Hello! It's me again! I don't want to keep you here so let's keep the ball rolling, enjoy!
*I do not own Demon Slayer, Kimetsu no Yaiba. The Anime/Manga belongs to Ufotable and its author, Koyoharu Gotouge.
"Tanjiro" = Talking
"Tanjiro" = Thinking
Tanjiro - Middle Alignment = POV
Japan - Middle Alignment = Location
"Tanjiro" = Flashback
Crash! - Left Alignment = Sound effect
Water Breathing = Breathing technique/Blood Demon Art
Chapter 2 - The Demon Who Conquered the Sun
Tanjiro Kamado…
Local Clinic
The newly born demon turned his attention from the girl in the pink kimono to the woman in the white, long-sleeved kappōgi over a purple and cream checkered haori.
He picked up a scent from her, similar to the other girl. It felt like a scent of fear mixed with…love?
Well, that wasn't important. He counted three people in the room and grew excited at the meal he was about to have.
"Tanjiro…" The demon's attention was brought back to the woman as he stopped smiling…What did she just say?
Who the hell is Tanjiro? Was she talking to the demon? He prepared to attack her, but something caused him to hesitate.
He didn't know what was happening, but he got over his conflict and leaped at the woman who had no time to react.
This time, the old man who saved the girl was too late as the demon's fangs found their mark. He held the woman's arms and bit into her shoulder, ravishing her sweet, delicious blood.
"MOM ! ! !" The girl screamed as the woman let out grunts of pain, while the demon continued to sink his teeth into her shoulder.
"Tanjiro, stop it! That's our mother!" The girl yelled out. "Our" mother? What was she talking about?
Blood dropped from the wound as the woman's kappōgi was stained with red. "Damn it!" The man said before grabbing a nearby broom. "Get the hell away from her!"
"STOP!" The woman yelled, catching everyone by surprise, even the demon.
"Don't…hurt…him!" The woman strained to get out. The demon's hunger turned into confusion as he stopped sinking his teeth into the woman's shoulder.
Was this woman…protecting him? Why? Did she know him or something? There was no reason that she should be defending him.
But something even more strange was happening. The demon found that it was getting harder to enjoy the woman's blood as it went down his throat.
In fact, he was starting to dislike the taste. For some reason, eating a human being felt…wrong. But why? He was hungry, so he had to eat, that's how it works.
Besides, it's perfectly normal for people to eat with their family…Wait…family?
Before the demon could sort out his thoughts, he felt two arms wrap around him. Two hands were placed on his body. A left hand patted his back while the right hand gently stroked the back of his head.
The demon realized that the woman was hugging him, she must've broke out of his grip while he was distracted.
He was about to attempt to get away or attack again, but something prevented him from doing so. The hug…It actually felt nice.
For the first time since he was reborn, the demon felt warm, he felt…safe. He didn't want the woman to let go. His hands fell to his sides.
"Tanjiro…It's okay. It's all going to be okay." The woman whispered into his left ear in a soothing voice despite the pain she was in.
"I know you're confused…I know you're afraid. I know you're angry, I know you're in pain. It's all my fault, I should never have let you go down that mountain…" The woman continued speaking with the occasional sob in between. The demon was slowly starting to calm down.
"Ever since your father died, you were always pushing yourself, always telling us that you were fine even when you weren't. I should've stopped you, I should've helped you shoulder that responsibility." The demon's bite was slowly loosening as he started pulling his head away.
"Tanjiro…you suffered, didn't you? Whatever hurt you, it showed no mercy. I'm so sorry, you deserve so much better than that." The demon felt multiple wet drops in his shoulder as the woman began to let the tears fall.
"I'm your mother, I'm supposed to protect you and your siblings. But, I thought you could handle yourself. I failed you, please…Please forgive me!" The demon's eyes widened as he finally released the bite on the woman's shoulder.
He had some sort of vision. He was walking through the green woods, enjoying the scenery. He was holding someone's hand, it was that woman.
"It's beautiful, isn't it, Tanjiro?" The woman asked, smiling warmly at him.
Before he could respond, he heard the voice of a child. "Yeah! I just love Spring, it's always so nice and warm!"
The woman chuckled before picking him up into her arms and giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Yes, you are right. Now come on, your father and sister are waiting."
The demon was brought back to reality by a splitting headache. He pushed the woman away from him, knocking her into the old man.
The demon held his head and screamed in pain. What were these memories that suddenly came flooding back into his mind? Were they really his? Something wet started falling down his cheeks.
He looked at the girl in the pink kimono and her mother, both looking at him with kind eyes. He looked at the woman's bleeding shoulder and felt something that he didn't expect to feel. He felt guilty, he felt heartbroken, he wanted to get away as fast as possible.
The demon leaped back into the room he woke up in and jumped out through a window to the outside. He looked around and saw the forest, then ran forward as fast as he could. While doing so, he began tearing off his bandages.
Nezuko
Nezuko ran to the window Tanjiro jumped out of. "Tanjiro, come back!" She called out to her brother. Sadly, her pleas fell on deaf ears as he kept running away into the forest.
Nezuko pushed herself off of the window sill and put a leg outside. "I'm going after him!" She yelled out as Mr. Saburo came in.
"Don't be a fool! You'll never catch up to him!" He warned, but his warning ALSO fell on deaf ears as Nezuko got outside and followed her brother's footprints in the snow and his scent.
Mt. Kumotori Forest
Nezuko's lungs were freezing as she struggled to follow her brother's scent as he started to move out of her range.
"Don't stop, don't you dare stop!" Nezuko told herself, fighting through the pain. "Tanjiro needs you! You can't let him down! He's always been there for you, now it's your turn!"
The only reason Nezuko hadn't lost Tanjiro's scent was because he seemed to stop for short periods of time that gave her just enough time to catch up before he took off again.
Nezuko picked up multiple scents from Tanjiro. Kindness, hunger, guilt, anger, love, sadness, pain. It was enough to break her heart.
"Tanjiro! Come back!" She yelled out, hoping her voice would slow him down. It seemed to work as Tanjiro came to a complete stop.
The scent of pain became more noticeable as Nezuko approached. "Hang on, Tanjiro! I'm coming!"
Nezuko stopped at a small clearing in the forest and started panting as she saw Tanjiro ripping his hair out. The hairband holding his hair in a ponytail came off, allowing his hair to fall below his shoulders.
"Tanjiro…" Nezuko said breathlessly, just loud enough for her brother to hear and stop pulling his hair. He got back on his feet and turned around, looking at the girl with demonic eyes.
His forehead was revealed as he had torn off his bandages. The graze Tanjiro got from protecting Takeo from a falling brazier many years ago was replaced with a red pattern that slightly resembled fire.
"Tanjiro, I know it's you…Please, big brother." Nezuko pleaded as Tanjiro continued to stare. "Please come back to us!"
Tanjiro stared at his sister before slowly moving forward. Nezuko could smell the hostility from her brother, she had to get him to recognize her.
"Tanjiro, it's me. It's Nezuko, your little sister." Nezuko said, hoping it would spark any memories for Tanjiro. Nezuko realized that she had to be more specific.
"Don't you remember, Tanjiro? We used to play together in our backyard all the time, we would dance all day." Nezuko reminded her brother of everything they'd been through, the memory causing her to give a sad smile.
Tanjiro slightly hesitated at that moment, but he shook his head and growled at Nezuko. But she wouldn't give up that easily.
"Remember our parents, Tanjuro and Kie Kamado? They always told me about when they had you, they said they were so happy. That your little smile brought life to any room you were in."
Tanjiro gritted his teeth and groaned as he held his head with one hand. When he looked at Nezuko again, his gaze became much softer.
"What about our little brothers and sisters? Remember when you taught Takeo how to use a hatchet, or how you would read stories to Hanako and Shigeru at night, how they ended up falling asleep on your lap?"
Tanjiro stopped approaching as he now held his head with both hands, the veins on his hand bulging more and more.
"ssssstoooooop…" Tanjiro mumbled in agony. She was getting to him, just a bit more!
"Remember Rokuta's first words? He said 'Big Bro!' You looked so happy, I thought you were gonna cry tears of joy."
Tanjiro then started backing away from Nezuko. "sssssstaaaaaay…aaawwaaaaaay…" He begged, his voice sounding more and more panicked.
"You are Tanjiro Kamado, my big brother, my best friend. You have to remember!"
Tanjiro looked like he was on the verge of tears. "Pleeeeeease…N-Nez…N-N-Nezuuuu…"
"Yes! That's it! Nezuko! That's me! Your sister, your family! I'm right here! I'll always be here for you! Our family will always be here for you!"
Tanjiro
Memories began flooding into the demon's head, it was almost enough to overwhelm him.
Slowly but surely, he remembered everything. His parents, his siblings, his life, all of it came back to him.
As the boy finally realized who he was, the pain in his head stopped. He slowly looked up at the girl in front of him, tears falling from his eyes.
"N-N-Nez…uk-ko…N-Nezuko…?" The demon named Tanjiro Kamado asked.
That's right, he wasn't always some beast. He was Tanjiro Kamado, born to a family of coal merchants, eldest son of Tanjuro and Kie Kamado, older brother to five wonderful siblings.
Nezuko smiled widely after hearing her name. "T-Tanjiro…" She replied as tears filled her eyes as well.
What Tanjiro didn't realize was that his eyes had transformed once again. They weren't the same dark red eyes with white, round pupils, nor were they the plum red eyes with black slits for pupils.
His eyes became a pale pink color, his pupil returned to its round form but was now a slightly darker shade of pink compared to the iris. His eyes looked much softer, if a bit unfocused.
"I remember, it was that pale man from last night. He said he was a demon and was going to turn me into a demon too." Tanjiro thought as he observed the claws on his fingers.
He poked around the insides of his mouth and found that his canines had indeed grown longer and sharper. After taking his hands out, he saw blood covering his fingers.
He remembered what he did in his rampage, how he tried to eat the woman who gave birth to him. Guilt came crashing down on Tanjiro as the boy turned demon fought the urge to throw up.
"How could I do such a thing…to my own mother!?" Tanjiro asked himself as his face paled, not that it could pale much more than it had.
Nezuko noticed this and stepped closer, but Tanjiro immediately backed away and held his hands up. "S-S-Stay…B-B-B-Back…!" Tanjiro commanded as he had difficulty speaking properly.
"Tanjiro, it's okay. We-." Tanjiro interrupted Nezuko as she got closer to him, forcing the boy to back away again.
"…D-Don't want…hurt y-y-you…Me…h-hurt…mom…" Tanjiro tried his best to form a sentence. Fortunately, Nezuko got the message.
"Mom's fine, Tanjiro. It wasn't your fault, that wasn't you back there. You would never hurt her, you would never hurt anyone." Nezuko comforted her demonic brother with little success.
"P-Please Nezuko. . . .F-F-Forget. . . . .m-m-m-me. . . . . .Me. . . .m-monster. . . ." Tanjiro said as he lowered his head in shame.
"Stop it! Don't say that!" Nezuko scolded angrily. "That's not true, it's never been true and you know it!"
Tanjiro looked at his sister in shock. He felt slightly guilty for upsetting his sister so much. Nezuko took a deep breath as her smile returned.
She offered her hand to Tanjiro as she stepped closer. "Come on…Let's go home." She said as Tanjiro looked at his kid sister like she'd grown two heads.
"I don't know what's happening to you, but I promise we'll get through this together. Soon, this will all seem like a bad dream." Nezuko promised as Tanjiro calmed down a little.
"So…Let's go home now, okay?" Nezuko offered her hand again with the biggest smile she could genuinely muster.
Tanjiro looked at his little sister's hand and smiled sadly. He was truly blessed to have such a wonderful family, he didn't deserve them.
Tanjiro was about to take Nezuko's hand when suddenly, he picked up an unfamiliar scent. It was fast, and approaching them. But, Tanjiro couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from.
Nezuko must've also picked up the scent as she looked up behind Tanjiro and her eyes widened in horror.
Before Tanjiro could ask what was wrong, his instincts made him turn his head to see a katana coming down onto his neck.
"Tanjiro! Behind yo-!" Was the last thing he heard before everything went black.
Nezuko
Total Concentration, Water Breathing: Fifth Form
Time seemed to slow down for Nezuko as the stranger who jumped from the forest swung his sword through Tanjiro's neck.
Blessed Rain After the Drought
She heard a thud as she looked forward, where Tanjiro's head used to be. "…Big…Brother…?" Nezuko almost whispered as she felt Tanjiro's headless body fall on her chest. A bundle of Tanjiro's hair laid on the ground after being cut off along with the head.
She wrapped her arms around the back of Tanjiro's haori as she clung onto his shoulders. "Big…Brother…?" She repeated.
She had a good look at the stranger in front of her. It was a man with long, messy black hair and blue, cold dead eyes. He wore a black uniform of some sort with a haori over it which looked like two different haoris stitched together.
Nezuko's legs gave out as she continued to hold the unmoving body of her dear brother and fell on her knees. "Big…Brother…?" She said again as the man looked down at her.
"Why are you holding that demon's body?" The man asked with no hint of emotion whatsoever. Nezuko looked up at the stranger like he was insane, which he most likely was.
This man just cut off her brother's head without a second thought, and now he had the nerve to ask why she clung onto his body.
"You…you killed him…He was my brother. He was my brother and you killed him…" Nezuko said softly as she was still in shock.
"You called that thing your brother?" The man asked as he stared blankly.
"…'that thing?'…'that thing!?'" Nezuko's shock slowly turned into anger. "He was a human being! He did nothing wrong, you had no right to kill him!"
"He wasn't a human, he was a demon. He was exposed to demon blood and transformed, that's how these man-eating beasts multiply." The man explained, doing nothing to calm down the crying preteen.
"I am a Demon Slayer, my job is to kill any demon that I find on sight. So with that said, I have every right. If I let him live, he would've killed you and then run off to kill more people."
"You're WRONG!" Nezuko snapped at the man who did not react to the outburst. "He recognized me! He wasn't going to hurt me, he wasn't going to hurt anyone!"
"Pathetic, did you really believe that? He could've been tricking you, trying to get you to lower your guard. Were you really willing to risk the lives of dozens of innocent people for your brother? You're as selfish as you are foolish." The man regarded Nezuko coldly as his eyebrows furrowed in anger.
"W-what!? Of course not, I-!" Nezuko protested before the Demon Slayer continued.
"What would you have done if your brother ate someone. If that happened, you would have no one to blame but yourself. I just saved you from doing something incredibly stupid. Trust me, one day, you'll thank me."
At that moment, something inside of Nezuko. . . . . . snapped. ". . . .Thank you. . . . THANK YOU ! ? ! ?" That was the final straw.
Nezuko laid down her brother's body before grabbing a fistful of stones and chucking them at the swordsman who blocked them all with his sword.
Nezuko screamed at the top of her lungs as she charged her brother's murderer, rage fueling her actions.
However, the man saw this coming from a mile away. He caught a sloppy roundhouse kick from Nezuko with his hand as he delivered a chop to her neck, effectively knocking her out cold.
Tanjiro
Tanjiro felt no pain as his head felt like it was floating in the air, being showered by a light rain. After hitting the snow however, it wasn't long before Tanjiro opened his eyes and saw Nezuko's unconscious body next to his face.
He was looking right at her as she had her eyes closed and breathed slowly. There were tears coming from her eyes, Tanjiro could only wonder who was responsible for such a thing.
Tanjiro reached his arm to touch Nezuko's head and pat it to let her know that everything was alright, at least he tried to.
"I…I can't move! What's going on!?" Tanjiro wondered before remembering the sword coming for his neck. "No way…Was I really decapitated!?"
Tanjiro could not feel anything below his jaw, it became very hard to breathe. Fortunately, it didn't seem like he needed to breathe.
He tried calling out to his little sister, wanting to know if she was okay.
Giyu Tomioka
The Demon Slayer named Giyu Tomioka looked down at the unconscious girl as he couldn't help but feel sorry for her.
Then, he heard something unexpected. "N-Nezu…ko…" Giyu's eyes widened as he looked to where the sound came from.
He saw the head of the demon he had just decapitated, it was calling out to the girl with a voice of genuine concern and sadness. Tears were actually falling from the demon's face.
"Nezuko…N-Nezuko…Nezuk-ko…Nezuko…" The demon repeated the girl's name over and over again. Giyu guessed that it wanted to know if Nezuko was alright.
"Stop worrying, she's fine. I just knocked her out, that's all." He said to the head, gaining its attention. Giyu didn't see the point in communicating with a demon, but something told him that he couldn't just leave.
"W-Who-?" The demon spoke again, but Tomioka cut it off.
"My name isn't important." He said before addressing the more important matter. "Why do you cry? Is it because you're dying, or does a monster like you actually have regrets?"
The demon head had a look of guilt. "…H-hurt…family…" It admitted as Giyu was shocked. He went to pick up the head by its hair which had been shortened by Giyu's swing and held it up to his face.
This demon…Despite it's lackluster attempts at speech, this demon in particular seemed more human than any other demon he'd seen. He even knew fellow slayers and Hashira who were more monstrous than this kid.
"Well you don't have to worry anymore. You won't be hurting anyone again." Giyu assured the demon, though was surprised when it gave him a sad smile.
"…Gonna…d-die, aren't I?" It asked as if it wasn't surprised.
"Yes, I'm afraid that's the case. Sadly, there is no way a demon can turn back into a human. At least no known way." Giyu replied.
"It's my fault. If only I'd gotten here half a day sooner, you might've still been human. But, I can't turn back time. I'm sorry, this was the only way." He told the demon who kept smiling, it was clear that Giyu had the wrong idea about him before. He didn't regret what he did to the demon, but he couldn't help but feel bad.
"…Understand…Please, d-don't apologize…N-Not your f-fault…" The head said.
What was up with this kid? Most demons cursed the Demon Slayer out before their death, the rest just whined about how their lives were horrible.
But this demon…no, this boy had completely accepted his fate. Giyu wanted to believe that this was a trick, some desperate attempt at revenge to lower his guard and use the headless body to attack. However, the boy's face looked too genuine, too sincere. Could it be that he still had a piece of his humanity with him?
"What's your name? Mine is Giyu Tomioka." Giyu stated, not wanting the boy to give his name with nothing in return.
The boy's smile grew a little wider. "T-Tanjiro Kamado."
"Tanjiro. You are one of the first demons I've met who've been able to hold on to their humanity for so long. I'm glad I was able to get here before you killed someone." Giyu said with a hint of respect for the boy.
"Yeah…m-me t-t-too." Tanjiro replied. "Can I…make just two…r-requests?"
Giyu thought about denying it but he knew he owed the kid. "Sure, what is it?"
"If…you can, please…watch over…m-my family…I don't know…if the d-demon who turned me…will come back." Tanjiro stated.
Giyu took another second to think. He couldn't just stay in one place forever, his job took him wherever he was needed.
However, he knew Tanjiro had a point. Whoever turned him only targeted him and no one else, otherwise a lot more people would be dead.
If this demon, whoever it was, was after his family, it'd definitely come back. "I can't personally guard them, but I might be able to make a request to deploy more Demon Slayers to protect this town. But, I will also be sure to check in on them."
Tanjiro seemed happy with that answer. "Thank you…I know I'm…asking a lot…My other request is…my earrings…Could you give them to my m-mother? They're a…f-f-family heirloom…passed down from m-my father…"
Giyu nodded and carefully removed the hanafuda earrings from the boy's ears. "My…mother h-has a…white k-kappōgi over a purple and…c-cream checkered haori…"
Tanjiro's smile turned into a look of shame. "She…she should also have…a w-wound on her…shoulder." Tomioka understood the implications.
"You have my word, Tanjiro. I'll make sure your family is safe." Giyu swore as the warm smile returned to Tanjiro's face.
"Thank you…Mr. T-Tomioka." Tanjiro said as his head slowly started turning to ash. Giyu placed the boy's head gently on the ground.
He went to pick up Nezuko's body and even took Tanjiro's haori from his headless body, wanting to leave his family with a memento of him.
Giyu put Nezuko on his shoulder and carried the haori under his other arm, still holding the boy's earrings. He was about to head to town before looking back at the fading demon head.
Tears were pouring down his cheeks as he gave a massive grin, a grin that might've brought Tomioka to smile himself were it not for the circumstances.
"Please t-tell my family…that I love them…That I hope…they all live long…h-happy lives…That they…shouldn't be sad…and k-keep smiling for me…I will always watch over them…alongside father…" Tanjiro requested a third time, sobbing and sniffling between his pauses.
Giyu nodded as the fading nearly reached Tanjiro's smile. "Thank you, Mr. Tomio-!" Was the last thing he said as his mouth faded away, leaving only his closed smiling eyes.
Giyu knew the job was done, so he didn't bother waiting for the body to fully disappear as he turned around and leaped through the forest. Leaving behind the demon. He preferred to not watch another innocent child die.
Tanjiro had become a demon, but would die as a human, at least in his eyes. Giyu was content with that fact.
"Tanjiro Kamado, I will remember your name and face. You are the first and possibly the last demon to ever earn my respect and sympathy." Giyu thought to himself as he neared the town at the bottom of the mountain, silently praying for the poor boy.
Tanjiro
"Looks like they're already gone…He was fast…" Tanjiro thought in amazement, wondering how a normal human could accomplish such a feat.
Tanjiro wasn't a fool, he knew that his body was disappearing. But, he didn't care. He was just glad his sister was safe, and so was everyone else in town.
Of course, that didn't mean he wasn't sad to leave his family so soon. He was much too young after all, he had barely lived. But, this was for the best. He knew that they'd be fine without him, they'll figure something out.
Before Tanjiro closed his eyes for the final time, he felt warmth on his skin. It seemed that a ray of sunlight had broken through the clouded sky and shined on Tanjiro. Tanjiro's eyes widened as he stared into the sun.
"The sun…It's so beautiful…" Tanjiro said in his head as he admired the shining star one last time. The fading had almost reached his tear-filled eyes
The rest of Tanjiro's separated body had almost completely disappeared as well. Ashes rose from his robes as parts of his clothing started to deflate.
"Father…I'm sorry but…I'll be joining you a little sooner than expected. I hope that's alright with you…" Tanjiro thought as he closed his eyes and awaited his death.
Tanjiro's eyes were the next to go as his vision turned to complete darkness. This was truly the end of Tanjiro Kamado
…or so it seemed.
As the fading reached Tanjiro's new scar, said scar started glowing as it heated up. That's when the fading suddenly stopped.
After a while, the ashes blew away before Tanjiro's demonized body started to regenerate.
The Afterlife
Tanjiro opened his eyes and looked around to see a black landscape covered in a mysterious mist. He looked down at his appearance and saw that he had his original attire from when he left home yesterday.
His claws were gone, his teeth were a normal size, and his eyes returned to normal. However, his scar hadn't changed back.
Tanjiro noticed a light to the right of him, it was bright and warm. Tanjiro felt drawn towards the light, but he looked in the other direction and saw hot burning flames that made him feel unsafe.
"So, this is Heaven and Hell…" Tanjiro realized as he turned towards the bright light again. He then noticed a figure manifest in front of it.
"Indeed, my boy. This is the entryway to the afterlife." Tanjuro Kamado said to his eldest son. Tanjiro almost broke into tears
"F-Father!" Tanjiro called out as he tried to move towards him. But, something got in his way. Tanjiro found that he couldn't move at all.
He felt himself being pushed out, not just from Heaven, but from the afterlife itself. Tanjuro gave a soft chuckle. "It seems that it is not your time just yet."
Tanjiro was confused, he had just been decapitated, there was no way he was still alive. "Father! Father!" Tanjiro called out as he reached out to the figure before him as Tanjiro felt himself get dragged back to the Earth.
"I'm sorry, Tanjiro. I truly wish we had more time to catch up. But your destiny lies elsewhere. Remember, son, I will always be proud of you."
Back in the Forest
Tanjiro gasped as he shot back up to his feet, his hands reaching for his neck. He soon realized that something was off.
He looked down at himself and saw that he had his original attire, minus his haori and scarf. He reached for his ears and knew that his earrings were gone. And of course, his body was whole again.
"Okay…So I didn't just imagine that, then." Tanjiro thought. He was no longer decapitated nor fading away. He felt his hair and realized that it hadn't regenerated as much and had become much shorter.
Not only that, but he felt much more energetic and in control. Despite initially having one foot in the grave, he never felt more alive. Not even when he first woke up as a demon did he feel so good, so strong.
But that wasn't important, what was important was how he managed to survive. Tanjiro closed up his robes which were still open, exposing his chest.
When he realized the fact that he was still alive, he almost started sprinting towards town to let his family know that he was okay. But…he stopped himself from doing so.
"I might be able to control myself now, but how do I know I won't go berserk again. I can't risk hurting more people." Tanjiro thought as he started giving up on the hope that he could go back to his old life.
"I could find Mr. Tomioka, but he'd probably kill me again. Even if that means that no one else will get hurt, the truth is…I really don't want to die." Tanjiro admitted to himself, a bit ashamed at his selfishness.
He had just gotten another chance at life and he didn't want to waste it. He thought about running away from town, from everything. That's when Tanjiro looked at the ground and realized something heartbreaking.
"My family…I can't go back to them, not like this." Tanjiro thought as he remembered something Tomioka said.
"Sadly, there is no way a demon can turn back into a human. At least no known way."
Tears filled Tanjiro's pink eyes once again. "I…I can never go back…can I? Mom, Rokuta, Hanako, Shigeru, Takeo, Nezuko…I'll never see them again…"
Tanjiro fell to his knees as he sobbed uncontrollably, like he was a little kid again. He would have to spend the rest of his existence without being able to go back home.
He would never be able to read more stories to Hanako and Shigeru, he would never be able to pat Takeo on the head and tease him, he would never be able to cradle Rokuta while he slept, he would never feel the warm embrace of his mother, and he would never look at Nezuko's wonderful smile as she welcomed him home.
All of the people that made Tanjiro's life so wonderful were all gone from his life…forever. He was truly alone. Humans would fear him for being a demon, demons would likely reject him due to his distaste in eating humans. There was no one he could turn to.
Then, the faces of his loved ones flashed through his mind as new determination made its way into his mind.
"No! I can't just give up!" Tanjiro told himself as he wiped his tears with his sleeves. "There has to be a way to turn myself back into a human! I'll find a way, somehow!"
Tanjiro got back onto his feet and looked in the direction in which he left town. After a moment of silence, he turned around and walked.
He kept walking, and walking, and walking. Where he was going, he had no idea. But that didn't matter to him at the moment.
"I promise, I will become human again. And when I do, I'll come back. It'll be just like it used to be. But, for now…this is goodbye."
Tanjiro knew that his family would think he was dead, and maybe that'd be for the best. If they knew Tanjiro was still alive, they would definitely search for him. Especially Nezuko.
Tanjiro continued walking, never once looking back…
Kie Kamado
Outside of the Local Clinic
"Mrs. Kamado, please! Your shoulder wound hasn't closed up yet!" The doctor yelled out as he followed Kie outside of the clinic.
Kie was running towards the forest where Tanjiro and Nezuko went, holding the stained bandages around her left shoulder as a bit of blood fell from it.
Saburo followed the doctor. "Listen to the doctor, Kie! You have to rest!" He yelled, causing Kie to turn her head and glare at the two men.
"I'll rest as soon as I know my son and daughter are safe!" Kie snapped as she turned back around and ran off. That was until a man appeared in front of her.
The man had an intimidating aura with an intense gaze that almost made the woman tremble. He also had a sword tied to his hip.
Kie was caught by surprise as she almost fell back on the ground. "That won't be necessary." The man said as he took something off of his shoulders. Kie immediately knew who it was.
The man gently placed Nezuko on the ground. "Nezuko!" Kie called out as she kneeled beside her daughter's unconscious body. She took her eldest daughter into her arms and made sure she was breathing.
Thankfully, Nezuko seemed alright. There were no injuries whatsoever, which made the woman confused on how Nezuko got like this.
"You are the mother of Tanjiro Kamado, correct?" The man asked, snapping Kie out of her thoughts as she looked up at the man.
"Y-yes! My name is Kie Kamado, did you see where my son went?" She asked, eyes full of hope and worry. The man's hard gaze softened as he reached out his hands, signaling Kie to do the same.
"I'm sorry…" The man said before dropping one thing in each of Kie's hands. On her left, there was Tanjiro's signature green and black checkered haori with blood staining the collar. On her right…two hanafuda earrings.
Kie's heart stopped as dread nearly overwhelmed her. Her body began to shake as her breaths became raspy and panicked. "Your son…is dead."
Kie looked up at the man, praying that he was lying to her. But the man looked absolutely dead serious, disproving all doubts she had.
She could feel the tears building up as Nezuko laid on her lap. "H-how did this happen?" She asked in shock.
"I found your son fighting off his demonic urges, I put him out of his misery before he could hurt anyone. He was very brave, even in the face of death. You should be very proud." The swordsman said with genuine praise.
Kie didn't have to be told to be proud of Tanjiro, she'd always been proud. Tanjiro was one of the kindest people in the entire world, she was blessed to have such a kind and selfless son.
"Where's…his body?" Kie asked as the stranger once again softened his gaze.
"When demons die, their bodies completely disintegrate. There is nothing left to bury. Once again, I'm sorry." He said, driving the woman further into despair.
This time, she was unable to stop the tears from falling as tried her best to hold off the sobs. She took Tanjiro's haori and earrings and held them close to her chest.
At that moment, Nezuko opened her eyes and her upper body instantly shot upward. "Tanjiro!" She yelled out, startling Kie.
Nezuko got back on her feet and looked around in confusion. She then turned around to look at Kie, her eyes moved down towards the haori and hanafuda earrings and put two and two together.
She walked towards her mother and fell on her knees. Kie became choked up as she gave her daughter a closer look at the remains of their loved one.
"Nezuko…I'm sorry, he's…he's gone…" Kie handed the haori and earrings to Nezuko, who looked down at them and stared for what felt like hours until she too started crying.
"T-Tanjiro…" She whispered, her tears falling onto her brother's belongings. She suddenly looked towards the swordsman and placed Tanjiro's things back into Kie's hands.
"You…It was you…You did this…" Nezuko accused the man as his face remained unchanged. Nezuko got on her feet. "You killed my brother…You killed him…"
"Nezuko…" Kie said silently as she looked up at her daughter, the rage in her eyes was enough to scare away most people around her.
Nezuko started to walk up to the man. "I hate you…I will never forgive you! Why!? WHY DID YOU TAKE HIM AWAY FROM US ! ? ! ?" Nezuko said before charging at the man, forcing Kie to grab her right arm and stop her.
"DAMN YOU ! ! ! You had NO RIGHT ! ! ! You hear me!? NO, RIGHT ! ! !" Nezuko screamed while pointing an accusing finger at the swordsman who made no reaction.
Kie pulled back the girl from doing something she would regret. "Nezuko, please calm down! This isn't what Tanjiro would want!"
Nezuko stopped after hearing those words and looked back at Kie, they both stared into each other's tear-filled eyes as Nezuko started trembling and looked down at the ground.
"It's not fair…" She muttered. "He didn't do anything wrong…He never hurt anyone…That monster from before, it wasn't my brother…He didn't do anything wrong, why did he have to die…why…?"
The three of them stood in silence as Saburo and the doctor decided not to interfere. Suddenly, the silence was broken by the swordsman.
"He left a message for you." He said, catching the attention of both mother and daughter. They both waited intently as the man started talking.
"He said that he loves you all, and that he hopes you all live long happy lives. That you shouldn't be sad and should keep on smiling for him. He said that he would watch over you with his father…Those were his final words."
After a few seconds of contemplating those words, the two female Kamados broke down. They both embraced each other as they cried into each other's shoulders, sobs and mucus be damned.
They stood like that for about a minute or three before they released each other and touched heads. Kie suddenly heard footsteps as she turned to see the swordsman walk away from them.
Before either Kie or Nezuko could say a word, the swordsman leaped out of view, making it look as if he had disappeared.
Kie and Nezuko stood there in silence until the mother took her daughter's left hand while holding her own wounded shoulder which started hurting a little less.
"…Let's go home…" Kie said as Nezuko nodded sadly, the latter held Tanjiro's haori and the hanafuda earrings in her right hand, refusing to part with them.
They turned and walked towards the doctor who had a concerned look on his face. "Thank you for everything, doctor. We truly appreciate it…" Kie mumbled before walking past him and Saburo.
Kie held her daughter's hand as tightly as possible while stealing a few glances at her as they walked through town to the mountain path.
Nezuko continued to look down at the ground, the top of her face covered in shadow. Kie looked forward as they slowly made their way back home.
During the trip, Kie thought about how she was going to tell the little ones that their older brother was no longer with them…
Tanjiro
Somewhere Outside the Forest
The snow stopped falling as Tanjiro saw green up ahead, it was becoming a little warmer. Tanjiro had reached the end of the forest.
There were large, green fields as far as the eye could see, it seemed that it didn't snow everywhere, not even in winter.
Tanjiro admired the scenery before him as he put a hand on the last tree at the edge of the forest before looking back one last time.
"Goodbye, everyone…" Tanjiro whispered. "I'll miss you guys." After that, Tanjiro stepped out of the shadows of the forest and took his first step into a new, but cruel world.
And that's it for Chapter 2! I think I spent about four days writing this, I hope the fruits of my labor paid off!
Now, before I leave you, I feel I need to clarify some things.
First off, Tanjiro does not have the Demon Slayer Mark. He just has his iconic scar that came after the Final Selection Arc.
Speaking of appearances, Tanjiro's overall clothing is about the same as it was before his Demon Slayer days, minus the haori and earrings. He also has his short-cut hair.
Of course, one of the biggest changes would be that the rest of the Kamados, excluding Tanjuro, are still alive.
How will that impact the story, you ask? Well, the truth is…I have no idea. I tend to plan out certain parts but I mostly wing it during the unplanned, trust me, I think you'll notice the difference…
Also, Tanjiro has no idea that demons are weak to sunlight, nor does he know that Nichirin Swords can kill demons through decapitation.
Naturally, Tanjiro also doesn't know that he has immunity to both. Basically, Tanjiro is unkillable for most characters in the show.
Of course, Muzan could still consume Tanjiro and take on his resistance to sunlight. However, there is one thing I've been wondering.
Let's say hypothetically that a demonized Tanjiro had an encounter with Shinobu, would her wisteria poison still kill him? I don't believe it was ever stated that sunlight immunity would grant a demon immunity to their wisteria weakness.
Of course, Shinobu's poison could not fully kill the likes of Douma or anyone else near or above his power level. But, Tanjiro's a weakling compared to those guys.
Therefore, if Tanjiro did not have resistance to wisteria poison as a demon, I think that Shinobu would likely make quick work of him, at least as he is now.
That said, Tanjiro will get stronger as the story progresses. My idea is that even though Tanjiro doesn't have a Blood Demon Art just yet, he already has an incredible ability that will put him above the weaker demons.
Tanjiro will actually become stronger in sunlight than at nighttime. That's right, Tanjiro will have further increased strength, speed, stamina, and even faster regeneration speeds when constantly exposed to sunlight. I feel like this is where Tanjiro could possibly develop a resistance to wisteria as he'd become more powerful.
In addition, Tanjiro's initial stats at night will slowly increase as he stores up the sun's rays inside his cells when exposed. Not by a crazy amount, of course, because then he'd probably become OP.
Tanjiro does get stronger as he stores more sunlight within his body, but it's only by really small amounts.
I'd say maybe about 0.1% stronger for each hour of sunlight. Now I know what you're thinking, that would mean Tanjiro would get 100% stronger in at least three months.
I did the calculations and searched up that there is an average of 12 hours of sunlight every day. If Tanjiro got 0.1% stronger for every hour in sunlight, he would theoretically get 1.2% stronger every day.
I divided 100 by 1.2 and calculated that Tanjiro would reach his full potential in at least 84 days! During this point, Tanjiro would most definitely be at Upper Moon level, possibly even go toe to toe with the demon king himself.
But, these calculations only assume that there is always twelve hours of sunlight every day which is never the case. We must consider that there is not always 12 hours of sunlight in a day. There is also the fact that there is no sunlight during cloudy or rainy days, and sometimes, Tanjiro will be indoors. So, realistically, it would take much longer for Tanjiro to reach his full power.
Still, even with that in mind, it would probably take less than a year. I have come with a way to neutralize this. I won't tell you yet as I believe I've already said enough, but it will relate to his Blood Demon Art.
Alrighty then, I think I've said what I've wanted to say. I'll be working on chapter 3 but you guys will ultimately be the deciding factor on whether this story continues.
I am already writing another story so my upload schedule will be absolutely bonkers. I don't mind writing two stories at once as I'm invested in both, but I'm not gonna waste my time writing a story that no one likes.
Anyways, make sure to leave a review on what I did good or what I did bad. I only ask that you be respectful when doing the latter.
Alright! OMG, out!
Next Time: Chapter 3 - What Now?
