The boar bears its fangs, Zenitsu sleeps
Welcome again.
Before everything else: WE'RE ONE WEEK AWAY FROM TANKANA WEEK PEOPLE!
Just wanted to give that reminder.
Remember to look for it in tumblr and twitter as #TanKanaWeek2020
With that said, on with the chapter!
Disclaimer: I don't own Kimetsu.
While surprised at the sudden appearance, Tanjiro was glad that another Demon Slayer was there, how he got to the mansion is something he can ask later, for the time being he's just glad that he has an ally.
"Here goes! Comin' through!" With those words, the masked swordsman lunged towards the tsuzumi demon who, like with Tanjiro, beat the drum on his right shoulder without even turning to look at him.
The room once again spun, making the three humans fall towards the ceiling that now acted as the floor.
"Teruko!" Tanjiro called out when he saw the girl fall on her back. "Hold onto the furniture-!" He raised his left arm when he saw the other swordsman falling towards him and using him as a springboard to once again lunge towards the demon. "That one's a demon with supernatural powers! Stop launching those reckless attacks!"
But his words weren't heeded, the hunter with the boar mask simply laughed as he continued moving towards the demon.
"Infuriating." The demon said. "You damn insects running amok in my house!" He beat the drum in his left him twice, making the room spin forward until the tatami was, once again, the floor.
Tanjiro managed to soften his landing, but still fell on his back, while Teruko fell down on her front and the masked swordsman...
"Gya!" …landed on his feet, with his right one on top of the girl with the pink kimono.
"The room freakin' spun around! This is fun! This is fun!" He said with a laugh, still stepping over Teruko.
Tanjiro saw this and quickly ran towards them before grabbing the other demon hunter from the right foot and throwing him away.
"Don't stomp all over her!" The Kamado yelled as the masked swordsman landed on the floor and he tended to the younger girl.
"Who the hell are you?" He asked.
"What do you think you're doing stepping on a little kid like that?" Tanjiro reproached him as he held Teruko with one arm so she wouldn't fall down when the room spun around again.
"I like it! I like it!" The dual wielder answered, not sounding the least bit sorry. "No human's ever sent me flying like that before!" With those words, he lunged towards the red haired swordsman, making him step back to avoid his swords.
'Why is he coming after me? Isn't he a demon slayer?'
"My swords will hurt you, because they're not the kind of swords you little gentlemen use!" He moved the right one a bit, as if showing it off. "The way they shred through flesh… that's what I pride myself on!"
"Knock it off! There's a demon right there, you know!"
"Like I care!" He answered before lunging again.
"Damn insects! Out of my sight! Die!" The demon demanded, hitting the tsuzumi in his stomach.
Both swordsmen quickly jumped back, avoiding the sudden slash-like attack that ripped through the tatami they stood on a second ago.
'The floor ripped apart at the same speed as the sound of the tsuzumi, in the shape of a beast's claws!' Tanjiro quickly analyzed.
The demon sent another slash attack, this one towards the demon hunter with the boar mask, before hitting the tsuzumi in his right shoulder.
'Spinning right!' The Kamado thought, committing to memory which tsuzumi does what while also making sure to soften his landing so Teruko wouldn't get hurt. 'Spinning left!' He noted when the demon hit the tsuzumi in his left shoulder.
Said demon muttered something again before hitting two tsuzumis, the one in his right shoulder followed by the one in his right hip, the sudden changes making the man with the boar mask fall out of the room.
'I'm starting to get the hang of it!' Tanjiro thought, his sight moving towards the demon after making sure the other swordsmen was alright.
Suddenly, the room changed again, turning into what looked like a small dining room with only a table on it, making the demon and demon hunter disappear from sight.
'We're in another room… but what does this mean? That demon didn't strike his tsuzumi just now.' He thought, loosing his grip on Teruko and trying to pick up the demon's scent. 'I'm picking up the scent of multiple demons in this house; is there another demon with a tsuzumi, then? Is that why…' He trailed off when he smelled blood from outside the room.
"It's gonna be all right, okay?" He reassured Teruko, letting her stand on her own feet. "Just stay behind me."
"Okay." The girl nodded nervously.
Tanjiro slowly opened the door and looked both ways to check for movement, he didn't find any but.
'Another human ripped to shreds and devoured!' He lamented, seeing a body towards his right.
"Wh-what's the matter?"
"It's all right." Tanjiro answered, forcing a smile on his face. "There are no demons around. Come on, let's head over there." He guided her, making sure to go to the left and using his body to block the view on the other side until they had their back on the dead body. "Without a backward glance. Look straight ahead, okay?" He said, hoping to spare her from that sight.
.
A few minutes later.
'There's another scent, a unique scent of blood I've never smelled before.' Tanjiro thought. 'Looks like there wasn't that much bleeding.' Before they reached the door to the next room, Tanjiro moved his arm in front of Teruko and brought a finger to his mouth to signal for her to be silent, to which she nodded.
He quietly moved in front of the door before quickly opening it to reveal…
Under the current circumstance, there are next to no things that a kid like Shoichi could be grateful for; his brother was kidnapped by a monster and he is trapped inside said monster's house with no way out but, if there is one thing that he can say thanks for is the fact that his sister is most likely with Tanjiro, someone that looked a lot more reliable than the swordsman he is with.
In front of him, Zenitsu continued to take slow steps, trembling with each one as the blond kept a firm grip on his hand.
While Shoichi was far from calm, if compared to the swordsman in front of him, he looked like Buddha.
"Excuse me, Zenitsu-san."
"Kyaaa!" In response to his call, the blond let out a shriek before turning around and fall to his knees while hugging the younger boy. "Signal… signal… signal… signal me first!" He said, looking to be on the verge of tears. "If you want to talk, don't come at me all of a sudden! My heart nearly flew out of my mouth just now!"
"…I'm sorry." The kid said with a resigned expression.
"If that had come to pass, that would've made you a murderer for sure! Do you get that?"
"It's just that… see… you've been sweating, gasping and shivering so horribly."
"What about it?!" Zenitsu yelled. "Aren't I doing the best I can here?!"
"Well, forgive me for saying so, but you're making me nervous, too, so… "
"Oh no! Sorry about that!" The blond apologized sincerely. "Even still… even still… if we talk too much, those demons and all will… they might find us, right? That's why… I think it would be best to be as quiet as possible! Right?" The swordsman explained himself. 'We really need to be quiet, if a demon finds us then we're both dead, we can't risk it and why does Shoichi-kun look so scared all of a sudden?!'
"Eh?" Zenitsu slowly turned around in the direction the boy was looking.
"Kehehe, a couple of kids. Probably most agreeable to the tongue." A demon with green eyes, two horns on its head and an abnormally long tongue said as it crawled from under the foundation of the house.
"What did I tell you?! A demon showed up! A demon showed up, understand?!" Zenitsu shrieked, quickly grabbing Shoichi's hand and began to run away with him. "Stay away! Stay away from us! Stop that!" He continued to shriek as the demon followed the two while walking in all fours. "W-w-we don't taste good! I'm sure I taste awful! I'm serious, okay? This kid's all skin and bones, so he's all dry and tastes ghastly!"
"How will I know until I have a taste?" The demon asked back amused before its tongue extended towards them.
Zenitsu saw it coming and quickly moved to the right to dodge it, bringing Shoichi with him, and the tongue instead hit a vase that was sitting in the hallway.
"What was that? Quick-tongued! Splitting a vase in two!" The demon didn't bother to answer and simply extended its tongue again. "That's just not possible!" The blond dodged once again, crashing through a door to another room and landing on the ground.
"Zenitsu-san! Get up!" Shoichi said.
"Ahhhh! It's on my knees now! 80 percent of my fear is in my knees!"
"This is no time to whine, all right?!" The kid answered.
"Just leave me behind, okay? Make a run for it!" Zenitsu said, still trembling and trying to get his legs to listen.
"I can't do something like that!"
'Ah! What a great kid he is! Even though I'm making terrified sounds like this!' The swordsman thought, partially in shock. 'I gotta find a way somehow! If I don't protect him, what will become of him? Dying before he reaches double digits would be way too tragic! But I'm so horribly weak! I don't have the ability to protect him!'
"Get up!" Shoichi yelled.
'But if I don't protect him…'
"Kehehehe." His thoughts were interrupted by the demon that finally reached them and continued to crawl towards them. "I'm gonna guzzle your brain matter through your ears!"
Snap
"Zenitsu-san!" Shoichi called out when the blond suddenly went limp. "Zenit- he's fast asleep."
Indeed, Zenitsu had suddenly fallen asleep.
"What's up with him?" The demon thought out loud, genuinely confused but not enough to stop moving towards the two.
Shoichi began to drag Zenitsu backwards with him until his back hit the wall, leaving him with no way out.
"Die!" The demon yelled, extending his tongue to kill them.
"Fourth form. Distant Thunder!" Before the tongue could reach them it was suddenly cut in three different places and the demon jumped back before one of the slashes made contact with his neck.
"Well, you're not the demon from before but I guess I'll settle with you until I find that bastard." Someone said from behind the paper wall that separated the rooms, which was now torn off due to the attack.
"Wh-who…?" Shoichi asked, looking at the swordsman as he ripped apart what was left of the wall and walked in. 'I-I remember him, he was with Tanjiro-san and Zenitsu-san, he is the one that entered before them.'
.
Kaigaku looked at the demon and then towards the unconscious Zenitsu and the kid he was with.
"Tch, pathetic." He muttered as he saw his sibling disciple. "And what the hell is a kid doing here…? Well, whatever." The Kanoe ignored the two humans and moved his sight towards the tongue demon.
"I really don't like it when someone interrupts my meal." He said as his tongue regenerated.
"Like I care, prepare to lose your head." The swordsman said back with a scowl as he prepared his sword and took a deep breath. 'Thunder Breathing. Fifth form. Heat lighting.' He rushed towards the demon and performed a downwards slash, the tongue demon managed to jump back to avoid it and quickly sent out his tongue, only for it to get slashed again.
"Tch." The demon retracted it back and got some distance from the demon hunter before once again lashing out with his tongue, this time repeatedly using it to stab his enemy, not even bothering to let it fully regenerate before lashing out again.
'Annoying!' Kaigaku cursed as he continued to dodge, parry, or cut the tongue while moving forward to close the distance.
"Kehehe." But every time he was about to get in range for an attack, the demon jumped away to gain more distance, making him start again.
'He isn't even strong, I can avoid his tongue in my sleep, he just has an annoyingly long range!'
'The first form is the basis of all other forms Kaigaku, I'm sure when you learn it you will become even more powerful.'
'Shut up, old man!' The swordsman yelled in his mind, moving back and taking another deep breath. 'I don't need the first form! Thunder Breathing. Sixth Form. Electric Lighting Shower!' Kaigaku swung his sword around him, sending a multitude of thunder-like slashes around himself. "Die!"
"Damn it!" Tongue demon yelled, losing one of his arms to the slashes and one of his legs almost being cut off as well before he moved far enough back to be out of range.
"Die already!" The black haired man roared, repeating the same technique once again.
The demon this time managed to jump back to avoid all of the slashes while his body regenerated and sent his tongue forward to skewer him.
'Too easy!' Kaigaku thought, side-stepping the attack and rushing forward.
"Eh?! Ahhh!" But in his rush to attack, he forgot to take into account the fact that Zenitsu and the kid he brought with him were still in the room and right behind him.
Shoichi could do nothing but close his eyes as the attack continued to move closer.
'Damn it, I forgot about them!' Kaigaku cursed, knowing he can't the stop the attack now.
Shing
"…eh?" But he didn't need to; the tongue that was moving towards the two was suddenly cut. "What the…?" The black haired swordsman stared in disbelief as Zenitsu got up and moved as if protecting the kid.
"Zenitsu-san?" Shoichi called out.
There was something different about him, the trembling was gone and he didn't seem to have any intention of running away.
Wordlessly, Zenitsu moved his left leg back and slightly bended his right one while holding the grip of his sword with his right hand and using the left one to hold the scabbard.
'That's…' Kaigaku trailed off, identifying that stance.
A hissing sound was heard when Zenitsu took a deep breath and…
"Thunder Breathing, First Form. Thunderclap and Flash."
It was instantaneous.
One moment Zenitsu was standing in front of Kaigaku's eyes and the next one he had moved faster than he could see and cut off the demon's head.
'What... what was that? I know he can only do the first form but… but when did he get so fast?!' The Kanoe was speechless as he turned around to see his sibling disciple just as the demon's head fell to the ground.
"Ah."
Zenitsu turned around just in time to see the demon's head roll over to his feet and.
"Kyaa! It's dead!" Scream in apparent fear as the demon's body turned to ash and disappeared. "All of a sudden, it's dead! What the hell? I can't take this!" Both Kaigaku and Shoichi could only stare in disbelief as the blond continued to rant until he spotted the other demon hunter. "Ah, Kaigaku! Thank you so much for saving us!" He yelled.
"Wh-what…?"
"I'm sorry you had to go through the trouble but thank you all the same, I will endeavor to repay you some day!"
"…tch, whatever, just get the kid out of here; I'm going after the tsuzumi demon." Kaigaku answered, already moving towards the door.
"Ah, wait! Please don't go! You have to protect us at least until we manage to leave the house or-"
"Shut up! Protect yourself!" The other Thunder Breath user snapped as he ran down the corridor and away from the other two.
"Eh?! But- wait!" But he was long gone.
"Hm, Zenitsu-san?"
"Shoichi-kun, I'm sho shorry for not being able to protect you!" The blonde said through tears. "I'm sho happy you're alive and well!"
"Ah… right… let's go now, okay?" The kid answered, not sure how to begin to explain what just happened.
"Yeah." Zenitsu nodded meekly.
'What the hell was that?!' Kaigaku couldn't help but keep repeating that moment in his mind. 'Zenitsu is supposed to be a coward that can't fight so how the hell did he do that?!' If anyone asked him to describe his sibling disciple, the words 'coward' and 'useless' would be the first things that come to mind so the scene from before didn't make sense to him, it was as if someone had just thrown a peach to the ground and it went flying up instead of falling. 'I know he could only learn the first form of Thunder Breathing but he was nowhere near that fast when I saw him use it and then he tells me that I saved him?! Was he mocking me or something?!'
"Self-taught… Beast Breathing." His musings were interrupted when he heard someone talking. "It's gonna be so worth it to shred such a huge target!"
'A demon?' He quickly unsheathed his weapon and checked the corner to see what was happening.
"You've got guts to charge me head-on like that!" A large, oversized demon chuckled as he extended his arms towards his assailant.
Only for them to be cut off from his body by the assailant's twin blades, making him recoil.
"Flaunt your corpse and serve as my springboard!" The swordsman responsible yelled as he laughed and used both his blades to sever the demon's neck from his spine. "Third Fang Devour!" He then kicked the body down and continued forward, landing with his feet against the wall and jumping off to the ground before stopping and turning around. "Who the hell are you?"
"I'm a Demon Slayer, rank Kanoe…" Kaigaku trailed off as he checked the demon's body and saw it turn to ash. "You're also a member of the corps?"
"Hmm… you're not the one with red hair or the one that keeps making noise with his body parts." Completely ignoring his question, the man with the boar mask turned around and began running away from Kaigaku while repeating. "Comin' through! Comin' through!"
"Oi, wait!" The black haired swordsman yelled, quickly giving chase. "Come back here and explain what's happening!"
He didn't do so but Kaigaku didn't have a problem keeping pace with the dual wielder.
Dun
"I said wait- huh?" That is, until a tsuzumi was heard right after the masked hunter entered a room and when he tried to follow, the space shifted and when Kaigaku opened the door he was supposed to have gone through, he was gone. "Tch, that demon's ability again." Slamming the door shut, he continued down the hallway, his previous thoughts about Zenitsu momentarily forgotten thanks to the distraction.
"Kiyoshi-nii-chan!" Teruko yelled, quickly running towards the boy sitting in the middle of the room past a second set of doors. "Onii-chan! Onii-chan!"
"Teruko!" The teen wearing a persimmon colored kimono said in relief, letting the tsuzumi he was holding on the ground to hug his sister.
'Their brother's safe, that's a relief.' Tanjiro thought, calmly approaching the two.
"W-who's he?" Kiyoshi asked, a bit fearful.
"I'm Kamado Tanjiro. I've come to defeat evil demons." The red haired teen answered him with a smile before kneeling to be at eye level. "Now then, show me your wounds; good for you for hanging in there on your own."
Suddenly Kiyoshi began crying, using one hand to cover his eyes.
'He must have been blocking out the fear and now that help came… he must be so relieved that he couldn't help but break down in tears.' The Kamado thought before coming up with an idea to make him feel better.
Tanjiro deliberately raised a package inside his haori as high as possible.
"Now this ointment here is amazing!" He said as if he was trying to sell it. "My master gave it to me!"
It seemed to have the desired effect, as Kiyoshi calmed down a bit and let the swordsman check the wound in his right leg.
"My master wears a tengu mask." Tanjiro said to avoid the silence as he applied the ointment on the wound.
"A tengu mask? Really?"
"Yes, it's true." He answered. "My master's ointment is so amazing, it works in a split second." Having finished with the ointment, he took a bandage and tied it around the boy's leg. "Okay, you're all set! Well? The pain's gone, isn't it?"
"Yes!" Kiyoshi confirmed with a small smile.
With the wounds taken care of, Tanjiro began to ask for information.
"Do you think you can tell me what happened here?"
The small smile in the boy's face was instantly wiped out, replaced with a look of horror.
"A monster dragged me away, a-and I nearly got devoured." He began, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself. "But just then, another monster showed up out of nowhere, a-and they started fighting to the death over who was gonna get to e-eat me." Kiyoshi took another pause after those last two words, Tanjiro patiently waited for him to recover. "A-and then, the one with the tsuzumi growing out of him… when the other monster defeated him, he dropped a tsuzumi! And when I picked it up and struck it, the room suddenly changed. And I somehow held on until now!" By the time he finished talking, Kiyoshi was trembling uncontrollably at the memories.
"A demon with tsuzumi growing out of him… so that was him?" Tanjiro thought out loud, remembering the demon Teruko and he encountered before. "He mentioned marechi or something like that."
"That's right!" Kiyoshi exclaimed. "He kept calling me 'marechi'!"
"CAW! What is marechi? It refers to the owner of rare blood!" Tanjiro's crow suddenly yelled, having appeared out of nowhere. "You little brats! I'm going to peck you now." It said with a chuckle as the siblings hugged each other in shock at the talking bird.
"Cut it out!" Tanjiro reprimanded as he grabbed the crow. "What do you mean by rare blood?"
"The blood of all living things can be categorized into types, idiot!" The crow said, jumping back to the ground and extending its wings. "And the ultimate marechi… the more scarce the blood, the more uncommon… for a demon! A single marechi human has the same nutritional value as eating fifty! One hundred humans! For demons, marechi is a feast! Marechi is their favorite food!" The three humans heard the explanation, Tanjiro dreading what would have happened if that demon had actually managed to eat Kiyoshi before they got here while the two siblings simply shook in fear.
'This scent…' Tanjiro thought as a certain smell entered his nostrils. 'It's that demon with the tsuzumi!'
The swordsman quickly turned to the two kids.
"I'm leaving this room now!" He said, startling Kiyoshi. "Keep calm." Tanjiro quickly reassured him, grabbing his shoulders and looking him in the eyes. "It's all right. I'm just going to take down that demon." While clearly afraid, the teen didn't object, so the Kamado turned towards the girl. "Listen to me, Teruko." She turned towards him and Tanjiro placed a hand on her head. "Right now, your brother is terribly exhausted. So, you gotta look after him, okay?" He took back his hand and instructed her. "As soon as I leave the room, strike that tsuzumi and move out. Just like Kiyoshi's been doing until now, whenever someone tries to open the door or you hear something, strike that tsuzumi right away and make a run for it." Tanjiro again looked at both of them. "I promise to come get you, I'll follow your scent. I'll call out your names when I open the door." To Tanjiro, this was the best course of action; that demon was still approaching and having to fight it while also making sure they were alright would be difficult at best, especially if he decided to ignore the demon hunter and focus on the two kids.
But that doesn't mean they would see it that way.
'I don't really know him but if he really is here to defeat the monsters then he must be strong, if he leaves…'
'Tanjiro-san was protecting me before, I-I don't want him to leave.'
To Kiyoshi and Teruko, Tanjiro was the person that could keep them safe in this house of monsters, the idea of separating, even with the means to run away literally at their fingertips, would obviously terrify them.
"You just have to hold out a little longer." The Kamado said seriously, his expression conveying that this was the best course of action better than his words could. "You can do it, right?"
After a few seconds, and although still clearly afraid, the two siblings nodded in unison making the Kamado smile.
"Good for you! You're so strong!" It wasn't a lie, just the fact that Kiyoshi had the idea to use the tsuzumi instead of freezing in terror and that Teruko and her other brother followed the demon to the house was proof of that.
The swordsman's expression turned serious as he stood up and looked towards the door of the room.
"I'm heading out." A few seconds after he said that, the tsuzumi demon peeked inside the room.
Tanjiro immediately dashed forward, ordering the kids to hit the tsuzumi after passing the first set of doors between him and his foe.
"Damn insects! So infuriating!" The demon muttered as he also entered the room and hit the tsuzumi in his right shoulder twice.
'The room will spin to the right twice!' The Kamado thought as he unsheathed his sword and adjusted his stance to land on the roof that now acted as the floor while the demon was still in the actual floor, openly mocking the common sense that says he should have fallen to the roof as well.
'Some lights and I see a few chests and chest drawers next to the walls, other than that there is nothing of note in the room.' The red haired teen thought as he did a quick overview of his surroundings.
Dun
'The claw attack!' He was already ducking before even finishing that thought, avoiding the demon's attack from the tsuzumi in his stomach.
Dun
'Another right.' Tanjiro quickly rolled as the room spun to soften his fall.
Dun
'This one is a left.' He thought, seeing the demon hit the tsuzumi in his left shoulder. 'I remember from before that the one in his right leg spins the room forwards so the left leg must spin it backwards.'
Dun
'And the one in his belly launches that claw attack!' The Kamado finished his assessment as he dodged said attack by jumping.
Dun, dun, dundun.
The demon began to beat different tsuzumi in sequence, making the room spin in several directions, eventually making it so that gravity was sending Tanjiro towards him.
'Now!'
The swordsman took the opportunity and prepared to slash at his foe but it hit the tsuzumi in his belly, forcing him to kick the wall to push himself to the side in order to dodge the claw attack.
'So fast!' Tanjiro noted, trying to recover. 'The speed of the rotations and attacks is devastating!' He thought as he landed with his left leg. 'Ghg-!' And immediately bit back a grunt of pain to not let the demon know he was hurt. 'Tamayo-san did treat my wounds, but these injuries aren't fully healed yet!'
Despite himself, doubt began to creep in Tanjiro's mind
'It hurts! I've been enduring it, I endured it back when I pulled Zenitsu off that girl and when I reprimanded Kaigaku but the pain is horrible! I was able to withstand it because I'm the eldest son! But I couldn't have if I were the second one!' He spun in the air and landed on a crouch, biting back another pained grunt. 'Whenever I dig in, the broken parts creak, and I can't muster any strength.' The Kamado tried to take a second to recover but the demon beat the tsuzumi in his stomach, forcing him to jump to avoid it and leaving another claw mark on the tatami. 'The marks left by the attack scare me so much I can't get closer! Since I'm not at full strength, if I charge forward to get within striking distance and a flash of pain makes me stumble…' An image of his own body cut into pieces flashed through his head and he shook his head to try and get rid of the image. 'My injuries are making me imagine the most awful things! Don't think like that!' He once again rolled to soften his landing when the room spun again. 'Think back to your training, find something there!'
'Water can change into any form.' Tanjiro remembered the words of Urokodaki.
'Pour it into a container, and it's a square. Pour it into a bottle, and it's round.' This time it was Sabito.
'Sometimes, it can even smash boulders and flow away as far as the eye can see.' Now it was Makomo.
'That's right! There are ten Water Breathing forms! Made so the users can battle any kind of opponent!'
'You can't always fight your enemies in peak condition, what will you do if you're ever in such a situation?'
'Adapt my moves to compensate!' The Kamado answered to the Makomo in his mind.
'As water, you can take any form…'
'And your flow will never be stopped!' The red haired teen finished Sabito's sentence.
Dun dun
'Right now, it's not just my bones! My heart's also been broken!' He realized, falling to the ground due to another rotation from the room.
'Ehhh?! A broken Tanjiro's not gonna do any good!' Zenitsu's words from earlier came to mind-
"ALL RIGHT! If you could please quiet down!" And Tanjiro squashed them and threw them out of his head.
'Look straight ahead! Rouse yourself! Give it all you've got, Tanjiro!' He rose his face still in a pained scowl and changed it into a determined glare. 'Give it all you've got!' Gripping his sword tighter, he moved it over his head while kneeling on the ground, with the edge towards the ceiling and the tip towards the tsuzumi demon.
"I've done a good job until now! I have what it takes! And not today or any time in the future! Even if I'm broken, I'll never give up no matter what!" Tanjiro declared, more to himself than his enemy, to vanish the last of his doubts. 'Here I go!'
His spirit no longer broken, Tanjiro dashed forward towards the demon…
Dun
And was quickly sent to the side by the room spinning left.
'I can do it! I know I can do it!' Tanjiro tried to keep his footing even with the rotation but was sent to the ground when the demon beat a tsuzumi again. 'I'm a guy who gets things done-gh!' Again his wounds acted up. 'Broken bones or not… no matter what…'
DunDun
Two rotations, one to the right and another forward but he managed to adapt to it in time to land.
'I can do it! I can fight!'
Another beat of the tsuzumi flipped the room on its head, sending Tanjiro falling towards the ceiling that now acted as the floor.
The demon hunter had just landed when the claw attack moved towards him making him jump to avoid it but, while he was still in mid-air, the demon began to spin the room around, making him crash against the walls repeatedly.
The Kamado managed to catch a break when the room spun and he grabbed one of the lamps, that were now on the 'wall', to stop himself from falling.
'It's no good! Nothing's changed at all! Spirit alone isn't gonna get me anywhere! Use your head, not just spirit!' But even if he knows that, it's not like the tsuzumi demon was just going to give him the time to think.
Dun
Tanjiro let go of the lamp to avoid the claw attack, almost falling through the doors that got off their hinges when he fell against them but managing to grab the edge of the doorway to remain in the room.
'Close call! I barely survived that one!'
"Damn! This is so annoying! I gotta consume some marechi! There's no time to lose!" The demon groaned as he struck his tsuzumi again to spin the room on its head, making the human fall to the ground just after he got on his feet.
'There isn't even time to stop and think!' Tanjiro quickly forced his body to the side when he heard the claw attack approaching.
"Hey you! What's your name?"
The demon was clearly taken aback by the sudden question, not used to anyone, demon or human, asking for such a thing.
"Kyogai." It was partially because of the surprise, that he stopped his attacks for a second and answered.
"Kyogai! I'm not handing over Kiyoshi… the marechi over to you!" Tanjiro declared, trying to keep him talking in order to buy himself time to think. "I'm not gonna cave! I'm not giving up!"
'If I use Total Concentration Breathing constantly I might be able to move but…' He remembered how quickly he lost his strength when stopping his converted comrade's blade from cutting Tamayo's head. 'No, I can't maintain it yet and I won't be lucky and have the sun buy me time to recover against this one.'
"I'm going to get my hands on some marechi!" Kyogai roared in anger, the pupils in his eyes becoming visible as they rolled from the back of his head and showing that the kanji for 'Lower Moon Six' with an X shaped scar over it. "And reclaim my place among the Twelve Demon Moons!"
'Twelve Demon Moons?!' Tanjiro repeated in his mind. 'Even if he is a former member… no matter what, I have to get his blood!' An image of Nezuko before she was turned flashed through his mind. 'I'll definitely make you human again!' The swordsman declared in his mind as he prepared his stance.
Kyogai moved to hit his tsuzumi again…
'Hm?!' But suddenly ducked, avoiding a slash from someone at his back. He then hit the tsuzumi in his left leg, causing the room to spin forwards and causing his assailant to fall inside the room due to the change in gravity.
"Kaigaku-san?!" Tanjiro said when he saw his senior land.
"Tch, so close." The black haired swordsman muttered with a scowl. "But I heard that, you're a former member of the Twelve Demon Moons, right?"
"All of you, keep barging into my home…" Kyogai didn't answer; he just bared his teeth at them and roared. "Insects! Disappear from my sight!"
And here is another one!
Again, not much has changed except for Kaigaku's participation but next time we have Tanjiro and Kaigaku vs Kyogai.
Now, how will that play out? And what will be the ramifications for it? And why am I asking you when I'm the one that should know?
Let's see if you can get some answers next time!
Before I leave you, I want to remind you once more that TanKana Week starts next week, I'll be working on my contributions for it so next chapter may take a bit.
With all that said, I hope you enjoyed and don't forget to leave a review!
Until next time!
