Natsu and his friends were running through Mount Natagumo, searching for their friends, Tanjirou and Nezuko Kamadu and Zenitsu Agatsuma. Suddenly, they were stopped by a random person within the mountain.
There was a man named Giyu Tomioka, who confronted Natsu and his friends. He had dark spiky hair tied in a ponytail. His bangs nearly covered his dark cold blue eyes. He wore a dark blue Demon Slayer uniform under haori that had two different patterns. The right side of his haori was completely red and the left side of his haori had colorful squares that contain the colors of orange, yellow and green. His legs were wrapped in white zori and he wore black socks under sandals with blue straps.
"What are you doing, here?"
Natsu gasped in surprise, as he got a good look at the random person he's encountering. 'Wait, I've heard of you, before. You're...'
Inosuke gripped his fists, tightly and gazed at Giyu.
"You need to leave this mountain, immediately. There are strong demons lurking this mountain." Giyu had instructed as he stood in place, then pointed his left index finger south of mountain.
There was six seconds of silence as the wind blew by. Natsu had set Ozaki down off her back, temporarily.
Natsu took a step towards Giyu. "Sorry, but, we can't we leave this mountain, yet. We're still here, because-"
Suddenly, Inosuke, whom was feeling a bit irritated had drawn out his dual Nichirin blades from his sheaths. "We're here to hunt down and kill the strong demons, too! Now get out of our way! Or I'll-"
Within a second, Natsu knew that Inosuke was going to either attack or challenge. He stretched out his arm and laid a full hand on Inosuke's chest. "Wait, Inosuke!"
Inosuke stopped walking and stared at Natsu. "What?"
"That's Giyu Tomioka! One of the Nine Hashira!" Natsu stated as he looked at Inosuke.
"You know me?" Giyu asked Natsu.
"I do!" Natsu nodded. "My older brother told me things about you. You see... my older brother's a Hashira, just like you!" he smiled.
"And who is your brother?" Giyu asked.
"His name is Kyojuro Rengoku! And I want to become a Hashira, just like him!" Natsu said in an optimistic tone. He imagined Kyojuro standing tall and smiling in the background as a bright light shine from above.
"You two look nothing alike at all. Even I could tell." Giyu said in a pessimistic tone.
Natsu's optimism quickly disappeared and he went into a depressed state. His head hung over his chest and a river of tears flowed down his cheeks, comedically. "That's just so mean..." Natsu sniffled.
Ozaki rubbed Natsu's back out of pity as he gloat. 'There, there...'
"Pachira? What the heck are they, again?" Inosuke questioned.
Natsu quickly lifted his head up and the tears disappeared in an instant. "Huh? Oh, yeah. I guess you forgot. Well, Inosuke, the Hashira are-"
Ozaki cut Natsu off. "The Hashira are the strongest among Demon Slayers Corps! They are also known as Pillars, who all serve the master." Ozaki referred to Kagaya Ubuyashiki. "There are nine Hashira in total and each of them represent a different type of element, which represent strength and beauty." Ozaki stated.
"Ozaki? You know about the Hashira?" Natsu looked to Ozaki.
Ozaki nodded. "Mm-hmm." Every Demon Slayer has at least heard about the Hashira."
Natsu nervously chuckled, then turned his head and looked at Inosuke, who seemed lost. 'Not everyone, though...'
As Natsu and Ozaki continued to talk to one another, Inosuke suddenly started thinking of words. 'Pillars? Stronger?' A shining bright firefly appeared over Inosuke's head as he thought of an idea. 'I got it!' Inosuke turned his attention to Giyu Tomioka and pointed at him. "You! Fight me!"
Giyu slightly looked at Inosuke.
"Fight me right now, mixed Haori guy! If I beat you, then that will make me the stronger than the Hashira!" Inosuke pointed his thumbs at himself and laughed.
Natsu and Ozaki stood next to another and paused as they stared at Inosuke with dotted eyes.
"Is he really challenging a Hashira at a time like this?" Ozaki muttered to Natsu.
"Yep. That's Inosuke for you." Natsu muttered back.
"How about you train your body before you start picking fights, idiot?" Giyu asked in a pessimistic tone.
Inosuke flinched.
Natsu's eyes widened in shock. 'He just roasted Inosuke!'
Steam blew from Inosuke's boar hide, as he got angry. "What did you say! I'll kick your ass any day of the we-" Before Inosuke could finish his threat, Giyu walked towards Inosuke and delivered a chop to his upper back, leaving him gauging, then collapsed on the ground.
'He knocked him unconscious...' Ozaki thought.
Inosuke snores in his sleep.
'Oh, good. Inosuke's asleep, again.' Natsu thought as he watched bubbles come from the snout of Inosuke's boar hide.
"I'll say it, again. You need to leave this mountain, immediately." Giyu instructed Natsu and Ozaki.
"Um, yessir!" Ozaki replied to Giyu.
"Hold on, Ozaki." Natsu said, then turned to Giyu. He took a deep breath before speaking. "I'm sorry, Mister Giyu... but we can't leave this mountain, yet."
"And why is that?"
"You see, I came here with my friends. They're still lost on this mountain and we need to find the before anything bad happens to them." Natsu said, thinking about Tanjirou, Nezuko and Zenitsu while reasoning with Giyu.
Giyu seemed to be staring into space for ten seconds. As he does, he seemed to be lost in thought as his mind also goes blank.
'Mister Giyu?' Natsu asked in his mind as he hadn't heard a response from Giyu.
Giyu sighed. "Alright. Stay close." Giyu said as he pulled carried an unconscious Inosuke over his shoulder.
Natsu and Ozaki gasped in relief, as he knew that Giyu was letting them go with them.
A Few Minutes Later...
Meanwhile, Tanjirou Kamado was continuing his battle with Rui, one of the Twelve Kizuki. Tanjirou was dodging wand swinging at webs with his broken Nichirin sword like his life depended on it. He decided to use his tenth form of Water Breathing, then evolve it by using the Hinokami Kagura technique. The water blue dragon that Tanjirou had produced in his tenth form had turned into a fiery golden dragon during his dance.
'He's cutting through my webs?' Rui thought as he was temporarily in shock. He spent the next fifteen seconds dodging Tanjirou's swings, as he knew that a single strike to his vitals would be very fatal.
Tanjirou finally saw an opening as he noticed a single white thread on the center Rui's neck.
'There it is! The thread!' Tsnjirou noted as he jumped and charged.
Rui unleashed multiple red threads from the tips of his fingers, towards and from behind Tanjirou, trying to trap him like a caged animal.
'I have to cut him down! Even if it means getting slashed into pieces!' Tanjirou thought as he came within close range. He knew there were red threads all around him and the chances of Tanjirou dying were really high.
Meanwhile, Nezuko had awaken from her torturing slumber by her deceased mother. Her eyes had the look of an angry demon, as she was still suspended in the air. She raised her arm and caused the blood she spilled on web to glow.
'Blood Demon Art... Exploding Blood!' Nezuko silently chanted as she caused her blood to catch on fire and launch towards Rui, severing all of his red threads.
'W-what just happened?' Rui asked as he saw a large ball of red flames launch towards him.
Tanjirou jumped through the flames with the intent to kill Rui. He struck Rui in the neck with his broken Nichirin blade.
'No way! They burned through my threads!' Rui thought as his eyes was in shock. He suddenly started to see flashbacks of his previous life. 'Why am I seeing these memories? Wait, am I about to...'
"DO IT, TANJIROU!" Natsu screeched as he watched the fight with excitement.
Rui gasped as he heard a random voice, then looked to his right to see Natsu and his allies yards away, standing on the sidelines. 'What? There are more of them?'
"The bond between Nezuko and I will never be severed..."
'No!' Rui thought out loud as he knew what was about to happen.
"Not by anyone!" Tanjirou screamed, before cutting through and severing Rui's neck. Creating a large glowing ring of red flames all around him.
Rui's neck was severed and his head flew dozens of feet within the air. His body had collapsed onto the ground. As soon as Rui's head made contact with the ground, he already distintergrated.
Natsu, Ozaki and Giyu gasped in shock as they watched Tanjirou defeat Rui, one of the Twelve Kizuki. They were amazed at the battle they just witnessed.
Giyu Tomioka's eyes widened a bit as he witnessed the bright colors of Hinokami Kagura. 'I can't believe...' He then gained a flashback of when he met Tanjirou and tried to kill Nezuko in front of him. 'How much this kid has grown...'
Ozaki gasped as she watched the colors. 'These colors... are so beautiful...'
As Natsu watched, he couldn't help but feel pumped and happy after watching the battle. 'Tanjirou...' His body was being filled with more and more excitement after witnessing the Hinokami Kagura dance. A big grin appeared on Natsu's face and his eyes watered in excitement. 'You never cease to amaze me!'
Fifteen seconds later, the large glowing red ring around Tanjirou had disappeared and suddenly, Tanjirou's body collapses, face first.
Natsu then ran towards a collapsed Tanjirou.
Tanjirou panted heavily after using too much energy. He was greeted by an excited Natsu Rengoku. "N... Natsu?'
"That was amazing, Tanjirou!" Natsu yelled with excitement as he helped Tanjirou on his knees. "You were fighting Rui with all you had, then you turned your Water Breathing technique on fire! I've never seen anything like that, before! It was awesome!"
After hearing Natsu's compliment, Tanjirou couldn't help but blush a bit. "Heh..." He then gasped as he felt he forgot something. "Wait a second..." He looked to his left and right. "Where's Nezuko?"
"Hm?" Natsu looked around as well, until he pointed east. "She's okay. She's right there?"
Tanjirou gasped again, then looked to see Nezuko lying on the ground. She was being cared for by Ozaki as she raised Nezuko by her back.
"Who's that..." Tanjirou asked as he stared at Ozaki.
"That's Ozaki. Inosuke and I rescued her, when she was being controlled by threads." Natsu answered as he helped Tanjirou on his feet and carried him by his shoulder.
"I see." Tanjirou replied.
"She's okay!" Ozaki said as she let Nezuko's head rest on her knees.
Tanjirou let out a sigh of relief. "What a relief." He looked at Natsu, who was helping him stand. "Can you take me to her?"
"Sure. Can do." Natsu replied and helped Tanjirou walk towards Nezuko.
It took a total of twenty for Natsu to help carry Tanjirou to Nezuko. He then let Tanjirou down on his knees and took a couple of steps back so the Kamado siblings could have a moment, together. While this was happening, Giyu looked around a bit and found an unconscious Zenitsu Agatsuma on the dirt. He dragged Zenitsu's body lied him under a tree next to Inosuke.
"Hey... Nezuko?" Tanjirou called.
Nezuko awakened and spotted Tanjirou sitting on his knees in front of her.
"I'm glad you're okay. The demon is gone. You're safe, now." Tanjirou smiled.
Nezuko did not respond to Tanjirou. Instead she pointed her index finger at Natsu, who was a feet feet behind Tanjirou. "Mmph."
Natsu blinked as he noticed Nezuko pointing at him. "Me?"
Nezuko nodded as she looked like she had a sad look on her face.
Natsu slowly walked towards Nezuko, like she wanted.
Nezuko stretched her hands towards Natsu's face as he bent downwards.
Giyu came back after placing Zenitsu and Inosuke next to each other and spotted Nezuko's face after two years, then paused. "You..." He gained another flashback two years prior of Nezuko turning into a demon. He remembered trying to protect Tanjirou from her.
"Eh?" Natsu noticed Nezuko touching his face.
"Huh?" Ozaki, Tanjirou and Giyu gasped as they saw Nezuko grab Natsu's face.
Nezuko took Natsu's cheeks and started making goofy looks. She chuckled under bamboo gag as she continued to play with his face.
"Nezuko, stop that! It's not nice!" Tanjirou told Nezuko, who didn't listen.
Giyu stared at Natsu. "Why are you letting her play with your face like that?"
"How could I not? She's too adorable!" Natsu replied in a pouted manner.
Ozaki chuckled.
Giyu then turned to Tanjirou. "Anyway, that was some amazing work, kid. You took down one of the Twelve Kizuki by yourself." He complimented Tanjirou.
Tanjirou smiled at Giyu. "Well, I couldn't have done it without any of you." He said, before wincing.
Giyu nearly smiled, until he sensed a nearby presence. A person come charging in at high speeds aiming for Nezuko. But Giyu defended her by blocking a person's attack with his Nichirin sword.
This alerted Tanjirou, Natsu and Ozaki as they saw a person fly above their heads.
There was a woman named Shinobu Kocho. She had black hair with purple dye at the end. She had it tied in the back of her head, only revealing four bangs. Her eyes were dark purple, big and lacked pupils. She wore a dark purple Demon Slayer uniform under a Haori and Zori that were similar to a butterfly. It had scales that were black and had light green and light pink colors on the near end of her sleeves. The tips of her sleeves were black stripes with white circles.
"Oh my..." Shinobu said while bouncing in the air. She soon spinned her body after landing. "Why did you block me just now, Tomioka?"
Giyu remained silent.
Tanjirou's eyes widened, and his pupils shrunk. 'Who... is that?'
Suddenly, Natsu's cheeks turn light pink as he stared at Shinobu's appearance. 'She's really-'
Shinobu drew out her Nichirin blade. "You said it, yourself, that "Demons and humans don't get along." Shinobu quoted. "So, why are you protecting one?" Shinobu smiled.
"I've made up my mind. This demon behind is me an acception." Giyu said, defending Nezuko.
"I see." She taps her chin with her left index finger. "You're a Demon Slayer-who's now turned into some kind of Demon Savior... No wonder people don't like you."
A moment of silence took place.
"Now move, Tomioka." Shinobu ordered.
"Hold on. You said that people don't like me. Sorry, but I have to disagree with you on that one, because I'm in the top five." Giyu said.
Natsu, Tanjirou, Ozaki and Shinobu suddenly paused as something snaps within their brains.
"Oh, did I say that out loud? Oh dear... I guess I'm a little bit jealous of you, that's all." Shinobu then held her right index finger upwards. "What I meant to say was that some people don't like you. My apologies." Shinobu apologized.
Something in Giyu's brain snapped.
'Is this really happening?' Natsu thought.
Shinobu then looked behind Giyu and spotted Tanjirou and Natsu. "Boys!" she called.
"Miss!" Natsu replied.
"Yes?" Tanjirou replied.
"There's a demon you're both standing by. If you don't move out the way..."
"No! You're wrong! Technically, you're not... but you're still wrong! My sister was turned into a demon against her will!" Tanjirou yelled as he embraced Nezuko.
And so, for the next minute, Tanjirou explained how his family was killed and that Nezuko turned into a demon.
Shinobu covered her mouth after learning Tanjirou's story. "Oh dear... that really is sad. In that case..." Shinobu point her Nichirin blade at Nezuko. "I'll end her pain as quick as possible." She said in a sadistic manner.
"Eek!" Tanjirou squealed.
Nezuko blinked.
Just to makes things clear, Rui. Tanjirou defeated him, like he was supposed to.
I made Giyu say that he was in the "top five" because he was the fourth favorite character in the first Popularity Poll and the second favorite character in the second Popularity Poll. In my story, Shinobu is a bit jealous of Giyu, because he ranks higher than her. Shinobu is ranked sixth in the first Popularity Poll and fifth of the second Popularity Poll.