WARNING! THIS STORY IS INTENDED FOR THOSE WHO HAVE READ THE MANGA IN FULL/TO THE END! OTHERWISE, YOU WILL HAVE SOME SERIOUS SPOILERS! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
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"This…is the final meeting of the Hashira," a young boy said.
Giyu and Sanemi sat respectfully before the boy and his two sisters. They were the last remaining Hashira after the brutal battle against Muzan. Sanemi had lost his index and middle finger on his right hand, while Giyu had lost almost his entire right arm.
Muzan… The king of demons himself. After his defeat, all of the demons he had created over the years perished. The world was now free of demons, and the Demon Slayer Corps was no longer needed. …Or so it seemed…
As this was about to be announced by the young boy, a light "thunk" sound pulled everyone's attention over to the open doors. Cherry blossom petals were falling into the room and all around the strange creature that had appeared.
It appeared to be a fox; larger than an average fox, but a fox nonetheless. It was snow-white and long-furred with blue paws, legs, a stripe that stretched along the bridge of its nose and all the way atop its head. In the same shade of blue, it had peculiar markings around its eyes like elaborate makeup. On its head was a crescent-shaped hair piece with an ornamental white lotus, held to its fur with a pair of chopsticks. Several things stood out about this mysterious creature: the brilliantly white pelt, the vivid blue markings, the sapphire eyes gazing at them all, and, most of all, the four, long, blue-tipped tails trailing behind it.
They all stared in silent surprise at the animal for a long time. It was like a spirit, but it was breathing hard through gaping jaws and staring at them with a human-like expression of worry. Then…it spoke.
"You - *hah* - You're," it stopped to catch its breath. It spoke with the voice of a woman; serene and gentle but currently frightened and worried. "I need your help."
Sanemi had drawn his sword the moment she spoke and quickly got to his feet. "What are you?" he said it more like a demand rather than a question.
She had finally composed herself but was wary of his sword. "My name is Kana. I am a kitsune oni."
"Fox demon?" Giyu echoed.
"Impossible!" Sanemi screeched. "Muzan is dead! There are no more demons!"
"So, it is true," Kana said. "The Demon Slayers finally managed to destroy Muzan…" She trailed off, turning her gaze over at seemingly nothing before quickly returning her attention back to them. "To put it simply, Muzan was not alone. There is one, and only one, other demon clan."
"Bullshit!" Sanemi yelled. He made to move, sword poised to strike, but swiftly halted and lowered his weapon when the young boy raised his hand to silence him.
"Sanemi," the boy said as he stared at the fox. "Please, let us hear her first. I do not think she means any harm."
Against his better judgement, Sanemi forced himself to stand down.
"Please, continue," the boy told Kana.
She nodded. "I will explain it briefly, if that is all right. Time is of the essence. Muzan… was one of two demons created long, long ago. The other… was my father. They were unrelated and the means of their transformations were unrelated as well. Therefore, Muzan held no connection to the Fox Clan whatsoever. Due to Father's careful selection, the Fox Clan has remained relatively small over the years and unknown to the demon hunters. Father has had our kind remain hidden for years while he gathers power within himself. Now that Muzan is gone, Father will most certainly begin to move."
"You call yourself a demon," Giyu said calmly, "and I can believe you on that, but… how is it that you are standing here before us in the light of day?"
Kana shook her head. "There is no time to explain that right this moment. I came to request your help!"
"Help?!" Sanemi said. "Why would we help you, who claims to be a demon?!"
"Do you want us to slay your father?" Giyu asked.
She shook her head more. "I have not come to request help for myself! I understand that your numbers are low after your battle with Muzan, and I can plainly see that at least one of you may be retiring soon. Perhaps you all were. Perhaps you were going to disband your corps, but before all of that I must ask, I must beg of you! You have to help Kyojuro!"
They stared, stunned, at her.
"Kyojuro?" the boy said. "Rengoku Kyojuro?"
"Rengoku is dead!" Sanemi pointed his sword again. "Leave it to a demon with the appearance of a fox to spout lies! Demon or not, I'll cut you down right here!"
"I speak the truth!" she snapped. "I know he was dead, but he is not anymore! He is alive and imprisoned by my kin!"
"How is that possible?" the boy asked. "He died in a fight with a demon. We buried his body. Was his corpse stolen without our knowledge?"
Kana nodded, recomposing herself a little but cautious of Sanemi.
"How many others were taken right from under our noses? Even Father did not… Then, how is he alive? Has he been turned into a demon?"
"My sister," Kana replied. "It is her Blood Demon Art. 'Reconstructing'. Whether it is the whole body or simply a small piece of it, she can 'reconstruct' any living, or once living, thing back to a state of perfect health and life. Ripping their souls away and forcing them back down onto this world in a restored body. As if they had never perished. He is not a demon, but he is alive due to my sister's twisted games. It has been months, yet I cannot find a way to free him. I thought that, perhaps, you demon slayers could do something that I cannot." She looked away as her ears folded back. "Even if you have to kill her, my sister. …I fear she is far beyond saving." She looked back up at them with a more determined expression. "I could not save her, and there were so many humans that I could not save from her, but… I made a promise. I promised Kyojuro that I would do my best. That I would find a way to free him. Now please! You must help him!"
To be continued…
A taste of what's to come... Sorry, but this is a teaser and you're going to have to wait a while for the rest ;-P I have to prioritize Free right now.
The next chapter (when it comes) will explain how Kyojuro (Rengoku) ended up where he is now and go on to describe all that's happened to him up to this point. If you found this teaser interesting, let me know! Or just add it to your favorites/follows I guess. I'm going to write it either way. ...Eventually.