Nezuko stared at Muzan, and Muzan stared at Nezuko. The Kamado sibling had one small bead of sweat on her forehead, her hand on the hilt of her sword in a defensive stance, while Muzan simply stood there, his hands in his pockets, his eyes lazing as he looked to the floor. Kokushibo held his right hand up in the air, a sense of worry overcoming the Demon.
Why was he worried? He trained Nezuko well enough, but that stipulation… he didn't quite like that stipulation at all. But, if it was what his master had in mind as a punishment…. "But why? Why waste all that time? It makes no sense," Kokushibo thought, narrowing his many eyes. "Whatever, if it is what Lord Muzan sees fit, then I shall abide by it. Even if it wounds my pride ever so slightly."
"BEGIN!" Kokushibo called out as Nezuko drew her blade, but within the blink of an eye, Muzan disappeared, a slight after image left in his place as Nezuko's eyes widened. Turning around with a hastened pace, Nezuko jumped back as two oversized tentacles smalled into the spot where she stood, drilling into the floor as panic appeared in the young child's eyes.
"If I stood there for even a second more… I would've been skewered!" Nezuko thought as she took in a deep breath, channelled all that focus into an attack, then dashed towards the tentacles. She ran up them at blistering speeds, jumped up into the air, and as she plunged forward, Muzan's bored expression met her angered one.
The demon king raised his hand in a backhand, and when she got close to him, he slapped her away like an insect, the resulting impact causing her to fly straight into the ground, the arena shaking as a result of the impact created by the forceful blow.
Technoblade narrowed his eyes, clenching his hand into a fist as he sucked in a deep breath to calm himself.
"Just watch, Techno, don't interrupt," Dream stated, placing a hand on his shoulder. It was meant to be a comforting gesture, but it was anything but to the half-piglin. Technoblade looked down at Takeo, who had a worried expression on his face.
"I know, Dream. But I can already tell that this isn't right here. Something is off about this fight, something I don't like…." Technoblade mumbled as Dream nodded.
Dream, for his part, also knew something was amiss. While the other Demons, though notably not Wilbur, were cheering like a bunch of people watching a sport, Dream had been analyzing the Demon King's movements.
He was planning ten steps ahead. He wasn't treating it like a test for Nezuko, it was a test for himself, to see if he still had his wits about him. If anything, he was testing himself against a Demon Slayer that posed no threat to him yet.
It was… interesting, to say the least. It was clear as day that Muzan was a coward in every way, shape, and form. It was why he had others do his dirty work for him. Perhaps, in a not so distant past, it was different, and he was more proactive, but the Muzan he saw before him was cowardly in every sense of the word.
After all, Dream, out of all people would know. For he was once like that. Nowadays, he couldn't afford to be lazy, but Muzan was.
It was like looking into a mirror, though instead of showing the other side of the person, a mirrored image, it was a "this could've been you" image shown to Dream.
It was an interesting prospect.
"You sense it too, don't you?" Dream asked, earning the Blood God's attention. "Muzan isn't holding back. It makes sense, but there's something else flowing in his mind, isn't there?" Dream asked as Technoblade nodded. The Blood God knew a thing or two about ego, and Muzan had that in spades. But this fight seemed like it was a confidence boost more than anything else.
And if that was the case….
"Whatever the case is…. If he goes too far, I will stop it."
Back with to the "fight," Muzan stood still, his posture arrogant, his eyes dull, and his breathing even.
"Oops, did I put too much power into that?" Muzan asked, a bemused expression on his face as Nezuko shakily stood up. It was clear that she was down for the count, but a part of him wanted to see her try and push forward, only to bathe in her despair when she realized she couldn't fight any longer.
"Come on, Kamado Nezuko. If you can't handle one attack like that, you'll never make it past the final selection," Muzan snarled, retracting his meat tendrils into his back. He knew that to not be true. Any regular Demon would die to someone with her skill, albeit as weak as it was, but still; it was all about getting into her head. To lower her self-esteem. To make her feel as weak as possible.
It would make things a lot easier for him. That much he knew. But as he saw Nezuko, he couldn't help but smirk to himself.
Nezuko had blood rushing down from her forehead, her left shoulder had been dislocated, and she was hardly able to stand upright without hunching over. She held her left arm up with her right, her sword situated on the ground inside the crater.
It was all because he slapped her. Once. Not with one of his meaty tendrils, but with his hand. The impact didn't help, but her Jaw didn't feel right, that much was for sure.
"That was one attack… one singular attack…!"
Yet even still, she wasn't about to give up. Grabbing the sword with her good arm, she stood up proud and tall, then sheathed the regular blade. She saw Muzan raise an eyebrow, then they furrowed. He was on to her, or at the very least was intrigued with what she was planning to do.
She didn't want to use the Demon Blade yet. But if just a singular attack did all of that to her, if he was that strong, then she had no other choice in the matter. "I don't have much of a choice. Do I? If I don't use it, I'll be a sitting duck."
Taking a deep breath, she grabbed the hilt of The Demon soon as she touched its hilt, she felt a wave of calm wash over her, and as she drew it out of its sheath, she felt another wave wash over her.
Power.
Power filled her veins. Power like nothing she had ever felt before. This power…. It was unrivalled. The knowledge of Moon Breathing that she didn't know about before filled her head, all the forms becoming like a sixth sense. Her vision became enhanced as if she could see movements before they happened. Her muscles practically doubled without showing it, her reflexes became more honed. She felt like a killing machine.
And it was all because of this sword. She wanted to hold on to it forever. She needed the power that it came with. But her more rational side spoke to her. "Only use it for the remainder of this fight. You don't want to lose your humanity, right?" Nezuko thought as if she were speaking to herself, reminding herself of who she was.
The moment the blade exited the sheath, Muzan raised an eyebrow. Intrigue quickly filled the Demon King's senses, as did worry. "Right, Kokushibo warned me about this… it won't be much of a bother, though. I shouldn't be worried. What can a lowly human do with just a replica of his blade?"
"Did Kokushibo give you that? Interesting. Not that it will—" but before he could say anything, Nezuko's arm began to shift back into place, her forehead seemed to fix itself. "What the—"
"Third Form – Loathsome Moon, Chains."
As Nezuko uttered those words, she swung the Demon Blade twice in a crescent type of slash, and out from the slash came smaller crescent blades spinning towards the Demon King. Muzan jumped back as several of the blades crashed into the skin on his chest, his right arm, and his left leg. Muzan's eyes widened as Bone Spikes came out from his back and all charged towards Nezuko, who dodged out of the way.
There was no way she should've been able to do that. There was no way she should have been able to dodge those attacks. Unless… "That blade gives her more than just her skills. Now that I think of it, her voice is eerily similar to Kokushibos, if not a little higher pitched…!" That's when Muzan came to the realization.
"I see. So she gains his skills, as well as his knowledge and power. This suddenly has become a lot more of a hassle. I have to stop this. Now."
Muzan summoned more of his bone spikes from his back, and as one of them neared Nezuko…. "Second Form – Pearl Flower Moongazing." In the span of a second, Nezuko slashed at the air several times in the same crescent style, cutting the bone spear in threes as more crescent blades hurled themselves towards Muzan, who dodged all of them this time.
The two landed in front of each other as Muzan's wounds healed instantly. "I see, so when you hold that sword, you gain the same skills as Kokushibo. I'm afraid that's cheating. However, I'll let it slide," Muzan stated as Nezuko flinched, and as a result, started to sheath the blade out of fear of what he might have done.
And when the blade slowly entered the sheath, Muzan's eyes became predatory, and a smirk formed on his face. Upon seeing the smirk, Nezuko's eyes widened, but she couldn't stop herself from sheathing the blade.
When the sword fully entered its sheath, Nezuko felt all of the knowledge and power she gained from it drain from her in an instant, causing whiplash. Her shoulder went back to the way it was from before, the wound on her forehead came back, and she coughed up blood at the sudden changes. Her eyes widened from the strain, and her face expressed as much as well.
"I thought it permanently healed those wounds! I mean, it was a guess, but still!" Nezuko thought, the sudden pain too much for her to bear as she felt a wave of dread wash over her.
Muzan smiled at what he saw. The pain on her face and the opportunity it now revealed was more than enough for him to get a grasp on what to do next. Still, the intrigue came next, and his smile became more perverse, and his eyes somehow even more predatory. "Interesting…! So if she doesn't have that blade out, her wounds return! I see… quite the drawback. So if she doesn't have it at all… that means she'll lose, and I'll have a new puppet to control."
"Do you wish to continue?" Muzan stated, his tone emotionless. Before Nezuko could say anything, she fell to her right knee.
"The power… I need the power!" Nezuko thought, pain filling her every movement as she gasped out her breaths.
Technoblade watched, trying to hold himself back. Dream stared with indifference written on his face, however, he was frustrated, that much he could tell. Takeo covered his mouth to keep himself from screaming, and the lower moons looked on in disgust. The Upper Moons, outside of Kokushibo, were truly indifferent as if they expected this outcome.
Hanako looked over to Technoblade, her expression pleading for him to do something, and the blood god nodded faintly, reaching for his blade, prepared to intervene in case things got dicey. No one saw his subtle movement, and therefore, no one stopped him.
She went to grab the blade again, knowing that she needed its boost. But before she could, a bone spear smacked her hand away from the blade, wrapped around the hilt of the sword, then drew it from the sheath and brought it towards Muzan.
The Demon King took the blade, examined it, then threw it over the edge of the arena, causing Nezuko's eyes to widen. "N-No!" But as she reached out for it, she fell on her chin, dazing her as she coughed.
"Without that blade, you're useless. You failed. Now, it's time for my favourite part," The Demon King snarled, a flesh tentacle appeared from his back. "I'm going to enjoy—"
"First Form – Blood-Soaked Slashes!"
A pink blur flew towards Muzan, and in the blink of an eye, his head had been cleanly removed from his torso. The flickering of a cape before Nezuko's eyes made her realize what exactly had happened, and as soon as Muzan's head flew even an inch away from his neck, strands of muscle immediately reconnected the head and neck back to their proper places as Muzan's eyes widened.
"What is—" Before Muzan could speak, a sword was shoved straight into his mouth, forcing him to stay quiet as burning red eyes pierced the Demon King's own. Muzan's eyes widened to the size of saucers as the Blood God's eyes met his. The half-pig half-Demon placed a leg on his chest, then pulled, removing the sword from Muzan's mouth, and the Demon King slammed into the ground.
"You knew this was going to be rigged, didn't you?" Technoblade snarled, his tone of voice filled to the brim with rage as a tendril came out of his back and stabbed into Nezuko, who gasped. She felt something warm enter her body—it was foreign, and it made her uncomfortable, yet at the same time, it made her feel at peace.
"You knew from the beginning that she wouldn't be able to fight you, didn't you?" Technoblade continued as Nezuko's wounds began to heal as the tendril removed itself from her back, allowing Nezuko to stand.
She didn't feel any different, but she did feel better than she did before. Whatever it was that Technoblade had done to her, it had fixed her wounds. She looked at the fallen form of Muzan, who began to stand up, an angered expression on his face as he met Technoblade's height.
"You dare interrupt—" before the Demon King could finish, he was slashed in half from the waist down, and Technoblade walked forward. It didn't even look like his arm moved, he simply just stood there, and Muzan was cut in half in the blink of an eye.
Once again, Muzan's eyes widened as his waist and upper body were separated, blood coating the floor of the arena as Technoblade's anger-filled eyes continued to bore holes into Muzan's own.
The Upper Moons, sans Wilbur, all gaped at the action.
"What the hell is he doing!" Akaza shouted, clenching his hand into a fist. Akaza rose from his spot, he stared at Technoblade, then he began to shout. "Hey! Bastard! How dare you—"
"You don't want to anger him, Upper Moon 3," Wilbur said, interrupting the Demon in question, causing Akaza to turn to him. The Upper Moon Demon scowled, glaring at him. "This weakling…!"
"What did you say to me, punk?" Akaza said as Wilbur met his eyes, and proceeded to frown. A cocky arrogance filled Wilbur's expression as a bright black aura appeared around him in Akaza's vision, which made the man stumble for a split second.
His aura was off the charts, or at least, it appeared to be. Lower Moon 6's had been a Crimson Red, a colour that only meant immense power and notable intellect to use it. Black was that, but with an even higher power level, and an even higher intellect than that of the power itself.
Not even Upper Moon One had that level of Aura. Muzan was the closest one to that power level, but was just barely outreach, sitting at a deep shade of Purple.
"How does Upper Moon Six have a higher power than even Lord Muzan?" Akaza thought, narrowing his eyes at the Demon.
"I said, you don't want to piss my brother off, Akaza." As Wilbur said that Akaza blinked.
"Brother?" The Upper Moon gawked as Wilbur smirked, looking away from the Demon in question. Akaza could only stare at him with confusion and anger. "What do you mean brother! You look nothing alike!"
"Not by blood, but by name. We share the same father, though it was merely through an adoption paper. Still, though, I know him well enough that you don't want to make him angry."
"And this isn't him when he's angry? He looks pretty pissed off to me," Gyotarro spoke up abruptly as Wilbur shook his head.
"No, no. He's merely annoyed," Wilbur said, his smirk widening. "He blew up an entire nation when he was pissed off, so I'd say that our fearless leader should be counting himself lucky."
The rest of the Upper Moons looked at him as if to call bullshit. Levelling an entire nation? If that was the case, then why hadn't they heard about it? A Demon that powerful was unheard of, and by rights, it should've been.
But if what Upper Moon Six had been saying was true….
"Lord Muzan's in trouble, and we can't do anything about it…!" Akaza came to that chilling conclusion, slumping back down in his seat as he stared, his expression flat, his arms crossed as he analyzed. "No… Lord Muzan isn't in trouble. What am I thinking? He'll kick that guy's ass. Upper Moon Six is simply playing up his brother's strength. No one is stronger than Lord Muzan."
Back in the arena, Muzan had reattached himself by now, and was backing away from Technoblade, who only continued to corner him. "You…!" Muzan started, fear written all over his face as he continued to back up. "You are interrupting this trial! I'll kill—"
"You'll do no such thing, peasant," Technoblade snarled, his voice getting deeper, and his eyes glowing brighter. Suddenly, Muzan felt far smaller than he was, and Technoblade seemed to grow in size, at least, in Muzan's eyes he did. "This 'trial' is a farce. You merely wanted to turn Nezuko into a Demon because she scares you, right?" Technoblade interrogated, grabbing Muzan's neck and lifting him upward. "You wanted to make her feel weak, and therefore, you started this farce of a trial."
Yet even as Muzan struggled against his grip, slamming his balled-up fist into his wrist, only for it to do nothing. Muzan began to choke, even though he didn't need oxygen, it was still extremely uncomfortable. As he continued to flail in Technoblade's grip, The Blood God continued.
"You knew that she wouldn't even stand a chance, so you taunted her, berated her, pushed her to her limits, and when she pulled out something that gave her the advantage, you called it cheating, and she put it away out of fear of your repercussions. When she went for it again because she needed it to stand, you tossed it over the side of the arena. But I'm sure Kokushibo will make her a new one, won't he? And then she'll be a threat to you again, right?" Technoblade's voice just kept getting deeper with each sentence he spoke.
The raw power coming off of Technoblade was enough to make anyone piss themselves, or scream like a baby. "Your lucky I don't gut you like a pig, Muzan. You're lucky I don't turn you into mincemeat and feed you to the nearest homeless shelter. This trial is over. No rematches. No nonsense. None of your whining. It. Is. Over."
And with his statement made, Technoblade slammed him into the floor of the arena, waited ten seconds, then released him, all the while Nezuko watched in awe. The Demon King stared up at Technoblade within the spot the man—no, the monster had put him in, and didn't move an inch.
The King of all Demons finally began to realize something about Technoblade that he hadn't before. "The marking in his eye… it isn't a title… it's a fact. He's…!"
"This is your last chance, Muzan. If you do something like this again, I will drain you dry, tear apart every single last cell in your body, and turn you into many different types of flowers, just so you learn a vital lesson of humility," Technoblade spat, turning around and facing the audience, who looked on horror. "The same goes for all of you. I know someone in this room was responsible for murdering the Kamado Family on Kumitori Mountain. When I find out which one of you did it, I will tear you asunder, and make it so your existence was never known about, got it?!"
Silence reverberated in the room as Technoblade nodded, sheathing his blade. No one moved unless it was out of his way. Technoblade looked over to Nezuko, nodded, then tapped Dream and Takeo on the shoulder. "It's time to go. Nezuko, Lower Moons, with me. Kokushibo, deliver her a new sword by tomorrow evening. Thank you," and with the sound of a Biwa, the group of people Technoblade mentioned disappeared from the Infinity Castle.
As soon as they left, Muzan sat up in the hole, Upper Moon One walked up behind him. "Lord Muzan, I think we should discuss the elephant in the room." As Kokushibo spoke, Akaza jumped from his seat and helped Muzan out of the hole.
"Yeah, that traitorous asshole attacked you! At your command, I'll—"
"He'll kill you, then kill us all afterward," Muzan snapped, glaring at Akaza, then stepped back in shock. Fear. Muzan spoke with fear in his voice. Muzan never feared anyone. Muzan had no reason to fear anyone, let alone another Demon who carved a saying into their own eye. It was clear that Technoblade had skill, but to best Muzan when he was going easy on someone, that was nothing.
So why was Muzan afraid?
"Master, I—"
"No. You will not do anything about what just happened, none of you will," Muzan started, turning his attention to Wilbur. "You. Tell me what you know. What do you know about The Blood God."
Wilbur smirked, standing up as he rolled his shoulders. "You mean my brother? Sure, I'll tell you what I know. Although, you should be counting the stars he didn't kill you. You really annoyed him, you know that?" Wilbur started as Muzan glared at him with a vengeance.
"He is your brother?" Muzan snarled as Wilbur sighed.
"Through adoption, yes. He treats me as such and cares for me as such, so we call ourselves brothers. I do not share the same blood as him, if that is what you are wondering," Wilbur said, crossing his arms. "As for what I know about him, all I know is that he is the most skilled warrior in all of the world. He's been in wars and has conquered kingdoms. From what he has been willing to tell me, he's thousands of years old. He's been around since the middle ages, and he's brought kingdoms to their knees, and equally brought them to their victories," Wilbur began.
"I'll tell you what it was he said to me, but nothing more. Pay attention, because I won't reiterate myself," Wilbur stated, making eye contact with all of the Upper Moons and Muzan.
"When he was but a mortal man, he was a mercenary at the age of 15, and he was good at it. People far and wide paid for his services—some in money, some with resources, some with their bodies. He truly did not care. So long as he got paid what he was due, he would do the job. He killed for money and fame, women, and the high life. As a mortal man, his name was David Blade, as his family had been bladesmiths, and not just the normal kind, but well respected.
"By the time he was 20 years old, he had murdered hundreds of people, and at times even feasted on their flesh when he ran out of food. Even as a human, he ate human flesh, but he had no other choice. It was either that, or he starved. Eventually, he became self-conscious of his crimes, and by the time he was 27 years old, he gave up his title as a mercenary, settled down with a wife, started a farm, and tried to live a peaceful life.
"He acquired a lot of wealth as a human, so he could write off his taxes that the neighbouring king made him pay. He had a son, and a daughter, both 5 years of age. He thought that with his past behind him that he could live a normal life and die of old age surrounded by his loved ones. Alas, that was not the case. Knights from a raiding kingdom attacked his farm, raped and killed his wife and daughter in front of him, killed his son, and tortured him for hours on end as they took everything from him.
"Driven by rage and revenge, he made a deal with the Devil. In return for immortality and infinite power, he would take up the mantle as the God of Blood, the Devil's right-hand man, so to speak. However, there was another curse put on him by the Devil. Whenever he murdered someone, took someone's life, ingested their blood, or consumed the flesh of another, their voices would become a part of his mind and act as a collective consciousness.
"His appearance was disfigured, his legs pig-like, his skin turned pink, as was his hair, and his eyes going from a blissful blue to a searing red with a marking in all languages to be read as 'Blood God.' With his own blood, he resurrected his wife, daughter, and son, though they treated him as a master, and not as a loving father and husband. Using that, he went to every graveyard he could find and resurrected the dead. With an army of 100,000 strong, he planned out an attack on the enemy Kingdom that wronged him.
"He levelled the enemy Kingdom and the ones surrounding it with an army of the undead. He was the first-ever Demon King. The Devil used him for hundreds of years, and when Technoblade got fed up, he murdered the Devil and took his place as The King of Hell, eventually giving the title over to another Hellspawn so that he may attempt another life. That was when he met me and my family.
"In the folklore of old, they all tell the tale of a pig-legged or goat-legged creature that raised hell on anyone it came into contact with, that destroyed cities because it felt like it. A heartless monster who wanted to devour your soul. He was the Devil in the Holy Bible, Satan in the Book of Morman, you name a religion, he is their antichrist. That is Technoblade. That is the Blood God. And THAT, was who you annoyed today, Lord Muzan."
Everyone stared at Wilbur with wide eyes, even Muzan, who looked like he had seen a ghost. The Demon King quickly composed himself, took in a deep breath, looked over to Nakime, then spoke.
"Nakime… do me a favour. Bring me to the most populated city nearby, and take me there. I need to… alleviate some steam."
Without another word, Muzan disappeared with the sound of a Biwa being strummed.
"Is what you speak the truth, Upper Moon Six?" Douma asked, caution in his voice as Wilbur smirked.
"Yes. Every single word I utter is the truth. However, there is some information that I am omitting, but I doubt our Lord wants any of the grittier details. I summarized a lot, but nothing can be done about it for now. If Lord Muzan wishes to know more, then so be it. I will tell him more when he has calmed down. Until then, however, I shall be on my way. Nakime, take me to the usual spot, if you will?"
And with that, Wilbur disappeared, leaving only the Upper Moons to stay in silence.
[One and a half days later]
Tommy stood, hand on the hilt of his sword as he approached the gates of the final selection. It was pitch black, dark and foreboding. The moon was in its crescent phase, and Tommy could tell that it was going to be a beautiful night. Several people he had never even met before stood there at the gates, all silently observing one another. Tommy was wearing the same half-white and half-red split Haori as before. The difference was what lay underneath it. Underneath the Haori, he wore a black button-up uniform given to him by Kyojirou and red zori.
His hair was still done up the same way as it was before, though it had been redone because he recently had taken a bath. He had a calm demeanour about him as he stared at the gates of the Final Selection.
The Final Selection, from what Kyojirou told him, took place in Mount Fujikasane. There were a few notable reasons.
1 – Demons were overpopulated there, but they were so weak that anyone who had basic Demon slaying knowledge could kill them.
2 – It was surrounded by a forest of Wisteria Plants that always were blooming for some unknown reason. Demons hated Wisteria, as it was poisonous to the touch. Therefore, the Demons within the Final Selection were contained within this one area, making them extremely easy pickings.
3 – Despite all of this, it also weeded out those who were never fit to be Demon Slayers. Unfortunatly, the ultimate price is Death.
Tommy didn't like those reasonings, but he could see the simplicity behind it and understood it. Never meant he had to agree with it.
But then, there were the rules of the Final Selection, and it all became clear to him after that fact.
The rules for the final selection were simple: Survive for 7 Days while avoiding and or killing Demons, though any Demons that one did kill would not carry over to your rank as a Demon Slayer, as everyone started as a Mizunoto. Sleep was optional, and not required, as that would be dangerous seeing as the trees blocked out the sun.
In other words: If you are not prepared for the Final Selection, do not go. You will die. Enter at your own risk.
Thankfully for Tommy, he had slept plenty before coming here. He could survive without sleep for a few days—he did that plenty of times in the Dream Isles. He was well trained, and he had combat skills to boot. He was more than prepared for the Final Selection.
As he looked around his surroundings, he noticed that he wasn't the only one who was at the Final Selection—obviously. Plenty of people had been, actually. He did a quick count of everyone there, totalling up to about 20 people. He looked to be the only real "adult" in the crowd, seeing as he was 16, nearing 17 in a few more months.
He only thought that because he was the only one there who looked older than 12 years old. "Seriously, how many of these pre-teens are even here? Were they affected by the Demons?" Tommy thought, shaking his head. "Whatever, not my problem."
Not many people interested him, at least not enough to talk to. There was one guy who looked a little interesting, but he quickly shut that idea down when the scared, burly-looking teenager gave him a death glare. Plus, his haircut was far too stupid—shaved sides and a low mohawk? Was he trying to look like an idiot?
Although, he supposed there was one person that did catch his eye. And, of course, it had to be a person of the opposite sex to him—a girl—because go figure.
She looked to be no older than 13, maybe 14 if he guessed off of her appearance. She wore a purple and black checkered style haori with two sword sheaths at her hip. She wore a black button-up uniform—the same as his own, though instead of pants she wore a skirt with black stalkings. Her hair was pitch black, and It had been done up in a bun. Her eyes were a dark pink, and her face had a resting expression.
She wasn't the most attractive girl he met—that went to Nicki in his opinion—but whatever the case may have been, she intrigued him enough to start to walk over and talk to her. As Tommy made his way over to the girl, she noticed him out of the corner of her eye, and smiled ever-so-slightly.
"Oh, hello," The girl spoke, her voice soft, yet also defined. There was a rigidness in how she spoke as if she was battle hardened. But behind all of that—holy shit her face was cute. Not in the "squish the cheeks" kind of cute, just the word 'cute.'
Though, looks can be deceiving. Tubbo, his former best friend turned just friend, had the same 'cute' demeanour about him, but he could solidly kick your ASS if he so chose within the blink of an eye. So, he kept that in mind as he opened his mouth to speak.
"Heya. So… what brings you here?" Tommy asked as the girl looked over to the forest.
"I'm pretty sure it's obvious, considering you're here," the girl said, side glancing at him. What did that mean? Whatever, it was probably nothing important.
"Fair enough," Tommy replied, letting out a sigh. "So… how did the Demons affect you?" Tommy asked as the girl raised an eyebrow.
"Why?" The girl asked as Tommy shrugged.
"Curiosity, that's all," the blond-haired boy replied, glancing over to the forest. "Personally, I'm only here because it's my only real option in life. Besides, what are the chances that I can talk to you again? 10%? Not that I'm doubting your skill, but I've seen the kinda damage Demons can do to people who aren't prepared," Tommy said as the girl shrugged.
"Normally, I'd take great offence to that comment, but you seem like an aloof enough person to not understand what it was you just said," the girl said, repressing a laugh.
"Huh?" The blond-haired boy was genuinely confused, rubbing the back of his head as the girl sighed.
"See what I mean? You really are dense!" There was a bright smile on the girl's face before it was quickly taken over by a sombre one, glancing at the floor. "My family had been murdered by Demons, my younger sister was turned into one, and my older brother was murdered before my eyes. I vowed to protect those that remain in my family, my younger brother and my Demon sister. I want to protect those who were hurt by the Demons, and make sure those Demons can never harm another soul again."
The girl finished her story, and Tommy felt genuinely bad for her. A soft smile appeared on her face, her expression one of sombre happiness, and as she did so, Tommy nodded. "I see…. That's very brave of you… uh…?"
"Oh! Where are my manners! My name is Kamado Nezuko, it's a pleasure to meet you!" The young girl said, bowing as Tommy did the same.
"Rengoku Tommy, it's a pleasure. I hope to see you at the other end of this," Tommy said, turning his attention towards the two instructors, who looked no older than 12, maybe 13 years old. "What is with these people and being so ungodly young?!"
The children stood side by side, and both of them were creepy as hell. They were both twins, that much was clear, but there were subtle differences between the two… if your form of subtle was getting hit by a truck and told that you most definitely broke your spine on impact.
One of the girls had light purple hair, while the other had black hair, their eyes incredibly hazy, and both of them had a strand of wisteria hanging from their hair. One wore a Kimono with purple flowers and an off-white background, while the other had the opposite. On one, the collar and belt were black, on the other, the collar and belt were white.
As soon as they stood underneath the gate, the one with the black hair spoke first.
"Greetings, everyone. Thank you for gathering tonight for the Final Selection. Mount Fujikasane holds Demons that Demon Slayer Swordsmen have taken alive and trapped here," the black-haired child began as the purple-haired child continued for her.
"Demons hate wisteria flowers, which bloom here even out of season. They cover the mountain from its foot all the way up the slope."
The black-haired one continued; "However, from that point on, the wisteria does not bloom. So the demons roam free. You must survive there for seven days."
The plum-haired one then concluded the speech for the black-haired one; "If you do then you will have passed the Final Selection. Now go."
And with that, everyone charged into the Final Selection without any tact or reasoning. As soon as they entered, people began to talk amongst one another, however, even so, Tommy knew full well what he was getting into. He passed by two Demons, and with barely any effort at all, as he was running, he drew his sword and glared at them. The two Demons who saw him leapt back in surprise, and just as one of them spoke….
"A hum—!"
"First Form – Unknowing Fire."
Tommy, with a brutal yet clean strike, cut both Demon's heads off, and as he ran, he sheathed his blade, stopped, turned around, then nodded as their bodies disintegrated. The Demons cried out in agony, but he did not care.
After all, they were monsters, why was he supposed to care.
In another part of the forest, Nezuko Kamado was slicing through Demons with pathetic ease, making use of her regular blade and the third form of Moon Breathing, clearing out any Demon who came in her way.
It was jarring, killing Demons after spending so many months, almost a full year, with them. Now she was murdering them like it was second nature. Then again, she held no true feelings for these Demons in particular, as she did not know them. Yet, she still felt some pain for them as they cried when their heads came off.
For every Demon she killed, she prayed for their safe departure into the afterlife, even if it was a fiery hellscape for them.
When she finished clearing out a part of the forest of the Demons, she sheathed her blade, taking a deep breath. "That was interesting…." Nezuko murmured as she narrowed her eyes. She could hear something massive coming towards her, and she zipped around and unsheathed her blade, she was met with a massive hand.
Nezuko jumped back, landed on the tree behind her, then rushed towards the Demon.
"First Form – Dark Moon, Evening Palace!" Nezuko said, drawing her regular blade as her blade embedded itself through the thick skin of the Demon's arm, cutting it off.
"You're very skilled! I'll enjoy eating—"
"Zip it, handyman! Third Form – Loathsome Moon, Chains!" Slashing twice in the shape of a crescent moon in front of her horizontally, The Hand Demon's head came off without much effort, and his eyes had widened to the size of saucers. Nezuko landed in the gap between the Demon's body and its head as it began to disintegrate.
"You will never eat another human again. I almost feel bad for you… almost." The Demon's head disappeared, and Nezuko shook her head. She still had 7 whole days of this… it was not going to be an uneventful time, that much she knew.
However, for one cowardly Demon Slayer wannabe, he sat quietly in a bush, huddled against himself, waddling back and forth, hoping to kami above that no one, not even a fellow contestant found him.
And he remained hidden throughout the whole seven days.
-To Be Continued-