Once Tanjiro had realized that if he intercepted Muzan after he woke up every loop, he could save his family by sacrificing his own humanity, it had become his go-to solution. Even if he hadn't remembered half of those early loops as a demon. Once he'd gotten used enough to the demonic mind-set and changes his body went through that he could control himself around people and keep memories of his past/history (he estimated around thirty resets altogether, give or take a couple – some of them he could barely remember, and those were the loops Giyuu hadn't found him and killed him immediately after turning), he had actively begun to try and bring Muzan down.
More than once, he'd fought and been killed by a demon slayer (sometimes not even a Hashira) after trying to approach them, and when he recognized how difficult it was to even get them to listen to him, he'd gone to Tamayo. Unfortunately, neither she nor Yushiro were fighters. They had typical demonic stamina and strength, but that wasn't nearly enough to take on the Kizuki, let alone Muzan himself.
Still, he'd found merit in studying with them and had even been able to have Tamayo change his body as a demon in some loops so he was hardly tempted to eat humans. Unfortunately, that also tended to have the side effect of making him less able to fight and he almost always ended up being killed by another demon – often one of Muzan's personal demon servants (like Susamaru and Yahaba) or a Kizuki. His studying with Tamayo had been interesting enough, and he'd learned a lot in those loops, but ultimately he decided to try and go Nezuko's way and sleep to gain energy.
Eventually he'd stopped trying to escape Giyuu and had begun to figure out what would get the Pillar to listen to him. The Pillar had seen something in Nezuko that first time, so he – unlike many of the others – was open to at least hearing Tanjiro.
In several loops, he'd done his best to work with the Hashira and the Demon Slayer Corps, but those had almost always been stilted, awkward and painful. Shinobu's poisons hurt. And it tended to be odds or evens as to whether a demon or a demon slayer would take him out those times.
Around those loops was when he'd first begun to entertain the idea of infiltrating the upper ranks of the Kizuki. Having deeper, more personal information to give the Demon Slayer Corps would make those loops far easier, so he'd begun to train. He'd gotten back into his breathing style practice and had even taken some hand-to-hand fighting.
It had taken him far longer than he would have liked to admit to find a way to locate either Muzan or the Waxing Moons to challenge them, but finally he had. He accomplished his goal of infiltrating and gaining more information.
It hurt to think something he'd worked so hard to accomplish had been such a terrible idea.
Still, he'd fought Akaza a couple of times before, in previous loops, but he hadn't been able to beat the guy (at least on his own) until he'd challenged him that time. He'd actually expected to have to challenge him a couple of times to take the spot and had been shocked when it had worked the first time – not something he was used to in his experiences with the time loops.
The Demon, angry at having been kicked down a rank when Tanjiro won, had challenged him multiple times. Half the time, Tanjiro was pretty sure he didn't care about the rankings at all, only wanting a good fight.
Frankly, Tanjiro couldn't empathize with that mind-set then, couldn't empathize with it now and found it exhausting more than anything else. Still, no matter how many times he'd fought Akaza in the past, it would be the height of foolishness to think a fight with him now would be an easy win.
As he traded blows with the demon, he couldn't help but be relieved that he could keep up with his foe as a human. He still didn't relax his guard, though. The biggest issue he'd have to work with was the fact he'd have to make sure to not let himself get hit by the demon at all. In the first solo fight he'd won, Tanjiro had had several issues and only barely come out on top. It wasn't unusual for him to miscalculate once or twice in following fights, but it hadn't mattered as much then because he had demon regrowth rates (not as fast as Akaza, but he could still regrow limbs within minutes or seconds when it came to fingers and such). This time, unless he activated his demon cells, he didn't have that safety net. He didn't allow that to faze him, though. It wasn't something he couldn't handle, and it would simply push him to grow more. He could do this.
Honestly, though, he wished he could simply unleash his Blood Art, grab Nezuko and Mitsuri and run away. It would certainly be easier… and likely safer for them in the short-term, but what about the long-term? He hated being around people when he either turned into a demon or woke up as one for the first time. Even now, it was odds or evens as to whether he could control himself to a point where he wouldn't attack initially. And the idea of opening himself up to Muzen again at all… that could have dire consequences, so unless he had no other choice, he decided he'd defeat Akaza as a demon slayer only.
"Wow, you really are strong!" Akaza said with a grin as he leaped away, his wounds healing almost instantly. "And you're not using any demonic powers as far as I can tell! That's amazing!"
Tanjiro thought about not responding, but ultimately decided that Akaza was being sincere, so he should reciprocate.
"Thanks," he said, smiling. He didn't show any teeth, not wanting the demon to comment on his stupid canines.
"So, I don't get it. Are you a demon, or aren't you?"
Well, so much for that.
"I'm not."
"Okay, so why did Muzan-sama say you'd been marked?"
Tanjiro felt his fists tighten around his sword hilt before he consciously relaxed them. "Sorry. I can't say."
Akaza seemed to contemplate that for a moment, rubbing his chin.
"And you're really not a demon?"
"No," Tanjiro shook his head, his earrings clacking against his cheeks, neck and shoulders. It felt good to wear them again.
The Waxing Third just grinned. "Then you should become one!"
Tanjiro blinked.
"What?" he asked, almost not comprehending.
"Being a demon is great! You should become one!"
The worst part is that he truly believed it.
Tanjiro just stared for a couple of seconds, but could only answer with one extremely confused word. "Why?"
The Waxing Moon held up his hand and began to count off on his fingers. "Well, for one, it gives us strength. You already have a lot of strength, but becoming a demon would just increase it! And the best part is that it never fades! That's point number two: it's super hard to kill demons. And point three, you'd get to fight with me whenever you wanted to and never have to worry about dying."
Well… he wasn't entirely wrong (not that all those points were good points…).
"Maybe," Tanjiro conceded neutrally, "but there are some pretty serious downsides too. Demons are all subservient to the whims of a sadistic psychopath, the sun literally burns you to death and your entire existence revolves around how many sapient people you can kill and consume." Tanjiro shrugged. "That really doesn't appeal to me."
Instead of looking angry, frustrated or disappointed as Tanjiro had expected, Akaza looked taken aback, almost shocked if Tanjiro didn't know any better. That faded to confusion pretty quickly.
"Psychopath?"
Oh, right. "It's a pretty new term from… Germany, I think?" He just remembered Tamayo-san speaking about it for a couple of loops. "It's a pretty broad term referring to anyone who's violated legal or moral expectations… usually pretty badly." *
Akaza blinked.
"And 'Sadistic'?'
Tanjiro blushed a little. "Someone who… really likes hurting other people because it makes them feel good or fulfilled somehow… usually, um… personally." ** He really did not want to go further into that. It would take him decades and many, many loops to get the conjured pictures out of his head. It was not something he wanted to dwell on. Full stop.
More blinking. "And you think that applies to Muzan-sama?" He said it as if it didn't compute… and that kind of made Tanjiro's heart hurt a little. Akaza wasn't book-smart. But while he didn't have a great deal of learning under his belt, he wasn't stupid either. For him to not see how terrible Muzan was, and the amount of denial that had to take… He was beginning to see what Tamayo-san meant by saying many demons – a large number of the Twelve Kizuki in particular – were brainwashed.
"Yes," he said firmly. "Everything about Muzan revolves around him. He doesn't care about you at all – never has. All he cares about is that he has someone to do his bidding.
"I would rather never become a demon because while you have a point about growing stronger and more skilled when immortal, it isn't worth giving up my ability to choose. Giving loyalty to that man who doesn't care one whit about me – or anyone else really – is not something I aspire to."
It still wasn't sinking home, Tanjiro could see. If anything, the demon just looked more confused. He opened his mouth to continue, but a whiff of a scent froze him stiff. He turned to where Mitsuri and Nezuko had run off to and his breath caught in his throat.
That was Douma! What was he doing here?! He never left his cult! And he already had his fans out! His eyes widened as the Waxing Second struck down.
"NO!" Tanjiro screamed, rushing forward.
His distraction cost him.
In the blink of an eye, a hand grabbed his outstretched wrist. A very much not-happy Akaza had appeared in his view. Tanjiro barely felt his eyes widen in realization and horror. This was not good. This was very, very much not good.
"Anyone who says such things about Muzan-sama must pay," he said. That was when Tanjiro noticed that he'd put his other hand, held straight out in a chop, near Tanjiro's upper arm. He knew what was coming and could do nothing about it. So he chose to help his comrades instead.
"Don't breathe it in!" he shouted as Mitsuri grabbed Nezuko and dodged out of the way of the ice mist. She glanced over at him, eyes wide with worry.
Then Akaza shot his hand forward at such a speed Tanjiro could barely see it himself.
Then the pain hit and he screamed.
xXx
Mitsuri managed to grab Nezuko and jump out of the way of the Waxing Moon's attack. Ice. He used ice. She remembered from her study on the Waxing Moons.
"Oh! How great!" the demon clapped. "You dodged that very well!" Then he tipped his head to one side, pondering. "I wonder if you can dodge this," he said, and waved his fan again. This time, it created a blue and purple mist that glinted in the moonlight.
"Don't breathe it in!" she heard Tanjiro say and glanced over at him. What she saw did not fill her with assurance. Waxing Three held the other Hashira's wrist, outstretched as if to reach for Nezuko and Mitsuri. She grit her teeth, knowing what would happen to him next, but unable to help. Knowing she had to survive her own fight, she breathed in and held her breath while Nezuko covered her nose and mouth with her hands. The mist engulfed them and suddenly Mitsuri very much wished she'd worn more. The temperature had gone from cold to freezing and maybe lower, but she still managed to rush through it to clean air and let out the air in her lungs, resuming her constant concentration breathing.
Then Tanjiro screamed.
"Nii-chan!" Nezuko screamed right back, but Mitsuri didn't have a chance to look. Instead she dropped Nezuko off behind the ice spikes from the demon's first attack, focused on Douma and drew her sword. It whirled around her as she leaped over the ice and around several more attacks, keeping a careful account of where she could go and how that could change as her opponent praised her.
"Wow! That is quite the style! Is it your own? It's so unique! That is honestly incredible! You can even dodge in mid air to an extent! For someone without a Blood Art, that's almost unthinkable!"
She hated it. He was playing with her.
She pushed herself harder, whirling around as fast as her body could go. It wasn't fast enough, so she pushed more. She had to protect Nezuko… and even to an extent, Tanjiro. People were counting on her and she couldn't let them down.
Then something pulsed in her chest. Her heart felt like it would burst out of her rib cage and heat spread from her core outward. Then, somehow, she got faster. She counted it as a win when Douma stopped commenting, continuing to make attacks and even having to dodge himself when she caught up with him.
In the background, she heard Nezuko call out something, but it wasn't for her, so she ignored it and Tanjiro's response.
Then she struck for a third time and somehow, Douma managed to dodge behind her.
"That really is incredible," she heard him say in her ear and she turned to look at him, eyes wide in disbelief. How had he…
And then she was flying backwards. She managed to reinforce her body before she hit a tree and shattered it, but it still did damage. If she were lucky, she'd only bruise. She hit a second tree (thankfully, it held) and couldn't move as the breath had been knocked out of her. She struggled to regain it and tried to get to her feet again.
"Oh, you have been so fun to play with! I haven't had such a good time in so long!" she heard the demon say. He'd begun to walk over to her. "You know, I'm almost tempted to keep you alive and human! If you pledged yourself to me, I could do that, you know. What do you say? I don't give this offer out often, or lightly."
Mitsuri managed to get enough breath in her lungs to give her answer.
"Never."
He almost looked sad. For maybe two seconds.
"Well, your choice, I suppose," he replied and raised one fan as if to stab her, fake smile returning to his face.
Then, before he could strike, a form thrust itself between him and her, arms outstretched.
Mitsuri gasped, ignoring how doing so hurt.
"Nezuko," she whispered, then focused on forcing herself to stand up. She had to fight. She had to save these two…
"Oh, what is this?" Douma asked, sounding intrigued.
"I won't let you hurt her!" Nezuko said.
Waxing Two just stared at her for several seconds before he burst into laughter. "I just defeated one of your pillars and you think a newly minted Mizunoto can do anything?"
Nezuko didn't back down. "If you want to get to her, you'll have to kill me!"
Oh, right… and he wasn't allowed to kill her. Mitsuri appreciated the thought, but if he captured her…
"Nezuko, run," she choked out, finally managing to get to her feet. Her legs shook, but she forced them into position.
"He can't kill me," the younger girl said, echoing Mitsuri's own thoughts.
Mitsuri took a breath and went to grab the dark-haired girl's arm. Her hand closed around empty air. Somehow, Douma had moved and grabbed Nezuko by the throat then vanished. He appeared several meters away, pinning the teenager against a tree. Mitsuri gasped in horror and forced her breathing style past her aching lungs.
"That's just it," he said with the same calm – almost happy – voice. "I don't have to kill you."
Mitsuri shot forward, pushing herself harder and faster. She had to be on time! Douma scratched Nezuko's cheek then scratched the palm of his hand with his thumb's claw.
"But I can certainly recruit you," he said. Nezuko's eyes widened and she struggled, kicking further. Mitsuri shot off a tree, gaining even more speed, but it wasn't fast enough.
"No!" Nezuko gasped out, fingers scratching at the hand around her neck.
"I wonder what your brother will do now," he said, then squeezed his hovering hand closed so a large amount of blood fell onto the cut on her cheek.
"NO!" Mitsuri shrieked as she swung down, but she knew she was already too late.
xXx
Earlier
Tanjiro's scream faded to agonized gasps as painpainPAIN shot through his arm.
"NII-CHAN!" Nezuko screamed.
He kept himself from fainting through sheer grit – that and the fact that he'd been through worse before. Rarely, but it had happened. Unfortunately, this time, it just kept up. The regeneration he normally relied on wasn't there. He still held his sword in his other hand, but the pain made him want to vomit. Looking down to see only a stump of his arm didn't help.
He'd seen Akaza punch so hard his grazes literally cut through skin, but he'd done so with his hand open this time, completely severing Tanjiro's arm with his claws.
It could have been worse, he supposed morbidly. He could have torn it off.
He looked up at the Waxing Third to see the man holding an arm – his arm – contemplating it thoughtfully…
Breathe through the pain, he told himself, looking away. The scene made him want to vomit all over again.
He'd miscalculated… badly. Or, well, he'd gotten distracted. He had to give it to Muzan; the demon may be a coward, but he wasn't stupid. Sending Waxing Two and Waxing Three… Tanjiro almost felt honored to be considered such a threat.
Almost.
The sheer agony from his severed arm drew his focus more than he would have liked, but he did his best to breathe through it.
"Well, it looks like I win. You're coming with me to Muzan-sama."
Tanjiro chuckled, albeit a bit hysterically, but he still did. Then he took another breath and focused on stopping the bleeding from his arm. Then he took his stance and held his sword, one-handed, in front of him.
"Nii-chan!" he heard Nezuko say, but he refused to take his eyes off of his opponent again.
"Stay back, Nezuko!" he yelled to her. "Please, do what you can to help Mitsuri-san!"
"But—"
"Please," he repeated. "I'll be fine. I promise."
He knew she didn't believe him, not fully, but she did trust him.
"F-fine," she said. "B-but you'd better win!"
He heard her rushing away and prepared to intercept if Akaza targeted her.
He didn't, merely cocking his head at Tanjiro.
"You're missing an arm. Do you honestly think you can fight me like that?"
He just smiled at Akaza. "If I have to."
Then to Tanjiro's surprise, the demon burst into laughter. "Ahahahahaha!" he bellowed. "Oh, you really are strong! This should be fun! Please continue to put up a good fight."
Then, much to the demon slayer's disgust, he put Tanjiro's hand in his mouth. Then he crouched down and launched himself at the Hashira.
"Hinokami Kagura: Parhelion Rainbow," Tanjiro breathed and then moved. Akaza only fell for the first after image, but it was enough to throw him off for a second. Tanjiro used that second to swing his sword at the demon's neck with a Hinokami Kagura: Fire Wheel.
Akaza moved, but wasn't fast enough to avoid the attack completely. Tanjiro grit his teeth because he was not used to fighting one-handed. His strikes didn't have the kind of power he needed to actually do any serious damage… but he couldn't give up.
"Demon Blood Art: Destructive Death Compass Needle." What looked like a snowflake appeared below the Waxing Three. Tanjiro wasn't sure how he managed to say it around the arm still in his mouth. Then he began to punch at Tanjiro, generating immense gusts of air. The time-traveler managed to use his Sun Breathing techniques to either block or evade them all, even if it was a closer call on some of them than he would like to admit.
"You really should become a demon, Kamado Tanjiro! You would be so fun to fight all the time!"
Tanjiro grit his teeth. "No, thank you."
"But you could get your arm back!" As if to prove the point, Akaza took a bite out of said arm and swallowed, grinning the entire time.
It was true that Tanjiro had never fought without his arm before, but he refused to activate his demonic cells just to save it. It would be difficult to get around it, but he could do it.
"I'll survive."
"But—" the Waxing Moon started again, then froze, mid swing. His eyes went wide and he fell onto his hands and knees, gasping.
This took Tanjiro enough by surprise that he froze too, waiting to see what would happen when he would normally press the attack. Then Akaza groaned and put his hands around his stomach, collapsing onto his side. He looked up at Tanjiro.
"What… have you… done… to me?"
Tanjiro's eyes widened and he looked between Akaza and his dismembered hand lying inches away from the demon. He had no idea what was going on.
He opened his mouth to respond, but a shriek of, "NO!" drew his attention to Mitsuri as she raced towards Douma… Douma who had his fist around Nezuko's throat and was dripping what looked like blood onto…
Tanjiro's eyes widened.
"No," he whispered, then grit his teeth and growled. Not again. He couldn't see her go through that again. Never again.
He hadn't wanted to use his demonic abilities, but he would do anything for his family, no matter the cost.
A moment later, he vanished, leaving a gasping Akaza on the ground, unable to do much more than squirm and watch.
"So," he managed to croak, "that's… what Muzan-sama… meant…." he said before he passed out.
xXx
Mitsuri put all of her strength into the blow that would separate Douma from Nezuko, but he just jumped away, laughing.
Nezuko's eyes rolled up into the back of her head and she collapsed. Mitsuri caught her and clutched the girl to her chest, holding her sword out in front of her, unsure of what else to do.
Douma continued to laugh.
"Oh, so you'll protect a demon now?"
Mitsuri wanted to cry. She wanted to cry and rage and scream and she felt a deep-seated anger at this demon's absolute callousness. His false smiles and calm words and his utterly disgusting reasoning. In her arms, Nezuko's whole body twitched. She clutched the girl tighter.
He clapped his hands, grinning. "This will be so much fun to watch! Will you kill her yourself? Or will you let her tear you apart? Or will you, perhaps—"
Before he could say anything else, Mitsuri saw something move behind him. Her eyes widened when she saw Tanjiro, his face carved from stone and his eyes glowing bright red. She gasped as she read the kanji inside them.
Waxing Zero.
She'd known, but… seeing it was something else altogether.
Douma's own eyes widening when he realized something was wrong would be a memory she'd cherish for a very long time.
"Solar Heat Haze," Tanjiro said, almost monotone, and slashed down. Waxing Two dodged and it looked as if his blade had missed, but waves of heat distorted the sword and when Douma got to the other side of the small clearing they were in, he'd already begun to heal the wound Tanjiro had given him, regrowing his own hand that had flopped to the forest floor.
Tanjiro landed between him and his fellow demon slayers. His own arm seemed to be finishing bubbling into existence. It was gross and almost distracting enough for Mitsuri to focus on that instead of on the fact that he was regenerating in the first place.
"What a shame. I liked these particular robes," the demon said, but his voice held a wary undertone to it that hadn't been there before.
Tanjiro simply stood between his two companions and Douma. Then he held his hand out – claw-tipped fingers curled, ready to tear so many things apart, and bare almost up to his elbow – and let his blood drip. She didn't know when he'd cut it, but apparently he had.
"Demon Blood Art: Palm Fire Explosion."
Mitsuri shrieked and had enough time to clutch Nezuko to her with both hands as the entire area lit up in a red fire. It took her several seconds to realize the fire didn't burn. Instead it felt… warm somehow. Protective.
In her arms, Nezuko shrieked as if in pain. Her teeth were sharp, Mitsuri noticed, blood turning to ice despite the warmth of the fire around her.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement as the fire approached Douma. His eyes widened and he jumped back, but Tanjiro pursued. The demon must have realized the situation had changed because he vanished, appearing several seconds later on top of a nearby cliff, just far enough to be out of immediate range, but near enough that they could still hear him, not to mention he could still easily be a potential threat.
"So, it's true," he said, then cocked his head to one side. "I thought you told Akaza you weren't a demon."
Instead of answering, Tanjiro held his hand out and more fire appeared in it. Mitsuri wasn't entirely sure why as the clearing around them still burned. The fire still seemed to be affecting Nezuko too.
The girl's hair had fallen out of its usual bun and Kanroji wasn't entirely sure in the light, but she thought it had started to turn orange on the tips.
"Well," Douma said loudly, his pleasant voice carrying surprisingly well, "you can pursue me, or you can take care of your sister. She should be about ready to tear the other lovely Pillar apart."
Tanjiro just growled threateningly.
It honestly scared Mitsuri. The kind, caring boy she'd befriended had almost completely vanished.
"Tanjiro," she forced herself to say.
He looked back at them through the fire, eyes angry and hard. But then they softened when his gaze met hers and the boy from before returned. His hand dropped to his side as worry entered those eyes.
"Well, I have to go report to Muzan-sama," Douma glanced over at where Tanjiro and Akaza had been fighting earlier. "Hmm. He won't be happy over the losses, but I think it's worth the information gained. See you!"
With that and a bubbly wave, he vanished again. Tanjiro looked like he wanted to pursue, but instead, he slowly turned towards his companions, then rushed through the fire to kneel next to them.
Mitsuri wanted to both back away and hug the boy as he began to panic over Nezuko.
"No… no, no, no, nonononono, no…" he whispered.
"The fire… it's hurting her," Mitsuri said, swallowing.
Tanjiro's terrifying, bright-red gaze shifted to her and then back to Nezuko.
"Could I?" he asked himself, as if just coming to a realization. About what, Mitsuri didn't know. Then his determined eyes with written kanji met hers again. "Hold her tight. I have to try something."
He scratched his palm again, then held his hands out, stopping inches away from his still shaking sister.
"Demon Blood Art: Palm Fire." She didn't really know how else to describe the fact that the fire somehow became denser.
Nezuko screamed again, although this time it sounded somewhere between human and animal, back arching rigidly and fingers curled into claws. Mitsuri had long since dropped her sword in favor of holding Nezuko as tightly as she could without breaking bones.
Tanjiro grit his teeth and seemed to push harder. Nezuko shrieked again and then went limp in Mitsuri's grasp. The Love Pillar felt her heart stop as she looked down at the girl in her arms. Tanjiro gasped and his fire went out, plunging the surrounding area into relative darkness, lit only by the moon.
For several seconds, they just sat there in a sort of shocked silence. Then, ever so slowly, Tanjiro reached out and pulled up Nezuko's eyelid. The girl did not respond, but the eye-color that they found was her normal dark gray/purple, at least from what Mitsuri could tell, and they looked entirely human. Both Tanjiro and Mitsuri let out breaths they'd been holding as the boy grabbed his sister's hand and held it up. Perfectly normal nails. Her teeth may have been a little long and sharper, but nothing like what they'd been only minutes before. Mitsuri doubted anyone would notice. The only thing that really remained of the ordeal were the orange/red tips of her hair.
Right about then, Mitsuri broke down crying, and Tanjiro did the same, right along with her, both of them clutching at the unconscious Nezuko.
xXx
AN: *NGL, I got the background/history of the word from Wikipedia. The meaning of 'Psychopath' has really changed over the last century and currently means someone who lacks empathy and the term isn't used in professional circles for the most part. (That I know from my psychology classes and my own research.) To be fair, the modern definition still applies to Muzan. *shrug*
** Sadism has also evolved to mean more of someone who simply enjoys inflicting pain at all instead of someone who gets intimate satisfaction from inflicting pain. However, I still wouldn't be surprised if both definitions fit Muzan… Just saying.
Thanks to TimeLordTim, Found and Quathis for their help on this!
Discord: discord. gg/TQxEBuhVjK (no spaces)
