My computer shut down when I was in the middle of editing this chapter
It was in the afternoon when she was met with a surprise.
Shuten Dōji would have never expected any of the Demon Slayers to come to her for advice to get stronger— she had been kicked out of Tamayo's lab a number of times already by that Butterfly Girl, so she knew that one didn't like her.
Musashi tolerated her, though she was rightfully wary. They got along alright, but in terms of advice on getting stronger, Musashi didn't need it from her— and that darling Rock Pillar was mostly the same. That Wind boy was just horrible, and the darling girl with the braids seemed to be a bit scared of her. The one-armed, former Pillar didn't like her, but that was normal— he did like her a bit more when the two of them crossed sake cups, but he didn't like it when she popped into his training grounds to torment the little Slayerlings who he made run.
That Snake boy was interesting, he seemed almost disturbed by the fact that he didn't mind her— she had teased him by ignoring him in favor of talking to his little familiar, who was just as disturbed at the strange kinship it seemed to feel.
The Water Pillar and the little Mist boy (the one that ended up around Musashi much more now) were mostly indifferent, but it was still fun to tease them. And of course, like Musashi, the Flame Pillar tolerated her.
That said, Musashi and Himejima were plenty strong without needing help from an Oni.
So, as stated before, she hadn't expected anyone of the Demon Slayers Corps to come to her for help on getting stronger— Voluntarily, that was.
And even if any of them did, she would have never expected one of the Pillars.
Ah, but then again, love was such a strong incentive for a human to do something.
Resting her chin on her palm, she gazed at the man sitting in front of her through half-lidded eyes.
"And what, exactly, is in this for me, mm?" she asked, raising a brow.
The Flame Pillar, Kyojuro Rengoku. A relatively normal man, if one were to take away the fact that he hunted Demons for a living. Appearance-wise, though, he did draw a lot of attention to himself— his golden mane of hair made him stand out in Japan, but Musashi was hardly different with her pale locks and blue eyes.
Shuten should've known that, if any of them were going to come to her for help, it would have been the Flame Pillar.
Love was something that always interested her— She had no idea what exactly it was in human terms. For her, 'love' was breaking bones, wild laughter, and killing in another's name. It was taking the heads of enemies and presenting them to their object of affections.
It was blood and drink, and scars made by clawed nails and sharp teeth. It was laughing and howling as hands tore through skin, muscle, and broke through bone. It was cooing and soothing with honeyed words as hands dug into one's organs.
Shuten didn't know human love, though she pretended to at times.
Emulating it in order to figure out what made humans, human.
She held herself back when interacting with the Demon Slayers.
Shuten wouldn't say she loved humans. She wouldn't say she hated them either.
So, as she sat with Kyojuro Rengoku sitting in front of her with a determined look on his face, she hesitated to turn him down outright for the task he requested of her.
"I don't have anything to give you," Kyojuro said. "Not now. I could offer you drink, but I don't think that anything we have here could compare to the stuff that Oyakata-sama gets from Tengen. Offering you Muzan's head would be pointless as well."
Shuten sighed, shaking her head. "So in short, you're asking for a free favor, for something that I might not even be able to do," she said flatly, leaning back a bit and pouring sake into her usual dish. Kyojuro's brows were furrowed, a strange look of seriousness adorning his normally smiling face. She just sighed again.
"I have… two options," she said, "Since I like you enough, and since your Master is allowing me to take Muzan's head eventually, I will do this one thing for you."
The Flame Pillar instantly perked but Shuten held a finger up as she took a long drink. He blinked but waited until she was done.
Lowering the dish, she hummed. "Like I said, two options that are before you. You want to protect and fight alongside Musashi, you're going to have to sacrifice," she said, her smile never leaving her lips. Kyojuro nodded, following her words as she leaned her elbow on the low table.
"First," she started, "You can become an Oni."
The Flame Pillar tensed, eyes narrowing and his hand went to his sword on instinct. His mouth opened as a furious glint shown in his two-toned eyes.
"Oni, not a demon," she said before he could speak, "There is a difference, and it is only one, albeit the most secure, option."
"I was under the impression that Oni didn't turn humans into their own kind," Kyojuro said and Shuten snorted.
"Not in the primitive way that Demons do," she said flatly. "While blood and pain is involved, I can assure you, my blood is not parasitic. You won't thirst for the flesh and blood of humans, though it is a wonderful delicacy— it's all about nutrients, after all."
At that, Kyojuro tilted his head. "'nutrients'? What do you mean?" he asked and she sighed.
"Why do you think Demons eat humans?" she asked and the man hummed, arms crossed as he leaned back in thought.
He shook his head after a moment. "I don't know."
"It's just like any other animal," she said, "Humans are just another animal to Demons. Like how humanity eats chickens and cows, demons eat humans. A Demon's Blood Arts, an Oni's Oni Arts and Dark Magics, all of it requires a high level of energy to use and maintain. But Oni can control our hunger. In fact, most Oni reside in the underworld— the ones who appeared in the human world were turned by means of their own. Oni are born when truly wicked humans die and end up in one of the many Buddhist Hells, there they are transformed into Oni and serve Lord Enma."
She smiled, tapping her nails on the table. "Of course, those who are among the living are different. I serve no one but myself. I was born human— or at least, half-human. My mother was a human woman, a cannibal, in fact, and I am aware the irony exists. My father, as you are surely aware since you know about my story, was the great Dragon God, Yamata-no-Oorochi."
At Kyojuro's nod, she continued.
"I was supernaturally strong as a child and abnormally intelligent. Because of this, and the fact that I was a girl, I was called a demon child over and over. I was terribly resentful and anti-social because of it, and my own mother abandoned me as a child— perhaps this is why I like Musashi so much, mm? She was also abandoned, but by her father," she mused, before waving it off. "Under the guise of a young boy, I apprenticed under a priest at Mt. Hiei."
"I didn't realize you were a human," Kyojuro said as Shuten poured herself another drink. She hummed, shrugging.
"My beginnings are mostly shuffled to the side now since Muzan buried all of the accomplishments of Oni and other dark mystics to the side. Honestly, he could've made a decent Mystic himself— had he not upset the hierarchy. I'm not sure when exactly he was born and created, but Oni existed before he did. I only knew that one day, he was on the tongues of every Dark Mystic— who was he? How had a human become something we had not seen before? Indeed, I was just newly an Oni, but still powerful and knowledgeable," she hummed, tapping her fingers yet again. "Fufufu… still, it seems as if it wasn't enough…" she mused, shaking her head. "Nonetheless, we got off-topic."
She leaned forwards, gazing at Kyojuro with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I can help you become an Oni, but once that happens, there's no telling how much your moral compass will get warped."
She dragged a nail across the wood. "You could end up deciding that Muzan's not worth your time. You could decide that Musashi's better off dead."
The Pillar's eyes hardened at that. "No. No turning me into an Oni," he hissed and Shuten laughed.
"Of course, of course," she said, not at all afraid or intimidated. "Then option two it is."
She hummed, reaching up before she plunged her hand into her chest— prompting a startled cry from the Flame Pillar. "Oh, hush," she scolded as she grasped what she was looking for, pulling it from the magical space that it had created within her body when she first arrived. The object was set on the table with a dull 'thunk' when she was done, the gold shining dully in the sun.
A Holy Grail.
It wasn't the Holy Grail— don't be silly. It was hardly large enough to be considered as such— but to her, it didn't matter. She didn't care about a wish-granting device. If she wanted something, she'd take it. Relying on whatever this was would only bring a downfall— All this was, to her, was another cup to drink sake from.
"What is that?" Kyojuro asked and Shuten hummed.
"A Holy Grail," she said simply, "I'm sure Musashi's told you enough about it already, so I won't bother. In short, I could probably use this to let you gain some sort of Servant-Like ability."
"But why would you?"
"Hm?" She blinked, tilting her head at the Flame Pillar as the sun started to sink behind the trees. They had been talking for a while, it seemed.
"Why would you use that for someone else?" he asked again, "It's an Omnipotent Wish Granter, why not use it for yourself?"
Shuten laughed, leaning on her hand again. "I'm particular about my sekitsushi, and a good vessel makes alcohol even tastier… Besides, I didn't say I wasn't, going to use it," she told him, "It's not like this thing is a one time use. It's not so fragile that I wouldn't be able to use it." She ran her finger on the edge of the Chalice, humming. "Musashi became the way she was because she ate food that had been in the Grail. While she could be an abnormality, the same could happen to you…"
She reached over, picking up a jar os sake and pouring some into the magical chalice. "But I can't guarantee that it will work."
Kyojuro gazed at the Grail, eyes calculating as Shuten pushed it across the table towards him.
"It's your choice," she said, "I can tell you though, just from observation of Musashi's energy, she's been keeping a portion of it under wraps. I've talked to your Master about it already, but if this Final Battle is going to press everyone to their limits…."
"There's a chance she could start warping to other dimensions again?" Kyojuro finished and Shuten nodded.
"I don't pretend to know or understand all that stuff, I don't really care," she hummed, "But Musashi is a walking, mobile Singularity point. In short, she doesn't exist. As soon as she exits this world, she will cease to exist here."
The Flame Pillar frowned, drumming his fingers on the table for a bit. "For someone who doesn't care, you certainly know a lot."
Shuten only snorted again, shrugging. "Think what you will, darling," she said, lounging back, "I'd hurry up and make that choice, though, if I were you. But, then again, I'm not the one with a significant other who will vanish as soon as she decides to push to the final point of Zero again."
At the mention of Musashi, Kyojuro's eyes hardened again and he gazed at the Holy Grail in front of him.
Shuten's lips curled upwards into a smirk when the man reached for it, sniffing the drink inside before bringing it to his lips.
"That's a good boy," Shuten hummed, "Make sure you drink eeeevery last drop, alright~?"
The glare he shot her at her teasing tone was worth it.
Shuten is pretty fun to write, all things considered.
For those of you who don't know and who do enjoy the Hobbit/LotR, I have another fanfic out with Li Shuwen as the chosen fate victim.