Thank you very much for euphoricimage who has helped me beta this story! :))

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A cool breeze. The sweet smell of steaming tea. Sunlight, warm against his cold skin. Murmurs of a report read aloud, soft but clear in his ears.

"... Is that so?"

An affirmative purr. A warm ball of fur, rubbing against his arm.

"I understand. Please pass my thanks to Tamayo-san."

Ubuyashiki Kagaya closed his eyes.

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Kanao tensed up when she caught sight of a growing black dot in the blue sky.

"...Tenma," she called for her crow, who landed on her outstretched hand. When the sky had begun to brighten, they had found an abandoned shack for Tanjirou to hide in from the sun. It was now noon and Kanao had left Tanjirou behind to look for supplies in a nearby village. "What brings you here?"

Tenma tilted her head at her before sticking out her leg. Kanao frowned at the rolled-up letter tied to her leg.

It was here.

Gingerly, she untied the letter. Her mind was filled with speculations as she opened it. An excommunication letter. A warning. A notice, that they were coming for Tanjirou

"...A mission?" Kanao blinked at the letter, dumbfounded.

Sure enough, the letter stated that there was a demon terrorising a small town called Naie, South of Tomari. There had been eleven casualties so far, all young women aged 17 to 29. Kanao was ordered to head to Naie to hunt down the demon—as if she had not just commited treason for aiding another one.

"My sister," Kanao turned to her crow as a chill ran down her spine. "Is Kochou Shinobu still alive?"

Tenma blinked, before bobbing her head.

"You've seen her in the past 24 hours?"

Another nod. "Aomori. Mission."

Aomori was a town East of Nishiazuma. Kanao sighed in relief. She had believed that Shinobu had let Tanjirou go willingly, but a small part of her still doubted that that was the case. But if Shinobu was still alive and Kanao still received a mission as if nothing had happened, then why didn't her sister report the incident to the Headquarters?

Does Nee-san...trust her?

Kanao bit her lip. Folded the missive, before putting it in her skirt pocket.

"I can't go right now," Kanao told Tenma. "But I will leave immediately once the sun sets. Can you wait until then?"

Tenma nodded.

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Kanao belatedly felt a little apprehensive when she brought Tenma to the abandoned shack. Kasugai crows were part of the Demon Slayer Corps, and they were trained to observe and report anything they saw to Demon Slayers. Moreover, as messengers carrying vital information to the Corps, they were often targeted by demons. Tenma had once been heavily injured by a demon, which was why Kanao was worried her crow would just bolt away and report Tanjirou's existence to the Headquarters.

But when she saw Tanjirou, Tenma didn't fly away. Instead, she hopped towards the demon and rubbed her head on his cheek. Kanao was baffled even more when Tanjirou hugged the crow in return, eyes sparkling in delight, as if he and Tenma were some long-lost friends now reunited.

"...I guess, I worry for nothing."

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Now that she knew they were not being hunted, Kanao spent the remaining day recovering from her fatigue. She had bought supplies from the village, including bandages and ointments, some water and dried food as well as clothes for Tanjirou. Once her stomach was full, she dozed off while watching Tenma playing with Tanjirou.

The sky had turned dark when Kanao jolted awake. She was immediately greeted with Tanjirou, who had been hovering over her with his brand new haori in hand. He paused, hesitating, before blanketing her with the garment.

"Why are you giving this to me?" Kanao asked, eyeing the green checkered haori he was still wearing. "I bought this for you. Yours is already tattered and drenched in blood."

Tanjirou simply beamed at her. For some reason, he preferred to keep his checkered haori, so Kanao decided to let him be. At least, he had changed his kimono. Still, she took note to wash his haori later, because the blood was really too conspicuous.

Once they were ready, they set off, following Tenma to their destination.

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Naie was once a bustling town, but the recent series of mysterious kidnappings had rendered it silent.

It was nighttime. Lanterns and interior lights from the buildings lit the town up, but the streets remained devoid of people. No one dared to venture outside, preferring to stay indoors, protected by the walls of their own home. A rather futile attempt to avoid being targeted next, as demons had no qualms about breaking in.

Kanao looked around, noting how the faint purple mist of the demon had permeated the area. Usually, it was possible to identify a demon's presence and its whereabouts by looking at where the mist was the thickest. But this purple mist was too scattered and faint, spanning over a very large area. It was inefficient to hunt down the demon when it was hiding.

She had to wait for the demon to reveal itself.

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"You should be careful, young lady," the innkeeper remarked as he guided them to their room. "A lot of girls your age have gone missing lately."

Kanao blinked before bowing. "Thank you for your warning."

"I am being serious," the innkeeper said, frowning at something on her head. "Especially with that headpiece of yours. There is a rumour that most of the missing girls had been wearing head ornaments. I know it's just hearsay, but better be safe than sorry."

Kanao smiled. "Thank you for your warning."

"...Right," the innkeeper scratched his head awkwardly before continuing his way down the hall. A minute later, he stopped in front of a room and slid open the shouji doors before gesturing inside. "Here's your room. Breakfast will be served tomorrow morning at nine. Well then, I hope you and your little brother enjoy your stay."

Kanao and the child Tanjirou bowed in thanks. The innkeeper looked back and forth between the two in confusion, taking note of their rather unusual appearances. He shrugged, before going back to the lobby.

Kanao closed the shouji doors, sighing in relief.

"I'm glad that worked out," she said, smiling at Tanjirou. It had not occurred to her that Tanjirou's normal appearance was quite disconcerting until they reached the inn. No normal young man would be wearing tattered, blood-stained clothes and a bamboo gag, especially not if said man was seen entering the inn with a young woman in a town rumoured for missing women. Kanao did not care about reputation, but it would make things a lot more complicated if they could not get a room before the sun rose. Hence, a smaller Tanjirou disguised as her little brother. "You can return to normal now, Tanjirou-san."

Tanjirou nodded before growing up to fit his oversized clothes. It seemed that growing smaller still required some energy to maintain, as he would naturally turn back to adult size once it was safe to do so. It was...enlightening, to learn something new about demons by living together with one.

Kanao sat down on a cushion and smiled at Tanjirou, prompting him to tense up. She unrolled the bandages around her left hand and, with her Nichirin blade, nicked the healing gash—the same wound she had self-inflicted for a few days already. A few small blobs of blood emerged from the scab.

"Here," she said, offering him her lifeblood.

Tanjirou hesitated a little before approaching her slowly. He pulled down his bamboo muzzle, letting it hang on his neck, and sniffed at her palm before giving a few licks until the wound closed up. All the while, the frown never left his face.

Once he was done, Tanjirou re-bandaged her hand before pushing it away with a huff. He truly acted just like Zenitsu whenever her blond colleague had to drink his medicine. They had been doing this for three days already, yet he was still reluctant.

So Kanao did what Tanjirou had always done whenever he approved of her actions—she patted his head softly.

Tanjirou's eyes widened. Kanao paused. Perhaps it wasn't as pleasant when she was the one doing it.

She was about to lower her hand when Tanjirou turned his head to nuzzle her hand. His warm breath tickled her palm and his exposed lips brushed her skin softly. Strange, that a demon could touch a human without being tempted to devour flesh. Kanao had to admit that it felt nice.

The sky had begun to brighten when they finished settling in. Fortunately, there was a closet at one side of the room to store the futons. Its sliding doors completely blocked off light from outside, which meant the closet was a safe haven for Tanjirou.

"Stay here for a little while," Kanao told him as she fixed the bamboo gag over his mouth and covered him with a thick blanket. "I have to go get some supplies and information about the missing women."

Tanjirou nodded obediently.

"Don't come out if someone comes into the room. You might come into contact with the sun if you leave the closet."

Tanjirou nodded.

"Sleep if you can. You need to conserve your energy—"

Tanjirou patted her hand. He nodded once more, eyes crinkling in a smile, as if to reassure her that he understood. Then he snuggled into his blanket before snoozing.

Kanao smiled and closed the closet door.

"See you later, Tanjirou-san."

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"Kazumi-san's fiance had gone missing two nights ago."

"Poor thing. Weren't they about to get married this spring?"

"Eleven women had gone missing."

"My girlfriend. She was the first victim."

"Shizuka-chan was only fourteen."

"What a sick criminal!"

"The ribbon. It must've been the red ribbon I had given her."

"I'm scared!"

"Don't go out when it is dark outside."

"It's all my fault."

"Demon. It's a demon, preying on women!"

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"Miss, you should leave this town as soon as possible."

Kanao smiled at the stall owner. "Thank you. I will be fine."

"That's what all they say," the stall owner frowned, visibly worried. "They think they can hide in their home and just lock the door. But my neighbour's daughter still went missing last week, even after barricading her room. The only way to live for you is to get out of here."

"Is that so?" Kanao tilted her head. "What about the other women? How did they go missing?"

"You sure are a strange one, miss. Don't you feel terrified? You might very well get kidnapped tonight."

"How did they go missing?"

The stall owner rubbed the back of his neck uneasily. He was clearly wary of her now. "Uh, well. I recall Kazumi's fiance vanished even though the two of them were walking together side-by-side. Kato's daughter disappeared even though they were blending in with the crowd. Haru's sister even went missing when she had gone to the bathroom. Not sure about the rest, but from what I heard they all just disappeared into thin air."

Kanao hummed in thought. It seemed that the demon was able to freely move around unnoticed, considering that there were cases where it managed to kidnap its prey without being seen even when the streets were crowded with people. It was most likely one who had developed a Blood Demon Art.

"Did they go missing at night?"

"Yeah."

"Are all of them unmarried?"

"Fortunately, the criminal never targets married women. Otherwise my daughter would be gone by now too."

"Your daughter should've left this town still, sir," Kanao smiled. "Who knows, once the culprit runs out of unmarried young women to target, she might be next."

"Speak for yourself…"

"I will be fine."

"Why do you keep saying that?" the stall owner hissed. "More than ten young women have disappeared! What's stopping you from being the next target?"

Kanao stood up, before exiting the stall. She tapped her sheathed Nichirin blade and gave the stall owner one last smile.

"Because I will kill it first."

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