat!"

"And you better explain yourself while we do that, Tanjiro." Zenitsu said through gritted teeth.

'I wonder what's gotten into him…' The Kamado thought as he walked inside. "Aren't you coming, Inosuke?" He asked as he passed the masked teen.

"…"

"Inosuke?" Tanjiro touched his shoulder and, as if he was a tree that was cut, he fell backwards. "Inosuke!" Tanjiro called out, catching him before he touched the floor.

"…that guy lost consciousness standing." Genya said in disbelief.

"…he is stubborn, I have to give him that." Zenitsu added.

Kanao couldn't do anything but look at them, wondering if this is a normal interaction.

.

.

Tanjiro carried Inosuke inside and, after leaving Nezuko in a room they prepared for her, went to the dining room to have lunch.

"I think I made enough for everyone but please tell me if you want more." Senjuro said as he sat down.

"Thank you for the food." Everyone said before digging in.

"Then, are you going to explain yourself?" Zenitsu asked, glaring at Tanjiro.

"Explain what?" The red haired teen tilted his head.

"Why did you bring Kanao-chan along?! What did you tell her to make her tag along?!" The blond suddenly yelled.

'I thought he had good ears, doesn't he hurt himself when yelling like that?' Tanjiro couldn't help but wonder, covering his own ears, like almost everyone else, at the sudden outburst.

"I didn't tell her anything." Tanjiro answered. "I didn't even know she was going to accompany me until this morning when she told me."

"…really?" The question came from Genya, who looked at the two in surprise.

Kanao simply nodded, confirming the story.

"Then, why did you want to tag along?" Inosuke asked the only girl present.

"…" Instead of answering, she took out her coin and flipped it; it landed on heads. "…I'd rather not tell."

"Hm?" Everyone looked at her with surprise, confusion or a mix of both; although Tanjiro's reaction was for a different reason.

"Why would you rather not tell?" Kyojuro broke the silence.

"…" She looked down with a frown. "…I'm not sure."

"Huh?! Just tell us and get it over with!" Inosuke yelled.

"Now, now, there is no need to yell." Tanjiro tried to calm him down. "If Kanao doesn't want to tell then it's not right to force her."

"That's true…" Zenitsu said with a shrug. "I thought Tanjiro was trying to make a move on her for a second."

"…what?" The red haired teen asked.

"I don't mind if you don't want to tell!" Kyojuro spoke up, gaining everyone's attention. "But, I have to make something clear."

"Yes?" Kanao asked.

"You can have your reasons for wanting to join my squad, and I won't question you on them, but I need you to answer me this." His smile disappeared and he looked her straight in the eye. "Are you certain your reason is enough to want to join?"

The Tsuguko looked at him a bit confused but he continued before she could ask anything.

"The missions Pillars go to are the most dangerous, I'm sure you have some experience about this since you were with Kocho before, but there is no telling what demon we will find or what ability they'll have; on our first mission together we ended up finding two Lower Moons."

Kanao nodded in understanding, aware of what happened during that mission thanks to Tanjiro.

"So, is your reason enough for wanting to join and face that kind of danger?"

"…" Kanao frowned in thought, remaining silent for almost a minute.

"Hm, I have an idea." Kyojuro said. "Instead of telling me, you can show me; Kamado may have told you but I'll test you to see if you're strong enough to join, you can show me your resolve through your sword instead of by words."

"…I will." Kanao nodded.

.

.

The rest of the lunch was rather tense as they finished the food and almost immediately after Kyojuro told everyone to follow him.

To no one's surprise, they went to the training hall.

"All right, Tsuyuri, your test begins now!" He said after grabbing a wooden sword. "It will be the same test I gave the others, all of you come and attack me; I will judge your strength!"

'All of you?' Kanao thought.

Her unspoken question was answered when everyone else moved to the rack of swords and grabbed a wooden sword, two in Inosuke's case.

"Hm…"

"Is something the matter?" Kyojuro asked.

"I thought… this was a test for me?" Kanao said confused.

"It is, I'm simply giving you the same test I gave them; all of you come at me and try to beat me! It also serves to see how the others are doing!"

"…I see." Kanao muttered, although she didn't look convinced.

"Don't worry too much about it, this is just how Rengoku-san is." Tanjiro chimed in. "You just have to fight as if this was any other spar, except that you have us to cover your back."

"…I'll do that then." She nodded.

"Today I'll beat you, flaming haori!" Inosuke declared.

Genya began to mutter sutras as he prepared his stance while Zenitsu moved behind everyone, his sword poised as if it was sheathed.

Tanjiro moved next to Inosuke with his sword ready and Kanao moved a bit to the side of them all.

Rengoku grinned and prepared his stance as he stared them down.

"I'm ready when you are." The Flame Pillar declared.

Taking it as his cue, Inosuke dashed forward, Tanjiro right behind him while Genya moved to the side to flank the Pillar.

Kanao watched them move and decided to follow Inosuke and Tanjiro for now.

Kyojuro blocked the first strike from one of Inosuke's weapons with his own sword and stepped forward and pushed him back with a palm strike before he could attempt another strike; not wasting a moment, Tanjiro moved to hit him.

The Flame Pillar moved to parry but Tanjiro barely managed to force a clash of swords, putting all of his strength behind the charge.

Kyojuro didn't budge an inch but the small moment that he was pinned was enough for Zenitsu to suddenly appear in front of him, his sword moving and ready to hit him.

Kyojuro stopped pushing against Tanjiro and stepped back to avoid the hit. Right where Genya was waiting and attempted an horizontal slash; with a grin, he turned around and parried upwards.

Kanao saw a chance and moved behind him with a downward slash but, without turning around, Kyojuro brought his sword between them, he then spun around making the black haired girl lose her balance and fall forward.

She corrected her posture and fell to one knee, immediately moving her sword to block a strike from the Pillar that sent her flying backwards, she rolled on the ground once before getting back on her feet.

Inosuke dashed forward once more and attempted a double slash with his two swords in a X.

Kyojuro met him head on with a downward slash that broke his form and immediately followed up with an upwards slash aimed at Inosuke's chin.

Kanao moved and managed to pull Inosuke back, so the attack only hit air and Tanjiro quickly took the chance to attempt a Water Surface Slash.

Expectedly, it was parried, and Tanjiro was pushed back but Kanao saw an opening and quickly took a step forward, unleashing the Fifth Form of her Breath Style, Peonies of Futility.

The Flame Pillar blocked the first two slashes before parrying upwards and breaking her form, stopping her from following up.

'There!' Zenitsu thought as he used Thunderclap and Flash to strike against Kyojuro.

Despite having the fastest attack out of the five, the Flame Pillar had showed time and again that he could easily react to him. Even if someone was distracting him or his stance wasn't the best, Zenitsu wasn't able to touch him.

However, instead of aiming at his head or torso like usual, the blond this time went low and aimed at his legs.

Still in the motion to parry Kanao's previous attack, Kyojuro didn't have the time to bring down his sword and block it so he instead jumped up.

He saw something moving out of the corner of his eye and caught Genya's arm in mid-swing.

Instead of panicking, the teen grinned and grabbed Kyojuro's arm with his free hand.

"I caught him!" He yelled just before the two touched the ground once more and he took a step closer, using all of his strength to keep, at the very least, the Pillar's left arm in check.

Zenitsu immediately dashed from his blind spot but his sword was parried and Kyojuro moved his left arm, with Genya still on it, and hit the teen down.

Genya refused to let go of the arm and Zenitsu quickly latched onto Genya, adding to the weight.

'Water Wheel!' Tanjiro, not one to let an opportunity his friends created go to waste, quickly unleashed a technique, forcing the Flame Pillar to block with his wooden sword, held in one arm, and further pinning him.

"Gahaha!" Inosuke saw this and added to the pressure, hitting down against Rengoku's sword.

Kanao moved behind Rengoku and prepared to deliver the finishing blow.

'Good, they all followed-up and made sure to pin me down.' Kyojuro thought as the situation unfolded. 'I was worried Tsuyuri wouldn't be able to fight with them, and they are still rough around the edges, but she seems able to see where they all are without any issue; Shinazugawa took advantage of his resilience and made sure to keep one arm busy, Golden Boy did an excellent work adding to this after his surprise attack failed, then Kamado and Inogashira immobilized my other arm.' His grin widened. 'An excellent work!' As he said this, he stopped his clash against Tanjiro and Inosuke and quickly brought his sword down faster than they could react. 'I guess I can't afford to only use basic swordsmanship anymore; Flame Breathing, Second Form, Rising Scorching Sun!'

His wooden sword was covered in flames for a moment and he moved it in an upwards slash, pivoting so that the attack catches not only Tanjiro and Inosuke but Kanao as well and sending the three flying away.

Following the momentum, he brought his sword down and struck Genya and Zenitsu, forcing them to let go of his arm and also sending them away from him.

"An excellent work!" Kyojuro praised them. "However, this isn't over yet!"

.

.

"Um! Good work!" Kyojuro said after they finished their spar. "Your teamwork needs a bit more polishing but it's not surprising, since you added a new member! The fact that you managed to make me use my Breath Style's techniques is praiseworthy!" He continued but there was no response. "Hm?" Looking at them, he saw them all laying on the ground. "Ah! I pushed everyone too hard!" Kyojuro thought out loud once he realized they were unconscious. 'Still… that was because they pushed me to the point I had to take it more seriously.' He started to pick them up and laid them down one by one at a corner of the room. 'There is no issue with Tsuyuri's skill… I guess the only problem would be if she is completely against collecting demon blood…' He looked at Tanjiro before turning around. 'But it's not my duty to convince her, I'm not actively helping them so I'll let them talk and reach their own decisions.' With that, he moved to the center of the room. 'Now then, I still don't feel like resting, time to train!'

.

.

"Hngg…" Tanjiro slowly opened his eyes and saw the ceiling of the training hall. "Ah!" He immediately moved to a sitting position and noticed the sun was setting due to the orange hue in the room and saw Rengoku training.

"Ah, you woke up." The Flame Pillar said when he noticed him.

"…oh, you knocked us out." Tanjiro realized.

"Um! It wasn't my intention but I got a bit carried away, all of you have grown really strong, adding Tsuyuri on top of that forced me to take you all a bit more seriously!"

"Ah… speaking of Kanao, about her test…?" He trailed off.

"She passed." Kyojuro answered. "I'll tell her once she wakes up."

"That's a relief." Tanjiro let out a sigh.

"By the way, do you know why she wanted to join this squad?" The Pillar asked nonchalantly.

"Ah, she did tell me about it… but I don't think it's my place to say anything if she didn't want to."

"Good answer!" Kyojuro praised as he finished a set of swings. "This is a good opportunity so come here for a moment, there is something I'd like to talk about with you."

"Alright." Tanjiro did as told and the two sat in seiza on the floor. "What is it?"

"Kamado, my boy." His smile dropped for a second. "What would you do if your sister was turned back into a human tomorrow?"

"…eh?" The question came so out of nowhere that Tanjiro was left speechless. "I… excuse me, what do you mean?"

"Your reason for joining the corps was to find a way to turn her into a human, correct?"

"Yes…" He answered, a bit hesitant.

"Suppose you accomplish that objective, would you retire from the front lines after that?"

"Ah... I understand now." Tanjiro smiled for a moment before his expression turned serious. "Even if Nezuko would be cured tomorrow, I wouldn't stop fighting."

"Why not?"

"Because I can't pretend I don't know what's happening."

"Oh?"

"Before that day… I didn't believe demons existed, I would have spent my entire life in the mountains making charcoal to sell and I would have been happy with that life." He said honestly. "But I can't go back to that… even if Nezuko is turned into a human, Kibutsuji Muzan will continue to turn other people into demons." His expression turned into a snarl. "I can't stand the thought of letting him get away with it… so I will fight as long as I can in order to stop him."

"…I see." Kyojuro smiled calmly and nodded. "The question wasn't meant as a test, I just wanted to know how far you truly wish to go as a swordsman."

"Why?"

"It's just as I said, I wanted to know how far you want to go as a swordsman." He repeated. "Turning your sister back into a human is a great goal but I wanted to know if you would stop once it's accomplished, it was just my own curiosity."

Tanjiro nodded, satisfied with that answer.

.

.

Eventually, the rest of the squad regained consciousness.

Kanao looked at Rengoku and seemed to shift in place a bit.

"Don't worry, you passed!" He quickly assured her. "I look forward to working with you!"

"Ah… likewise." She said with a nod.

"Hngg… do I have broken bones? It feels like I do." Zenitsu muttered, still laying down.

'Some things, never change.' Tanjiro thought with a sweat drop.

"Relax! If I broke any of your bones then you wouldn't be able to go on missions! I had to take you all more seriously but I made sure to avoid anything worse than a bruise!" Kyojuro quickly answered.

'But I wouldn't have to go to missions if I had a broken bone… wait, it would hurt if I have one… hngg.' The blonde continued with his inner dilemma.

"In any case! Great work everyone, go take a bath and let's meet to have dinner; we should have a new mission soon but, not counting training with me, you're all free to do what you want until then! I'm sure you also have some catching up to do!" He looked at Tanjiro for that last sentence before excusing himself.

"Well… let's go-ah! Kanao, I'll show you to a different bath from the one we'll use." Tanjiro said.

"Alright."

"Huh? Why doesn't she just take a bath with us?" Inosuke asked.

Tanjiro, Genya and Zenitsu all choked on air at the sudden question.

"Are you crazy, boar head?!" The blond suddenly yelled. "Why would you even suggest that?!"

"What?!"

"Zenitsu, wait!" Tanjiro called out. "I think… Inosuke didn't mean anything by it…"

"What do you mean?" Genya asked, looking away.

"His scent didn't seem to imply he had… ulterior motives with that question."

"What ulterior motives?! It's just taking a bath!"

"…"

"…"

"…please explain it to him." Tanjiro said simply as him and Kanao left before any other comments. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine." She answered, not looking affected.

.

.

Later that night.

While Nezuko will usually spend most of her time sleeping, she did get up every once in a while to walk around, she had limited herself before since Senjuro seemed to be on edge whenever he saw her.

She didn't know this consciously but it was easy enough to realize it, the Flame Pillar's younger brother either wasn't able to fake body language or didn't see a reason to pretend he wasn't bothered.

He wasn't hostile or anything like that, he simply looked frightened which, to be fair, is not a strange reaction to seeing a demon; even if said demon is a very rare exception to the usual way demons behave.

In any case, while Senjuro still didn't look exactly comfortable with her presence, he had said before that it would take some getting used to and the only way to get used to it is for her to actually be seen by him.

Before going to their first mission after arriving at the Flame Estate Nezuko had spent the last three nights walking around, accompanied by her brother, and got familiar with the place.

Right now, she had exited her assigned room and went to search for Tanjiro. She may not know the time but at night, there are usually only two or three places where he would be.

First guess was the dining room in case they have dinner.

With that idea, she began to walk towards said room but as she turned around a corner, she saw someone new there.

He looked familiar, the long yellow hair with red streaks reminding her of the Flame Pillar but he was definitely older.

The man was wearing a simple grey kimono robe and holding a bottle of something in his right hand.

Said bottle shattered on the ground when the man suddenly dropped it, his eyes opening as wide as plates in shock.

Before Nezuko could process what was happening, he had dashed forward and hit her on the stomach, sending her flying back and through one of the shoji that lead to the garden.

"What the hell is a demon doing here?!" The man yelled, running away somewhere.

Nezuko barely had the time to get back up, the hit being little more than an inconvenience to her and already healed up, before he came back with a sword in hand.

In some instinctual level, Nezuko knew that the sword was dangerous, similar to the time Kanao had chased her and she had done everything in her power to avoid being hit by it.

She couldn't even react when the man disappeared from her sight, his sword covered in flames, and appeared right beside her, ready to strike.

Unable to dodge through normal means, she forced her body to shrink, feeling the sword barely miss her hair and pass above her harmlessly.

"Nezuko!" Her brother's voice caught her attention and she saw him, as well as Kyojuro, Senjuro and the rest, through the hole she had made when the man hit her before jumping towards him. "Are you alright?!" He asked as he held her close and away from the man.

"Father, stop!" Kyojuro yelled.

"What the hell is going on here?! That's a demon!"

"I know! I wanted to tell you about her but you refused to listen to me!" The Flame Pillar countered. "Oyakata-sama himself has accepted her existence, she is not to be harmed!"

Those words seem to take the proverbial wind out of his sails.

"…why the hell would Oyakata-sama accept a demon?" He asked, more in shock than anything else.

"There are some extraordinary circumstances." Kyojuro said with a sigh. "For now, please put your sword down and I will explain everything."

Reluctantly, the man did as told, but still looked ready to move at any moment.

"I went to tell you about the Squad System that was implemented and how I will have one assigned to me about three weeks ago, there was something else I wanted to add but you told me you 'weren't interested and to leave' before throwing a book that passed by the side of my face; Kamado Nezuko was what I wanted to talk about."

"…what is wrong with Oyakata-sama? Letting a demon live, it's only a matter of time before she attacks humans!"

"Nezuko will never harm any humans!" Tanjiro yelled back.

"I'm not talking to… you…" For the second time that night, Kyojuro's father's eyes opened wide in shock. "You! You're a Breath of the Sun user, aren't you?!"

"A… what?"

"Don't play dumb! Those earrings are the ones used by the Breath of the Sun users!"

"I really don't know what you're talking about." Tanjiro answered. "Wait… do you mean the Dance of the Fire God?"

For some reason, Kyojuro's father looked enraged at the question and suddenly rushed forwards with his sword poised to strike.

"Father!" Kyojuro called out, standing between the two.

He stopped his dash and glared at his son.

"Stop this." Kyojuro said simply.

His father stared for a moment longer before letting out huff and walk away.

Letting out a sigh, Kyojuro turned around and looked at the others.

"I'm sorry about that." He said towards Tanjiro and Nezuko.

"I know he is your dad but… I honestly find it hard to believe." Genya commented.

"Did you meet him before?" Tanjiro asked after hearing that.

"Once, we happened to meet in a hallway." Zenitsu answered, looking uncomfortable. "He was…"

"He is a prick!" Inosuke said. "He even called flaming haori here 'weak' back then, can you imagine that?!"

"…" Tanjiro could only stare in confusion. 'I know that parents and children aren't necessarily similar to one another but… it feels like there is too much of a gap between that man and his two sons.'

"Father… wasn't always like that." Kyojuro said with a sigh. "I apologize, I meant to tell him about Nezuko to avoid this exact situation but he had refused to talk at all; I thought maybe we could go one night with her now that she's back but I didn't expect her to get up and run into him out of nowhere."

"It's alright, you don't have to apologize Rengoku-san." Tanjiro answered.

Nezuko nodded repeatedly in agreement.

"But… what was that about the 'Breath of the Sun' and my earrings?"

"Em…" Before he could answer, everyone heard another voice call out. "Is everything okay?" Senjuro asked, looking from behind a corner.

"Ah…" Tanjiro and the others could only trail off.

"Everything is fine, Senjuro! Father just happened to encounter Kamado Nezuko for the first time!" He said in his usual tone.

"Ah, is she alright?" The younger Rengoku asked as he looked at her.

Nezuko smiled under her muzzle and nodded with 'hm!'

"In any case, how about we go back to the dining room and finish eating? …I'll talk about my father there if you have any questions."

Everyone silently agreed and made their way back.


Somewhere else.

A figure stood in the darkness of a cave, looking at what looked like a body.

Said body was unremarkable, nothing to caught anyone's attention, one could think that the person was sleeping with how still they were but, if one looked further, they would realize that they weren't breathing.

It didn't look like there were any wounds, it was simply a dead body.

The shadowed figure sat down and grabbed an arm.

Chomp


And done!

I hope everyone liked the chapter, I put a bit of a preview for what's going to happen in the next one, hehehe.

This was more or less 'transition chapter' to set up what comes next and a few other things, not to mention introduce Kanao to the Rengoku Squad and the first meeting with Shinjuro.

Not much else to say except for the usual reminders:

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 'Effervescence: A TanKana fanzine' in twitter or tumblr.

As always, I hope you enjoyed and don't forget to leave a comment.

Until next time!