Hinokami's Blessing

Chapter 21

12Thirtypain03

WARNING: This story is rated M for mature-rated content. If some acts of violence, blood, or anything easily triggering make you uncomfortable, please leave and do not read. Any change to a character, when introduced, killed, changed into a demon/human, or more will be labeled in the chapter of occurrence. If a character has died in a chapter, that chapter will give a cause of death to that character.


Nezuko's POV


Nezuko stared up at Wakuraba, who merely chuckled at Nezuko's figure on the ground. To make matters even worse, the haze that was oozing off of Wakurab's leg was making it harder for her to breathe, as he stomped on Nezuko's figure.

She was vulnerable, and she knew it. She coughed some blood out as she was trying to remove the poisonous cloud from her lungs.

She had to find a quick way up.

She gripped her blade so that the demon wouldn't be able to kick the blade off her hand. She didn't care that her arm was being kicked over and over again.

She had to fight and grip her blade. She would slice the demon with this blade.

She grunted before Wakuraba lost it.

"Alright, you've done it," Wakuraba growled.

Blood Demon Art: Flash Kick

Before Nezuko knew it, she felt her arm being yanked off, with her blade.

"No!" Nezuko exclaimed as her arm went flying off with her blade.

Her blade thankfully hit the bulk of the train, so she would be able to get it.

The problem was that Wakuraba would do his best to make sure that did not happen.

She sighed, as she took the opportunity to kick Wakuraba. She flipped alongside the action, managing to get back upright, though without an arm and a blade.

She quickly regenerated her arm, before she looked at her blade.

"So this kid is a demon, being able to regenerate her arm, guess I'm not fighting a nobody." Wakuraba mumbled as he was analyzing what Nezuko was doing.

She had to get that back, but when she was outpaced by someone like Wakuraba, she knew she was in trouble.

"Brother, you here?" Nezuko asked but was unfortunately met with nothing.

"Brother?!" Nezuko exclaimed in panic before she heard some small breaths from him.

"Ah, so he fell asleep. Very well." Nezuko grumbled as she looked at Wakuraba.

"I will beat you…" Nezuko grumbled as she looked at Wakuraba.

"I'd like to see you you try." Wakuraba smirked, as he focused and made his way quickly toward her.

Blood Demon Art: Blood Sprint

Wakuraba, with a loud bang, managed to slice through Nezuko, as he slashed Nezuko, leaving a gash on her side.

Nezuko groaned and fell over in pain, specifically grunting as she focused on Wakuraba's figure.

She felt her blood spilling out, as Wakuraba continued to bombard Nezuko.

"I need to do something… But what…" Nezuko mumbled in anger. "I can't do anything!" She exclaimed.

However, to her shock, something did happen, specifically with her blood.

Blood Demon Art: Karmic Blaze

Before Wakuraba could even comprehend what happened, he felt a large searing pain in his legs.

"Arg!" Wakuraba exclaimed in shock as he quickly tried to pan the flames out.

Nezuko took this time to get up and run to get her sword.

Sure it may have been somewhat cowardly, but it was something she had to do.

This blade was her best chance to defeat this demon.

She panted, the demon art had tired her a bit, and she at least needed a bit to catch her breath.

Thankfully, the demon's inability to rid the flames across his body seemed to have been enough time for her to stall.

"Breathe Nezuko! Breathe!" Nezuko exclaimed as she focused on her breathing.

She had to properly do this, or else she failed.

It was now or never.

Total Concentration – Water Breathing, Fourth Form: Striking Tide

With a mighty charge, Nezuko swung her body and blade, winding the motion to slice the demon in her path.

Even when Wakuraba noticed and backed up, she continued to attack Wakuraba. As she focused, she noticed that he was continuing to use his blood demon art to dodge.

"Damnit, this demon is just running and dodging! He wants me to screw up and get a sloppy form!" Nezuko thought to herself.

She had to think outside the box.

She needed to use her blood demon art.

Sighing, while she continued to strike, she had intentionally cut parts of her skin, allowing for her blood to scatter across the field.

If she could get Wakuraba to mess up and stand in the blood, she could activate her blood demon art and manage to unleash her flames of karma onto him.

Right now, she just had to stall and keep herself not getting stuck too much.

As Wakuraba finally noticed a fault in Nezuko's pre, he took the chance.

Nezuko had perfectly placed herself around her blood, to make this work.

Just as she had expected, Wakuraba had used the opportunity to yet again make Nezuko fall to the ground.

She made sure to hold her blade this time so that it would not be taken from her.

She grumbledas she felt her back hurting.

"Ow…" Nezuko mumbled.

Wakuraba, for his part, just walked and stood over Nezuko.

"Seems like you are back to square on, huh?" Wakuraba smirked. "Seems my fellow blood wasn't able to kill your brother, but I do wonder how he currently is. Once I'm done with you, I'll kill your brother, and get my hands on some extra blood. I'll have been able to easily gain a spot back on master's good graces! Who knows? Maybe he might promote me!" Wakuraba exclaimed, clearly getting excited.

Nezuko however growled.

"This demon is insane…" Nezuko mumbled. As she watched Wakuraba, she looked onward,

"Too bad you won't get that luxury…" Nezuko growled.

"And why is that?" Wakuraba asked.

"Because I'm just getting started!" Nezuko exclaimed with a roar, as she gripped her free hand.

Before Wakuraba could ccomprehend the blood around Nezuko that Wakuraba was standing on, began to ignite, and light on fire.

Wakuraba went to scream as he felt the flames reign over him.

Nezuko too this time to get up.

"Now! Take this chance to strike him down!" Nezuko thought as she charged towards Wakuraba, who was again trying to get the flames off of him.

Nezuko, charged towards Wakuraba, knowing this would be the last time.

Total Concentration – Flower Breathing, First Form: Flower Cutter

Nezuko charged towards Wakuraba, as she aimed her blade low towards Wakuraba's legs.

If she could cut apart his legs, he would be immobile. She needed to do this!

"I don't care, just use the move!" Nezuko exclaimed and yelled as she cut through Wakuraba's leg easily.

Wakuraba, first burrounded by flames, was now on the ground without his legs.

His eyes widened in surprise at the quick turn of events.

"W-What was that?!" Wakuraba exclaimed in shock, "No! I need that extra blood!"

"Now! Do it now!" Nezuko pushed herself to the limits, as whilst Wakuraba was on the ground, Nezuko took the time to strike down.

Launching herself up, she let gravity let her fall back down to strengthen the impact of her final strike.

"This is it!" Nezuko yelled in her mind.

Wakuraba, however, was freaking out, "No! I can't let this happen! I cannot die! Not when mthe aster is Mastering on me! Why…" He mumbled,before he felt his head being separated from his body.

Nezuko had struck the demon directly in the neck with such force it severed the connections.

Clearly, it was just enough to decapitate Lower Moon Three.

Nezuko panted, as he stared at Wakuraba, her blade pointed directly at him.

However, to her relief, the demon began to disintegrate.

She sighed, as she eventually managed to defeat the lower moon.

"I did it… I defeated a lower moon, the third one… I did it… Brother, I did it…" Nezuko mumbled, as she eventually fell over.

However, she knew that wasn't over.

She was still in a train, with the rest of the others regarding their sleep.

She had to find a way to get them all awake.

The only thing she knew was that this was the work of the final lower moon on the train.

She sighed. She had to get it done.

Just how?

She made her way back, and to her surprise, saw her brother sleeping on the ground.

"Brother!" Nezuko exclaimed as she felt her brother, before sighing that he was alive.

"I need to wake you up, but how…" Nezuko mumbled.

Thankfully, with her infrared vision, she was able to spot something that may have helped her,

She saw the small semblances of what appeared to be a blood demon art, in the form of a ticket clamp.

"So that's how the demon managed to make everyone fall asleep…" Nezuko mumbled as she decided she needed to properly dispose of the demon art present.

As she carefully activated her own blood demon art, she carefully put it alongside Tanjirou's skin.

However, to her surprise, the flames quickly surrounded Tanjirou in a pink-red cue.

"Shit!" Nezuko exclaimed as she originally began to fan the flames out.

However, to her surprise, Tanjirou did not seemed affected by the flames.

"What…" Nezuko mumbled as she noticed that her blood flames had managed to burn the demon art off of her brother.

"So it worked… Maybe my blood demon art is only meant to hurt other demons' powers?" Nezuko hypothesized as she was looking at her hands.

Eventually, once she noticed this, she was happy. It would make her morals much better for humans. She could perhaps get a chance to be among the demon slayers.

Just as she was about to think more, she heard the mumbles of Tanjirou.

"Brother! You alright?" Nezuko asked, "You look pale!"

Tanjirou rubbed his eyes, "Y-Yeah…I just… Never mind…"

"Did you run into any demons?" Nezuko asked.

"Are you alright?" Nezuko asked her brother, again.

"I think the demon's blood art is making us dream of our biggest regrets…" Tanjirou sighed.

"How so?" Nezuko asked as she got a bit solemn at that.

"I was dreaming of our family, before the whole incident…" Tanjirou sighed, smiling sadly.

Nezuko could only look at her brother, with guilt. Just as much as he wanted to have wished something different happened, she too was focusing on guilt as well. It was her regret as well.

"Oh brother, I'm so sorr-" Nezuko tried to apologize, but Tanjioru stopped her.

"No. The dream I was in, was so blissful... I was imagining a dream where we all lived a happy life as a family... Without any pain, torture, suffering, or relentless training..." Tanjirou revealed, "When our parents wouldn't beat us, or starve us if we did something wrong..."

Nezuko could only imagine the emotional toll this was putting on Tanjirou at the moment. She knew how sensitive and trigger-like Tanjirou had when it came to his family, but to see him this bummed down, he was mentally shot, clearly reminiscing some bad memories from the abuse he suffered from his parents.

"Did you kill the demon?" Nezuko asked instead, trying to change the subject to get her brother's mind out of this.

"Tanjirou nodded, "Yeah, she was Lower Moon Four, I managed to kill her, but she had infused the sleeping demon art into her own, that's why I fell asleep… Did you defeat Lower Moon Three?"

Neuzko nodded, "I did, but I had to use my blood demon art… He was difficult… I almost got defeated, but I managed to slice his neck."

"Did you follow the concentration breathing constantly?" Tanjirou asked, and at this Nezuko's face dropped. Tanjirou could see and smell Nezuko's own reaction that she had probably forgotten.

Tanjirou sighed, "I forgot to do it as well, especially with the heat of battle, it's a different hill than sleeping… At least we did it… On the bright side, we've done it for such a time that I can at least go back to it almost instantaneously."

"Well then let's make sure for the next battle, we use it right. I'll make sure I use it as well, hopefully, the effects are instantaneous since we've done it for over a week nonstop during that training." Nezuko told her brother, who nodded. "You'll have to teach me how to do it even better, even if you are doing it starting now again, I'm still a bit in progress with it."

Nezuko smiled, as she helped Tanjrou up, as he nodded to Nezuko's offer.

"What about the other demon?" Tanjirou asked.

"Who?" Nezuko asked.

"Lower Moon One is here as well," Tanjirou explained.

"Oh right, we must get rid of him as well…" Nezuko sighed, "I'm so tired, I want to sleep…"

"We're not done yet, Nezuko, we still have this demon to deal with…" Tanjirou responded. "Considering you are able to wake up the rest of the passengers, we should prioritize them."

"I agree… I just learned my demon art can cleanse them of other demon's powers." Nezuko explained.

"That's great! That'll make it a lot easier!" Tanjirou smiled a bit, "Let's get the demon slayers awake! That makes it so much easier, than having to kill the lower moon responsible for this."

The two nodded, as they eventually made their way back down.

As the two continued, they eventually found the specific individuals they wanted to find.

"Wow, they look so professional, and they stand out…" Tanjirou mumbled as he decided to take a good look at the specific group of demon slayers he had run into this time.

"Hey, that's the demon slayer I ran into from Final Selection…" Nezuko exclaimed as she pointed to the demon slayer with yellow hair.

"That's new, I didn't even think people could get yellow hair, that's a first…" Tanjirou mumbled. The demon slayer Nezuko was looking at seemed relatively fine by Tanjirou's standards.

He had yellow hair, with noticeable yellow haori. "The yellow hair looks pretty cool."

The other demon slayer, was wearing a boar head. For a second, Tanjirou thought that the boar head was a demon, but he eventually theorized that they had to be human. He smelled like a human to be a human, albeit giving a wilder sense.

As for the others, Tanjirou and Nezuko could recognize the other two butterfly haori and hairclips. It seemed that purple was a colour they liked a lot.

As for Tanjirou, Nezuko found her brother staring specifically at one of them.

The girl Tanjirou was staring at, seemed to be rather slim, but Nezuko could tell she was strong and capable as a demon slayer. She had a ponytail black hairstyle, with a purple-tinted demon slayer uniform. Despite this, she had a white coat around her, with white boots.

She had a butterfly clip above her right ear, whilst her face seemed very gentle.

Even Nezuko had to admit that the girl was cute. No wonder Tanjirou was staring at her for a bit.

All the while, Tanjirou was somewhat intrigued by these individuals. He wasn't able to yet access their spiritual core. He was trying to access and decipher it, just in case he was going to get into a fighting situation with them.

However, the spiritual core of the younger butterfly girl seemed to catch Tanjirou off guard. He couldn't see what exactly this girl went through but for some reason, it was something that made Tanjirou feel extra sympathetic for some reason, and he had no reason to know why. At least not yet.

"What are you staring at, brother?" Nezuko teased her brother, who seemingly panicked once he realized he was being caught.

"N-No reason, I'm just staring at them all." Tanjirou tried to deviate away from that claim.

But he ultimately knew that Nezuko wasn't going to let this go, now.

Tanjirou sighed, knowing Nezuko was going to tease him.

"I think you were staring at that girl, is there something you want to tell me?" Nezuko smirked, clearly loving the fact she was able to tease Tanjirou about something.

"I mean, I did tell you I would find you a suitable lover." Nezuko chuckled, and Tanjirou's face went red.

"No!" Tanjirou exclaimed, "I can't! I'm a demon!"

"That doesn't sound like a no, you don't like her, reason," Nezuko smirked.

Tanjirou's ears were burning red, and it was here did Nezuko realize Tanjirou had accidentally activated his blood demon art, with the scarlet flames coming out of his ears.

Nezuko chuckled. "Anyways, let's wake them up."

"You sure? They may attack us." Tanjirou explained, and worried.

"That's why you'll stop them. Just for you, Tanjirou, I'll wake up the pretty girl, first." Nezuko smiled at Tanjirou, who tried to hide his bleeding nose.

Key point: tried.

"My brother is a lost cause. Oh well, if I can get these two together, then maybe we can finally get him to be happy." Nezuko thought, as she finally activated her blood demon art to wake up the girl. The girl was engulfed by Nezuko's pink flames. It was still a surprise for her that they weren't affected by her flames.

Eventually, the girl began to wake up.

"Hello!" Nezuko smiled at the girl. "What's your name?"

The girl looked around, immediately noticing the masks the two awake individuals were wearing on their faces.

Despite the girl's shocked face, she decided to flip a coin.

Once she flipped the coin, she finally asked, "Who are the two of you? My name's Kanao Tsyuri."

"Oh! I see!" Nezuko smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Kanao."

"Who are the two of you? I could have sworn I've seen you before." Kanao started, as she tilted her head a bit.

"This girl seems very emotionless, well that's bad news for you, Tanjirou." Nezuko thought.

"Well, yeah, the both of us were at Final Selection, and also at Mount Natagumo," Nezuko explained before she turned to Tanjirou.

"Come on!" Nezuko grabbed Tanjirou's hand and pulled him to face Kanao.

He was so glad he was wearing his mask because he was a blushing mess. "H-Hello…"

At this, Kanao looked at Tanjirou closely. She showed a bit of surprise when she saw Tanjirou, "How are you alive?"

This surprised both Tanjirou and Nezuko.

"What. I didn't expect this." Nezuko thought to herself.

"U-Uh, can you explain?" Tanjirou asked after his shock subsided.

"From Final Selection, you took a nasty blow from that Upper Moon, how are you alive, seemingly fine?" Kanao asked.

Tanjirou chuckled, "The demon didn't hit anything vital, I was caught, and my fall was slowed down by the trees…I just got very lucky."

"Oh, I see, thank you for saving my sister, and myself." Kanao gave Tanjirou a small smile. Tanjirou could tell that the smile was very forced, but this one seemed to have a bit of sincerity.

Nezuko smiled, "Not even a couple of sentences, and Tanjirou already has this girl smiling, good job…"

Tanjirou chuckled, "Don't worry about it, I'm just glad I managed to save someone…"

Kanao then eyed the two closely.

"Are the two of you demons?" Kanao asked.

"Uh, why?" Tanjirou asked.

"Well, you two look very similar to the description that Shinobu and Kanae gave to Ubuyashiki when we had our meeting after Mount Natagumo," Kanao explained.

"You know Ubuyashiki? So then, you know about us." Nezuko asked.

"The two of you must be Giyu's tsuguko's and you both are demons, is that right?" Kanao asked.

Tanjirou and Nezuko looked at each other, clearly asking the same question.

"Should we take off our masks?" The two asked at the same time.

Nezuko was the first one to take off her mask, and she looked at Kanao. It only then did Nezuko realize the two were the exact same height.

After a bit, Tanjirou took off his mask, showing his face to the girl.

While the girl seemed unaffected by Tanjirou, Nezuko knew this was due to the fact they were demons.

Almost immediately, she raised her blade.

"Wait! We're not here to fight!" Tanjirou explained.

"Is that so? How can I trust you, when you are probably eating the humans who are defenseless right now." Kanao responded.

Tanjirou shook his head, "We haven't eaten any humans since our transformation, and we never will!"

At this, Kanao looked at Tanjirou unimpressed. "I cannot, I must kill every demon for they are all evil."

Despite this, Kanao did seem a bit hesitant to make a move. Almost like something was stopping her. There was this nagging feeling in Kanao that told her something that was making her question her own choices.

"How! Aren't there any demons out there who are nice? Is everyone you are with that against demons?" Tanjirou asked, clearly getting emotional, considering they had defeated Lower Moon 3 and 4, just to get accused of eating humans while they were sleeping.

Nezuko felt a bit angry, but also accepted it, knowing they had to expect this.

"In case you realize, while you and your demon slayer buddies have been sleeping, we've had to fend this train off from the likes of Lower Moon Three and Four! Also, we still must deal with Lower Moon One! Not to mention my sister woke you up!" Tanjirou exclaimed.

Kanao kept a still face, as she saw Tanjirou speak his mind. Nezuko could only look on at her brother. She worried for her brother's well-being, especially once she learned of the world he lived in the dream.

"Can't you believe this once that there are some demons who are nice and don't want to kill humans? Can't you believe that there are some demons who just want to be friends with humans regardless of what happened to them?" Tanjirou asked.

At this, Kanao's eyes widened. "His words... It's almost sound like… Kanae's…" Kanao mumbled to herself, as she looked at the two demons.

"Sister, I believe that someday there will be demons who want to be as close to humans as possible. Demons who may be able to resist their demonic urges, and just want to become friends with other demons. A demon who has never harmed a human"

"For, if I ever come to a day, or whenever you or my little sister meet a demon like so, I would give them my undying companionship and friendship to them. Demons are tragic creatures, and for as long as I'd lived, I would give them the closest experience to them being human. I believe that one day, peace will come, and when it does, open your arms and accept them." Kanae's morals began to flood Kanao's mind, as she was now debating what to do with these demons.

"Neither of you have once hurt a human, or drank blood from them?" Kanao asked at last.

Both Tanjirou and Nezuko shook their head adamantly.

"No, we haven't," Nezuko told Kanao firmly.

"Half the time, I forget I'm a demon until the sun comes out…" Tanjirou added, clearly rubbing his head. "My sister has to be the one to warn me the sun is coming out, or else I get burnt."

Nezuko chuckled, "You are too fearless sometimes…"

Kanao could only look at the two demons, clearly questioning her own morals.

"Are these two actually demons? They don't really act like them… But then… They were telling the truth when they said they have never harmed a human… Everything they said… was the truth… Even the causal conversations about them almost burning in the sun…" And so, with no choice left, she turned to her coin.

However, she then thought.

Was it her sister's own morals, the ones she would follow, to override her own inability to make decisions?

She sighed, putting her coin in her pocket.

"Just this once, Kanao…" She sighed, now hoping that whatever her decision was, would be proper. "Sister's own words will be the only thing I don't need my coin for."

She should at least thank Nezuko, for she was out of her dream of her family actually being nice to her.

"Alright, I trust you." Kanao spoke to the two at last, "Thank you for waking me up."

"Wait, really?!" Tanjirou asked, a bit excited, and content.

"Yes… Your eyes are too trustworthy to be telling a lie… Same to your sisters." Kanao spoke at last, "If we have the threat of a lower moon being here, we should probably get the others awake."

"Can I ask for one favor?" Tanjirou asked.

"Sure."

"Can you make sure the flaming guy doesn't try to attack us? He kind of-"

"I saw that, and I will tell him to relent," Kanao explained.

Tanjirou gave Kanao a smile, thanking her.

Nezuko looked on, as she put her hands out.

Blood Demon Art: Karmic Blaze

As Nezuko unleashed her pink flames on the purple haori girl, Kanao, for a second, freaked out, thinking she was burning her sister.

However, Tanjirou grabbed Kanao by her hand. "It's alright, that's what she did to you and me."

Kanao turned to Tanjirou, surprised.

Tanjirou nodded, "Yes, I fell asleep from the demon as well."

Eventually, Nezuko stopped her flames, as the petite butterfly pillar woke up.

"My head… what… You two?!" Shinobu exclaimed.

"Hello, we meet again." Nezuko smiled at Shinobu.

"What are you both doing here?" She asked.

At this, Tanjirou chuckled. "Well, we were sent by Giyu to this train to help."

Shinobu's eyes widened before she sighed. "That damn individual…"

Tanjirou chuckled, "Should we wake up the rest of them?" Tanjirou asked Nezuko who nodded.

Nezuko agreed before she activated her blood demon art, engulfing the remaining demon slayers in her flames.

Of course, Shinobu too was a bit nervous about what Nezuko was doing, but she eventually calmed down once they all woke up.

Rengoku was the first to react, "You two." He clearly was not a fan of the move Tanjirou had played on him back there.

"Hello, sorry about earlier, we just worried for our lives when you grabbed my sister." Tanjirou sighed.

Rengoku looked a bit apathetic before he shrugged, "You want to explain what happened?"

Nezuko nodded, "There are three lower moons on this train. Brother and I have managed to kill the lower three and lower four, but we think the lower one is the one who is making these people sleep."

"I see. Well then, we may have to fight some of these humans… If the demon can control their dreams, there is no doubt he'll use those emotions to influence humans." Shinobu theorized.

"So, some of us should stay behind to make sure the humans don't harm us…" Rengoku added before he then perked up. "Alright! I'll go up with one other person, the rest will scatter around the train to make sure there aren't any humans working alongside the demon!"

Nezuko nodded, "I'll go with you, I want to defeat lower moons."

Rengoku eyed Nezuko before he spoke, "I like you both! You may be demons, but your morals in wanting to kill demons responsible for harm is honorable! For that, you have my mercy! But if you truly want to have my support, you will show it here now!"

Tanjirou gripped his blade, "I was sent here to slay the demons here, so our goals match that of each other."

Nezuko nodded, "Same, so I'll go with you."

"Perfect! The rest of you stay here!" Rengoku commanded.

As Tanjirou and Nezuko looked at each other, they forgot about the other demon slayers.

"AH! YOU ARE SO CUTE!" Zenitsu's voice echoed as he finally stared at Nezuko. "I'M FINALLY SEEING YOUR FACE!"

Both Nezuko and Tanjirou looked at him with differing expressions. Nezuko was a bit confused, whilst Tanjirou was skeptical, and immediately he felt his brotherly protective aura consume him, as he put himself in front of his sister.

The other demon slayer surprised Tanjirou more.

"KYA! DEMON! I W3LL SLA7 YOU!" The boar head suddenly yelled as he charged Tanjirou.

Tanjirou could only unsheathe his blade in a defensive position to block the blades of the boar head who was trying to cut Tanjirou down.

"Inosuke! Stand down! They're an ally!" Zenitsu told the boar head.

The boar head looked at the two demon siblings in confusion. "Gah, too much work for me…"

And so, Inosuke put his blade down, and they now followed back to what they were planning.

"Look at these wires, the remnants of them on our wrists…" Rengoku mumbled as Shinobu stared down.

"The work of a blood demon art… It seems Nezuko did indeed nullify its effects to allow us to awaken…" Shinobu theorized, "Guess we must give Nezuko our thanks."

"No problem, and don't sweat it. Our goals are intertwined, and so I'll gladly help you." Nezuko smiled.

Immediately afterward, the group knew they couldn't stall anymore, and made their way to their positions. Nezuko and Rengoku began to run out so that the two could confront the lower moon on the top of the train.

"Why is the demon just chilling there?" Nezuko asked herself but decided to just approach the demon.

"Remember to use it in your next battle." Tanjirou's voice echoed in her mind.

"Right, I need to use breathing constantly this time, and not to break it during the battle," Nezuko told herself. "I can do it."

And so, the two finally met the demon in question.

"Oh? Looks like some people haven't gone to sleep." The Lower Moon One, Enmu looked a bit surprised.

"You'd be surprised. I'm not letting you kill these humans." Rengoku explained.

"You seem very strong and potent, a Hashira perhaps? That's perfect, I'll easily be able to promote the ranks. And the girl demon master had ordered me to kill? This is perfect!" Enmu smiled.

At this, Rengoku looked at Nezuko, a bit confused, "So Muzan here is after Nezuko, and perhaps even Tanjirou? This is interesting… Perhaps bringing them back to the Ubuyashiki estate may become a priority after this."

"I don't care if you work for Muzan, or whoever, I'm here to slay and kill you all." Nezuko firmly spoke.

She breathed in, preparing for anything that may occur.

Considering what Tanjirou knew, Nezuko knew that this demon could easily subdue her with his ability to make her fall asleep.

According to Tanjirou, the only way he thinks they could wake up from their dreams was to k*ll yourselves.

"What a horrible thing to do…" Nezuko sighed.

Total Concentration – Water Breathing, Third Form: Flowing Dance

Nezuko made sure to get this right this time. She had let herself let loose away from her own breathing as a result of fighting. No wonder she and Tanjirou had struggled so much from the Lower Moons.

But this time, the times would be different. Nezuko would come out triumphant this time, and it would be a definite one-sided victory. Not a close one like her fight with Lower Moon Three.

Nezuko sighed, whilst breathing in, not knowing Rengoku was looking at her with a bit of suspicion.

"This demon seems to know the early forms of constant breathing, huh? If they were trained by a Hashira, then that would explain this." Nezuko knew Rengoku was still confused, but that wasn't going to stop her. She would beat this demon.

Rengoku, for his part, decided to lash out at the demon.

Total Concentration – Flame Breathing, First Form: Unknowing Fire

Rengoku quickly dashed towards the Enmu, as he unleashed a slash directed towards the Lower Moon's neck.

Seemed Nezuko wanted to decapitate Enmu very quickly right there.

"I don't think so." Enmu chuckled, "I think it's time for you to go back to SLEEP."

Blood Demon Art: Sleep Inducement

Enmu tried to strike Rengoku with his demon art, but Nezuko was one stop above him, clearly knowing what was going to happen.

Nezuko had maintained her concentration constantly to the point that she felt at ease. She felt powerful, and for a bit, could feel that her body was slightly heating up. It wasn't noticeable, though. She quickly cut part of her arm out and threw some of her blood on the ground.

Blood Demon Art: Karmic Blaze (Blood Trail)

Once Nezuko gripped her hand, pink blazes began to span out between Rengoku and Enmu, effectively blocking out his demon art.

"Oh, how annoying! You are no fun…" Enmu grumbled as he eyed Nezuko.

Nezuko knew he would most definitely focus on her, as there was no doubt that Enmu had to subdue her, or else his blood demon art was negligent towards Rengoku.

"That's a useful blood demon art she has, and considering she protected me, I guess her morals are human, like us…" Rengoku thought to himself as he continued the pursuit of Enmu.

Total Concentration – Flame Breathing, Third Form: Blazing Universe

Rengoku jumped high into the sky, which Nezuko noticed. Unfortunately, it seemed Enmu was prepared for this, as Nezuko wouldn't be able to deflect Enmu's blood demon art from that angle without potentially interfering with Rengoku's form.

"I must do it!" Nezuko exclaimed as she focused primarily on her breathing. She was hoping that both she and Tanjirou, after practicing for over two weeks, didn't lose the benefits of concentration and constant breathing as a result of the heat of the battle.

Total Concentration – Water Breathing, Eight Form Modified: Flowing River

Nezuko took her chance to rush forward, trying to pincer Enmu's own figure.

Just to be sure, Nezuko threw some of her blood in front of her and activated her blood demon art, so that Enmu couldn't hit her with a sleep inducement judge.

"Damnit!" Enmu grunted as he dodged Nezuko's slashes, but suffered an overhead strike right on his shoulder blade, cutting to his collarbone.

He grunted as he gripped his shoulder, waiting for it to regenerate.

But he couldn't, not when he was being bombarded with multiple attacks.

"Gah! I should have realized how hard it was fighting a Hashira. But this girl… I know she's a demon, but her blood demon art is making everything much more difficult… Not to mention her speed. It seems faster, and she's stronger, with her slashes and swipes… She's almost on par with this Hashira… How?!" Enmu cursed the world for the circumstances he was in right now, as he eyed Nezuko.

"I" ll kill you! For Master's sake!"

Blood Demon Art: Cast Hallucination

Nezuko could only thank her breathing that she was able to realize and dodge the sudden blood demon art that Enmu had cast out.

Unfortunately, it caught Rengoku, and he recoiled.

"Ack!" He gasped as he quickly stabbed his sword into the train, gripping it tightly.

"What's happened, Rengoku?!" Nezuko exclaimed in shock, as she quickly got in between him and Enmu, using her remaining blood on the ground to protect herself from more blood demon arts.

"He's hit me with a hallucination, my vision is confiscated temporarily. I have tunnel vision." Rengoku explained. "I'll need you to slay this demon. I can launch myself and direct his attacks away."

Nezuko looked unsure, "Are you alright with this?"

"I've fought my own lower moons before, don't worry girl, I can take care of myself. I still have a vision, and it seems to be getting better, especially my peripheral vision." Rengoku soothed Nezuko.

Nezuko looked at the flame Hashira before nodding.

"Alright." Nezuko got up silently and stared at Enmu.

"Just keep your breath still, Nezuko. Like brother told me, like how he breathes the Hinokami."

Nezuko stood up straight, as she stared down Enmu. She wasn't going to second guess herself.

All she was going to do, was decapitate this demon.

That was all she had to do.

Raising her blade, she looked at her blood staining the train.

With great effort, Nezuko acted.

Blood Demon Art: Karmic Blaze, Karmic Inferno Purge

With great effort, Nezuko managed to move her blood across the train to surround Enmu. It was still difficult, and slow, but Enmu had given her enough time to perform such a technique. Even still, her blood seemed to be unable to move far. Still, the distance wasn't far enough.

Before Enmu knew it, the blood around him erupted in pink flames again.

Enmu's eyes widened in shock as he realized what Nezuko had done.

"Crap! This isn't good… I'll have to charge out the flames!" Enmu thought as he stared back at Nezuko.

Nezuko breathed in, deciding now was the time.

She had to.

Total Concentration – Water Breathing, Eleventh Form, Modified: Raging Whirlpool

Nezuko sucked in a deep amount of oxygen, as she kept it in tune with her concentration breathing.

Rengoku was eyeing the entire ordeal, with a curious look.

"She's performing Giyu's technique? How does she know that?" Rengoku asked himself, as he quietly got up. The flames had trapped Lower Moon One, and it make it easier for him to catch up to him, especially with the knowledge that Nezuko's flames don't hurt him.

All the attacks Enmu had thrown at Nezuko, which got through her blood demon art, were slashed by Nezuko at inhumane speeds, as she felt her heart rate drop substantially. She was holding the tranquil aura for as long as she could.

Total Concentration – Flame Breathing, Fourth Form: Blooming Flame Undulation

Rengoku took the time to slash toward Enmu, who had charged out the flames and was burning and trying to subdue it. In the process, Rengoku took the opportunity to strike and apply pressure on Enmu.

To be fair, by Nezuko's own vision, Rengoku wasn't necessarily struggling. He only struggled to get too close to Enmu. Even with Nezuko's help, as long as he remained aware of Enmu's own blood demon art, he could easily defeat this lower moon.

Eventually, Nezuko, after taking in a deep breath of air, quickly let it out, and she unleashed her legs.

"Grah!" Nezuko yelled as she charged towards Enmu, quickly. Much quicker than Rengoku's dashes, or even Tanjirou's. She had managed to use as much air expulsion in her body, as to make her body dash out at almost lightning speeds.

It was almost as fast as those of Thunder Breathing, maybe even rivaling that.

However, it caught Enmu off guard, and Nezuko managed to slice him across his body, directly in half.

Enmu gasped before he grinned.

"Now you've done it!"

Blood Demon Art: Cast Hallucination

Nezuko gasped in shock as she felt her own vision flicker widely.

"Ah!" Nezuko yelled as her vision was flickering brightly and darkly incredibly quickly. She felt a kick to her stomach that sent her back.

When she looked up, she saw the center of her vision being the only visible part.

Rengoku was right, she was only seeing tunnel vision right now.

She had to wait for her peripheral vision to work.

Thankfully, Nezuko had an ace.

Her infrared vision. Even if she couldn't detect normal light, infrared light was a different wavelength.

Nezuko had to only hope Enmu's demon art only messed with the eye's ability to respond to certain wavelengths like the visible vision they see.

To Nezuko's own relief, that was the case.

She was still able to see, because of her infrared vision.

"Thank Hinokami for this gift… If I didn't I'd be screwed." Nezuko mumbled as she got out.

"What? How are you getting up so quickly?! You cannot see me." Enmu bragged to Nezuko after his shock went away.

"You'd be surprised." That was all Nezuko explained.

From her infrared eyes, she could tell Rengoku was still fighting with Enmu. She could tell that he wasn't struggling whatsoever, but that Enmu was mostly dodging however he could.

Nezuko got up and continued her breathing. She had to get the decisive blow. She knew she could.

Total Concentration – Water Breathing, Fifth Form, Modified: Torrential Rainstrike Technique.

With her infrared vision helping her, she leaped high into the ground, and while Enmu was dodging, Nezuko was properly analyzing his movement patterns.

She had thankfully been able to trace Enmu's own movement, as she found herself leaping towards Enmu, who was too focused on Rengoku.

Fluidly and gracefully she spun to get some more momentum before she sliced down. Instead of a simple rainfall that was painless, a torrential rainfall was what Enmu's neck felt, as he felt himself being decapitated by the blade, catching him completely by surprise.

"Good job, young Kamado!" Rengoku praised Nezuko, who smiled.

"Give me a second, my vision hasn't recovered yet…" Nezuko sighed as she barely saw, Enmu's figure.

"How annoying this is…" Enmu grumbled, "Too bad. I guess."

"What are you talking about?" Rengoku asked, clearly not wanting to hear from this demon.

Suddenly, before the two knew it, the train shook.

"That's not good…" Nezuko mumbled as she stabilized herself.

"I hate to break it to you, but this is only a replica of my body." Enmu chuckled, "My full and actual body is the train. Good luck trying to decapitate me now! HAHAHAHAHA!"

Enmu's laugh echoed throughout the night, as both Nezuko and Rengoku's faces morphed in shock and horror.

"We got to get the passengers off the train…" Rengoku mumbled, "Come Kamado, we'll need you to quickly wake up and get everyone out of the train!"

And so, the two rain back.

Eventually, Nezuko came back to see the scene.

Kanao, Zenitsu, and Inosuke were dealing with some smaller demons within the train, as well as some humans attacking them for ridding them of their sleep.

Even Tanjirou had to strike some humans, but most were with a simple blade to the side, or a neck chop to knock them out.

This showed them his unwillingness to hurt humans regardless of the situation.

"We got bad news," Rengoku told the others.

"What is it, Rengoku?" Shinobu's voice echoed as she was holding back a wound to her arm.

"The lower moon's body has become infused into the train. We must find his head to decapitate, but in this train, it may take a while." Rengoku sighed. "Not to mention, the risk this puts on the passengers."

"We've had another issue," Kanao spoke up. "Some humans have chosen to attack and side with the demons. We've unfortunately had to subdue them."

"Tanjirou here didn't want to." Zenitsu explained, "Saying that they all just had regrets that were being fixed. They were being influenced by their emotions, not their rationality. So he just neck-chopped them back to sleep."

At this, Rengoku gave the brother Kamado a smile.

"Seems Tanjirou had managed to get on his good graces… This may not be so bad…" Nezuko thought.

"Alright, Kanao, Zenitsu, and Inosuke, you three aren't injured, right?" Shinobu asked.

Inosuke had a bit of a bruise on his upper torso and arm area, so he was a bit injured. Fortunately, the boar was as persistent as he was resilient.

Zenitsu was crying to get a break, as his body was strained from performing thunder breathing over and over again.

Kanao was a bit injured, having bruises from some humans, rather than the demons.

Shinobu had it the worse, with a stab wound on her left hand and shoulder. Fortunately, she still had her one good hand.

"No, we can manage." Kanao spoked.

"Good, you three evacuate those who are awake. Nezuko, you wake up the rest. Rengoku, Tanjirou, you both find the demon."

At this, Tanjirou smirked. "Well, actually."

"You have an idea?" Rengoku asked.

Tanjirou nodded, "If this works, then this might save a lot of time."

It was here Shinobu had an idea before she chuckled. "Oh, the irony…"

"What's wrong?" Rengoku and Tanjirou asked Shinobu.

"I'm a poison dealer." Shinobu smiled.

At this, Tanjirou's eyes widened, "You too?"

"Wait, you deal poison too?" Shinobu asked.

"Well, my blood demon art does…" Tanjirou explained.

Shinobu motioned for Tanjjirou to show.

"A-Alright…"

Blood Demon Art: Hinokami's Blessing.

Just like the other times, Tanjirou felt his skin being pierced as his blood poured and spilled on his body. Some even dropped to the ground, as his flaming mark spread across his body.

Total Concentration – Hinokami's Infusion, Eight Form: Sunflower Thrust

Tanjirou's body engulfed itself into flames, as the flames on his sword and blood combined for a crimson flame.

The black nirchirin blade Tanjirou had, was now turning crimson red as he thrust his blade so that only the point struck the body of the train, infused with Enmu.

Tanjirou quickly removed his blood demon art, returning to normal.

Sure enough, purple marks and swellings began to engulf and surround the area Tanjirou had struck.

To Shinobu, this was a surprise.

"A demon whose blood demon arts can destroy demons like poison and another that destroys their demon arts… Who are these two? The boy's demon art is killing the demon without decapitation just like my poison…" Shinobu gawked at the boy's capabilities.

However, Shinobu herself had to make sure.

Dance of the Dragonfly: Compound Eye Hexagon

Shinobu merely struck the demon areas in six different spots to make sure her poison would engulf the body.

Sure enough, the body began to disintegrate, as the combined poisons of both Shinobu and Tanjirou were taking their toll.

Enmu would be dead very soon.

But there were still threats. There were some tentacles that were moving and needed to be disposed of.

Rengoku, Nezuko, and Kanao took care of them.

However, Tanjirou and Shinobu were facing different issues.

Most notably, the humans who had previously fought the demon slayers had now dropped dead, not moving.

Tanjirou had been the first to smell the sudden change.

"No!" Tanjirou exclaimed as he felt the pulse of one of the individuals.

Nothing…

"No…"

He tried the other…

"Please…"

Nothing…

"NO!" Tanjirou screamed.

He was checking the pulses of all the humans who had previously fought them to get their dreams back.

But none of them had a pulse…

They were all dead…

Tanjirou fell to his knees, in disbelief.

"It seems Lower Moon One had managed to access their spiritual core…" Shinobu sadly looked down, realizing the fate she had just given the humans as a result of one greedy demon.

Tanjirou too, was devastated at the sudden deaths of some of the humans.

"I-I'm so sorry…" Tanjirou mumbled, and for once, Shinobu looked at Taniirou with sympathy and sadness.

She didn't see Tanjirou as a demon right now, but rather as a human who was forced to kill for the very first time.

The others, too were seeing this, and they felt for Tanjirou.

"I-I killed them…" Tanjirou gasped… "I'm responsible for their deaths… When I poisoned Enmu… I must've poisoned the humans as well…"

"No, Tanjirou, Enmu merely brought them all down with him as he died…" Shinobu sighed, trying to make it better, "You aren't responsible for their deaths…"

"But I'm a demon! If I kill a human or am responsible for their death, I-… I must die… You all must kill me…" Tanjirou looked down in shame.

"NO!" Nezuko ran up to Tanjirou and slapped him on his face. "Don't ever say that! Shinobu here too must be feeling guilty that she too might be responsible! If you are responsible and are asking for death because you have to make up for that, then Shinobu has to as well!"

"You aren't responsible, Tanjirou…" Nezuko sighed, "The demon killed them all using his last breath…"

Kanao, Inosuke, and Zentisu were prioritizing evacuation and thus weren't there to watch and console Tanjirou.

Tanjirou was clearly shaking, but despite this, Nezuko could tell he was still performing his breathing constantly.

"Wow… Even when he's in distress… Brother can still do the breathing constant…" Nezuko thought.

"Nezuko's right, Tanjirou. Neither you nor Shinobu was responsible." Rengoku patted Tanjirou on the shoulder.

"Indeed. I would be blaming myself too, not to mention those I failed in the spider eggs." Shinobu sighed.

"Come on, Tanjirou, you've clearly shown us your morals, and we see good in both you and Nezuko, let's move on…" Shinobu tried to speak to Tanjirou, who sighed.

"W-Will I will be killed for their deaths?" Tanjirou asked.

"No, you won't, because you aren't the one responsible for their deaths." Rengoku and Shinobu consoled Tanjirou.

"O-Ok…"

And so, they all helped Tanjirou up, and Nezuko began to follow them all outside the train.

Despite the difficulty, they managed to evacuate the rest of the passengers from the train.

"Well, I'd say that's a job well do-"

Rengoku, Shinobu, and Tanjirou's eyes all widened as they saw another demon approaching Zenitsu, Inosuke, and Kanao.

Immediately, Rengoku pulled out his blade and blocked the demon, whilst Shinobu grabbed Kanao, and motioned for the others to distance themselves from this demon.

"Well, hello there, the nice night we're having." The demon chuckled, showing his eyes to the demon slayers, who all gasped at what they were seeing.

"Well, shit." Nezuko mumbled. She couldn't even have Tanjirou with her to help him, as she could tell that she was about to have a fight for her life.


A.N / Alright! Gonna end it there! Quite a long chapter but I think it's worth it. Think of it as extra work for not updating for a day. I just realized I've been pumping a chapter almost every day.

I've noticed someone commenting about the point of total concentration breathing, constant, and both Nezuko and Tanjirou have learned it. The problem is that in the heat of the fight, they sometimes forget. This chapter emphasizes their role and the mental calmness they need when they fight, which they'll achieve moving forward, mostly, as Nezuko is able to defeat Lower Moon One a bit easier now. Tanjirou again is more skilled than Nezuko at constant breathing, and through Hinokami Kagura, but Nezuko is better able to use water breathing, and her blood demon art, so Nezuko will use that more often.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this chapter! See you next time.


Character Profile


Mukago: Female, unknown age.

Status: Dead, Demon

Height: 5'3" (160cm)

Weight: 125Ibs

Wakuraba: Male, unknown age.

Status: Dead, Dmeon

Height: 5'5" (165cm)

Weight: 130Ibs

Enmu: Male, unknown age.

Status: Dead, Demon

Height: 5'6" (168cm)

Weight: 137Ibs

Kanao Tsuyuri: Female, 16 years old.

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 5'2 (157cm)

Weight: 122Ibs)

Rengoku Kyojuro: Male, 19 years old.

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 5'10" (177cm)

Weight: 159Ibs

Zenitsu Agatsuma: Male, 15 years old.

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 5'7" (170cm)

Weight: 130Ibs

Inosuke Hashibira: Male, 15 years old.

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 5'5" (165cm)

Weight: 135Ibs


Ability: Breathing Style


Rengoku Kyojuro:

No new flame-breathing techniques were shown. He still has his normal set of flame-breathing forms, but I may add a bit more.


Shinobu Kocho:

Same story. No new insect breathing techniques were shown, but she may show a new form later on.


Nezuko Kamado:

Total Concentration – Water Breathing, Fifth Form, Modified: Torrential Rainstrike Technique.

The user leaps up high and strikes down in a torrent pattern that may include multi-strike hits. Unlike Blessed of the Rain, this form is meant to be faster, and more painful for demons. Can act as a quick switch-up for feigning demons.

Total Concentration – Water Breathing, Eleventh Form, Modified: Raging Whirlpool

Same idea as Giyu's Dead Calm, with the first half being the exact same, however, is followed by an explosive dash to strike the demon unexpectedly, using the momentum of all struck-down moves. Is more powerful if more moves are struck down, giving Nezuko more momentum to attack.


Ability: Blood Demon Arts


Enmu:

Cast Hallucination:

The user casts a visionary blind effect that inhibits the eye's ability to integrate and respond to visible light wavelength. This usually goes away but starts as a tunnel vision for individuals. Can take 1-10 minutes to restore vision. Basically acts as a flashbang, I guess, but can also hurt the opponent's eyes through flickering.

Sleep Inducement:

The user, with their arms, can put anyone to sleep if the move strikes the individual in the torso or head. The state of sleep is not perfect, and individuals may find a way to escape their dream-like state and sleep.


Nezuko Kamado:

Blood Demon Art: Karmic Blaze (Blood Trail)

The user, of Nezuko in this case spreads her blood across the ground to create flames that extend away from her body. Lasts less as long as if the flames are next to her, but has a longer range to attack demons and their blood arts. Can also hurt humans who have poor morals.

Blood Demon Art: Karmic Blaze, Karmic Inferno Purge

With her blood on the ground, Nezuko can with limit move her blood to surround the opponent with pink blazes, making them either take damage through contact or whatever dangers lie outside.


Tanjirou Kamado:

Blood Demon Art – Hinokami's Infusion, Eight Form: Sunflower Thrust

The user, or Tanjirou's sword and scarlet flames surround his body in a circular fashion, with the flames of his sword turning crimson red. The tip-only strike allows for precise and effective injection of Tanjirou's blood into a demon to effectively poison and eventually kill them. The flames around Tanjirou for this move, are actual flames, and not purely for effect purposes.


Wakuraba:

Blood Demon Art - Flash Kick

It's just a very fast quick he can do when he places his blood and oxygen strictly do his knees. Can also have some electrical aura to temporarily paralyze individuals.


Taisho Secret:


If I don't mention anything about a demon's backstory, then it means the same thing occurs in the manga or anime.

As for Chachamaru, yes Nezuko and Tanjirou both called for Chachamaru to remain in the area so that the lower moon's bloods could be collected for further testing. Don't worry, I didn't forget everything!