Summary:
Yuichiro returns from the battle with light physical wounds, but deep emotional wounds. He's lucky to have such a caring younger brother in Muichiro.Notes:
Kanroji and a few of the other Hashira have been aged up by a few years in this fic, so that they would have been in the ranks by the time the Tokito twins get there.Chapter TextYuichiro
"Oi, kid" Iguro nudges me, "I hope you realize what a rare opportunity this is. Those pills better not have made you dull."
I have no idea what this feeling is that's taken hold of me. Fear? Excitement? Bloodlust?...
No! I'm desperate to kill this guy right here right now!
Unlike the last one I faced, I can read the Kanji in this demon's eyes.
"Waxing moon…Rank 2... No Iguro-san, I'm not dull at all."
"Lin-chan," this demon continues to mourn his slain puppets, "She came to me all the way from Qinghai province to see me, oh, what a loyal friend you were Lin-chan!"
This ridiculous farce is my opportunity! While this guy's vision is obscured by his crocodile tears, I make my move and charge!
"You fool!" Iguro shouts, "That's too reckless!"
I'll cut out this demon's organs before I behead him! Fourth form…
It doesn't happen…. This guy stops my attack. My sword is stopped by a fan he's holding in his hand, and instinctively, I retreat as fast as I can as he swings it. The air is cold and I can feel the Kamaiitachi prickle me. Had I been an instant slower I would have been cut up.
"You foolish brat," Iguro chides me, "the waxing moons are a world different from the waning moons! Do you want to die?"
"Then how are we supposed to fight him?" I ask. I can feel the vibrations in the air… I can sense it… Iguro is way more experienced than I am, so even if I can't tell right away what to do… I'm starting to feel it. It's not a good feeling.
"You two seem quite mean." the demon says. He's no longer crying those fake tears of his. It's as if it never happened. "I would love to help you two, I really would. But I am afraid I must take care of some business in town. Perhaps we can meet later and talk. I'll be sure to listen-"
"Oi oi, cut the crap," I say, keeping my voice cool and my eyes fixed on the target. "Who said you were going to any town? You're not leaving this spot."
"Oooohhhhh scary," the demon says, "and your eyes look pretty evil too. But I know you weren't born that way. Nobody is born truly evil. If you survive this Miko, come and find me. I am Doma, the founder of the eternal paradise cult. Bye now."
He waves his fan, and a miniature version of this guy comes out, except they look as though they are made of ice.
Just like Koufun, huh?
The Miko waves its fan at us, and if it weren't for my sharp instincts and reflexes I'd have been killed in that instant. I jump back as far away from that thing as I can get as frozen lotuses fill the air. Something tells me-
"Iguro-san! Don't breathe in the air! Its attack creates something dangerous and sharp, like ice or crystal shards!" How the hell did I know that? Suddenly it feels like my spatial awareness has been increased 100… no, 1,000 fold!
Iguro makes it to the trees and nimbly goes after the demon.
The demon who calls himself Doma turns to see him, holding his fan in front of his mouth.
"Tokito! We can't let him get to that town!" First Form: Winding Serpent Slash!
Iguro attacks like a slithering snake striking! It's so blindingly fast that even I'm impressed.
Doma swings his war fan and they clash! A gust of icy wind obscures the area for a second, and when it disappears, Doma is sitting on his ass. His hat's been knocked off revealing what looks like a blood drop on top of his hair.
Iguro is a good distance away from him, but even I can see… he's in bad shape.
"Whew, your pretty good," the demon says. "But it looks like you're done for now. Put down your sword and let me end your suffering real quick before I go."
"Fuck off!" Iguro gargles… I can hear that his mouth and throat are full of blood. He's staggering where he stands, "This is humiliating!" huff, huff "I don't need pity from the likes of a demon!" huff, wheeze.
Shit! What do I do!? I'm too far away to do anything, and that damn ice clone will jump as soon as I move an inch, I just know it… But Iguro… fuck. As tough as he is, he's still pretty small… how much can his body actually take?
"Ahh, I see, so you'd like to die with your dignity then?" Doma says. "Well that's very admirable, but you do know it's all meaningless in the end right?"
"Fuck you," huff "curse you!"
"Well, in that case, I'll respect your wishes and leave you your own Miko here to finish you off. Put it really does break my heart, that you're willing to suffer more because of your pride. It's all pointless... Later!" and with that, he summons a second ice clone and then vanishes.
Shit!
The clone in front of me jumps up to attack, but Iguro who is faster than anything I've ever seen Is behind it!
Second Form: Venom Fangs of the Keelback!
The Miko is beheaded! But there is another one right behind Iguro! I jump past him, we are back to back!
Third Form: Loathsome Moon, Chains!
The Miko unleashes an attack with its fan, and our attacks cancel each other out… No, his is way more powerful! I hold my breath but I barely dodge the onslaught of frozen needles, barbs, and stakes that come at me!
If it weren't for this thing that's happening inside of me… I'd be a pincushion right now. Instead, I get off with some scratches and a needle in my left thigh.
The Miko starts to wave its fans rapidly in succession and I can feel the attack coming. We can't get pressed back anymore!
I retreat to the trees on my right, Iguro to the left, wherever we are closer, but even the trees closer to the path are destroyed! Sliced to ribbons! This level of attack… I've never seen anything like it, and I have a feeling it's just a fraction of what this guy can do… No! Not even this guy! His stupid Chibi clone! What the fuck! This is absolutely humiliating! I'm pissed!
Just then, Iguro comes flying through the trees and lands next to me.
"Iguro-san, are you alright?"
"yeah, thanks to you Tokito." If you haven't warned me about breathing in the air when he attacks, I'd be dead.
Iguro is covered in blood, the only part of him that isn't red is his back. The bandages around his mouth were cut and have fallen away, revealing a horrible scar from the edge of his lips to each of his ears, giving him a permanent 'smile'. Something like that was done deliberately, and without a struggle… he's been tortured!
"What are you looking at?" He demands when I get the feeling again.
"Incoming! From the south!" We both take cover as the trees around us are leveled! The air is frozen, and it's a struggle to hold my breath as my lungs want to cry out for air!
I can feel the temperature dropping rapidly, My hair is starting to freeze! Iguro's lost a lot of blood too.
But the crazy thing is… I'm not scared. I'm mad! Iguro has already gotten rid of one of these damn Miko! So what the hell am I doing!?
If I'm so much weaker than Iguro Obanai, then how the fuck am I a Hashira!? There is enough air in my lungs for just this attack! And it's an attack I developed from the first form of moon breathing.
In the Instant where the Miko pauses between swings of the war fan…
THERE!
I'm up. Off the ground, and fluctuating the rhythm of my movements.
I don't know how this Miko will sense me, but whether it's by sight, touch, or hearing, he won't see me… Until I'm right in front of him!
Moon breathing, Eigth form:... Dark moon… ENVELOPMENT.
-SLASH!-
The whole thing happens in an instant… I feel like I ruptured a lung from trying such a move with so little breath. I'm actually dizzy because of how fast I just moved.
I fall to my hands and knees as I try to catch my breath, very lucky that I'm just out of the range of those frozen air particles. I did it… I cannot believe I just pulled that off! The headless Miko disintegrates in front of me. I can't even see where its head flew.
My ears feel frozen and my hands and feet are numb. I'm pretty sure some of the skin on my back and shoulders is frostbitten, especially around the open wounds I've received, but I did it.
"Iguro-san!" hah hah hah "are you-" hah "good back there?"
"More or less"
I turn around and I can't believe it… Iguro-san is walking fine. He's not even staggering.
"Do you really think I'd be felled by a joke like that?" He says. "The sun will be up soon, and we've wasted enough time here!"
I look down at the path where the demon's attacks were made. Mononobe Yukio is no longer there, but scattered frozen bits and pieces of him are… There is not even enough of him for his family (if he has any) to bury.
"Are you thinking we should have been nice to that man in the final moments before his death?" Iguro-san asks me.
"No. It wouldn't have made a difference in the end" I reply.
"Smart kid. Now run to the village before the sun goes down, and kill that upper moon or die trying."
I've already started running. Iguro-san will be behind me. He acts proud, but I know he's badly hurt and would have gone ahead of me if he could.
I am rushing towards my certain death because that is what it means to be a demon slayer.
But I'm late… I'm injured… I'm slow. I have to slow down several times for danger of falling. I'm… not good enough.
I'm still just a kid… by the time I get there, the sun has already come up, and then I hear the scream of a familiar voice…
Standing on a rooftop where I can get a good view of the street, I see something that makes my throat clamp shut.
Kanae…
I don't believe what I'm watching. Kanae is dying. I can tell from here. Her wounds are too deep, and her breath suggests that her lungs are ruptured, but I dare not approach, because… Shinobu is already there
"Shinobu, leave the corps. I know you're working hard, and you realy realy are, but maybe you're better off…
I just want you to find happiness like any girl normal girl would. And live until you turn really old. That's… enough… for me…"
"No! I won't ever quit!" Shonobu cries, "And I will avenge you for sure! Tell me! What was this demon! who beat you just now…! Just tell me Kanae Nee-san! Please! I can't live a normal life after someone did this to you!..."
I watch mortified as Shinobu starts to cry harder. Kanae is trying to speak, but she can no longer get the words out.
"Nee-san…
Nee-san!
Nee-san!"
But Kanae is already gone. I jump down from the tree… it hurts so much that my chest feels numb now. I can hear Muichiro's voice in my head… I can hear him crying "Nii-san" the same way Shinobu was crying for her sister just now… or worse… What if it was Muichiro dying there?
Suddenly I hate myself for not accepting the master's offer to bar my brother from fighting until he turned fifteen. But that's way to the back of my mind right now.
As Shinobu holds Kanae's body, she doesn't notice my approach until I speak, in a voice that comes out evenly and coldly.
"The demon Is waxing moon 2. He also calls himself Doma of the eternal paradise cult"
Shinobu looks up and stares at me intently through her teary eyes, and I feel myself shaking as I speak. "He has silver or translucent hair and a mark that looks like a blood stain on the top of his head… This demon went from very emotional, to very calm. He speaks in a very gentle manner, and seems to have a deluded sense of being a savior… by eating his victims or turning them into demons, that he is somehow helping them… He uses bladed fans as weapons and frozen Kamaiitachi. He is incredibly skilled in Tessenjutsu. He can also create Ice clones who use those same techniques… Shinobu I… I tried to stop him, I'm sorry."
I feel a tear stream down my cheek. Shinobu runs to me and throws her arms around me, sobbing… wailing. It's the most vexing, agonizing sound… My sorrow and shame immediately turn to anger. I cannot inflict enough pain on those demons! I cannot punish them enough…
She's gone limp in my arms… Shinobu grabs my Haori and buries her face into my shirt as she screams with anger and abject sadness… If such sounds were ever drawn out from Muichiro's mouth I'd… There would be no amount of demon deaths that could satiate my anger.
"Tokito" I hear Iguro from behind me. "The Kakushi will be here soon to take care of the late Kocho. I'll see to it that the younger sister gets home safely. Go home now to your brother."
"No… I'll make sure she gets home. Please stay here with Kanae until the Kakushi get here. You need medical treatment too… Iguro-san"
I don't want Shinobu to see as they take her body away. I hold her protectively to me… She's still crying. Shinobu who understood me better than anyone else, who shared in my righteous anger towards the demons, Shinobu who I considered a friend… reduced to this.
"I promise you…" I say to her. "I will not die until I see Muzan go to the deepest cavities of hell, and all his demons with him."
I wonder how many made that vow before me. How many thousands if not tens of thousands of demon slayers made that same vow only to be killed, crippled or to waste away in retirement once they became too old to swing a sword.
Muichiro and I lived the first ten years of our lives not even knowing these abominations existed. Now, destroying them is all I can think of. But right now… I must carry Shinobu home.
Muichiro
Kanroji-san and I play shogi. Shogi is my favorite game actually, Dad taught Nii-san and I how to play it, and we would play against each other when we had time. Oyakata-sama and Amane-sama would also play with me.
Kanroji-san is a beginner, so I teach her how. It's fun, and she keeps making me happy by constantly telling me how good I am, and what a good teacher I am.
Then Ginko and Kanroji-san's crow come into the room.
"Is there any news on Nii-san?" I ask, "When is he coming back?"
"Your brother is almost here Bocchan, however…"
Kanroji-san's crow continues solemnly. "The Flower-Pillar, Kocho Kanae did not survive the battle. She was killed by an upper moon."
Kanroji-san clasps her hands to her mouth, and her eyes immediately begin to fill with tears.
I still need a moment to process this. "Is this true? Did you by any chance get a different message Ginko?"
"There is no mistake Bocchan," Ginko says. "We heard it directly from Kanae's Kasugai crow, and from your elder brother's crow."
I bow my head and watch the floor turn blurry.
"Kanae-Senpai…" Kanroji-san sniffles, "always used to give me such kind words of encouragement. She treated my injuries whenever I got hurt and told me to eat until I felt properly nourished, and not care what anyone else said."
"She saved my life," I choke out… "She was so kind!" I go from crying to sobbing as the front door opens.
Nii-san is standing in the doorway.
"Nii-san!" I cry as I run to him. I cling to him as I sob, I'm so happy he's safe but "Nii-san… Kocho-san is… Kocho-san is…"
"Get off me Muichiro"
?
He doesn't shove me off harshly. He's actually gentle when he pries me off of him, but maybe because I'm so stunned by the harshness in his voice, I fall down anyways.
"Kanroji!" he now says with a voice that's full of anger, "you should go to your own house…"
"Oh… Okay, I'll just leave you two…" she says awkwardly, and is soon running past my brother.
"Nii-san?" I question more worried than anything.
He doesn't respond. He looks like he's trying to hold it together before he smashes a desk in half with an ax kick!
"Damnit!" he shouts angrily. "Shit! Shit! Shit!"
His back is to me as he hits the wall. I can't see his face… I know he's hurting but… It hurts me even more to see him like this. I want him to talk to me, even if he's going to yell at me.
But I'm too afraid to open my mouth… This is even worse than the time last summer when we had our worst fight.
I did here what I did then. I couldn't do anything else. I ran away from him crying.
I fun to my futon and cry into my sheets until eventually, I hear the sounds of water boiling. I get up and go into the kitchen where I find Nii-san standing over a pot of rice. He's cleaned up the mess from the broken desk and put away the Shogi board too. I can't tell if he's been crying or not because his eyes are usually red anyways.
He turns to me when he hears me hiccup, and beacons me over to him.
I walk over slowly, and I'm hiccuping and sniffing every couple of steps until I get close enough to him. He turns his head back to the pot of rice and says to me in a calmer voice. "Lunch will be ready soon. Why don't you go sit down Muichiro? You must be hungry."
"Nii-san… why don't you let me finish cooking? You should go and rest. You must be tired from your mission."
He chuckles… it's not exactly a happy chuckle. "My mission… I let that demon get away ya'know. It's partly my fault Kanae died."
Even I know that that can't possibly be true. "Nii-san! You're just being hard on yourself! Please go rest! You haven't slept all night. I'll finish making lunch and then I'll bring it to you in bed, and then we'll go and train together until…" I can't finish… I break down into tears like the pathetic baby that I am for a second time that day…
I hate this. I… I can't even be strong for Nii-san's sake.
"Sit down Muichiro," he says after a while. "Lunch will be ready shortly, and then I'll rest while I train. I'm sorry but it's not the kind of training you'll be able to do. You should train on your own for today, okay?"
~sniff. "Okay Nii-san"
I can hardly taste the meal that day, because I've been crying so much. I force myself to eat anyway.
When I finish, I run outside to the training area to join Nii-san. But instead of him training... I see him collapsed on the ground. His bokken is shattered and in splinters around him.
I scream his name and run towards him. He's shirtless and his body is covered in sweat! His face is contorted with agony as he clutches his left arm… His fingers are digging into his skin so much that it's bleeding, and he's grunting and seething with pain!
I feel my heart shatter. With tears flowing down my cheeks, I drag him inside and lay him down on his futon. I run to find his painkillers and bring them to him.
"Nii-san, please! You have to take your medicine! You have to!"
"I don't need it!" he shouts, startling me. "I don't need it… I need to get my blade bloody!"
"I'm begging you! Please take your medicine! Youre pushing yourself way too hard! I can't… I can't lose you."
I collapse onto his lap and continue to sob, but as I do, I feel his breathing, and his heart rate get calmer until he finally puts his hand on my head.
"I'm sorry Muichiro. It's been a long night, but I think I've been taking too much of that medicine. That's why it's a problem. I've been popping those pills every couple of hours, and now today I've suddenly stopped. That's why I'm so much worse now. I'm sorry you saw that."
I hug him tighter. His body is still trembling and cold.
"Muichiro," he says. "Do you think you could go and make me some ginger tea?"
~sniff. "Of course Nii-san. I'll be right back."
I crush half a pill and put it in the drink to help ease his symptoms, but I don't know if Nii-san is telling the truth about that. I know he was much closer to Kocho-san than I was… and he's hurting more than me…
I am even more determined than ever before to get stronger.
In a low voice, I ask Ginko to summon a fly and summon a doctor to our house, and then I bring Nii-san his tea.
As I walk towards back his room, I remember… I remember one day at the Butterfly mansion, I heard Nii-san laughing so happily. I was so surprised that I peeked in on him to see what it was because I had never heard him laugh like that since before Mom and Dad died.
It was just Kanae… just Kanae sitting on the bed next to Nii-san and talking with him…
Only Kanae could make my brother laugh like that, and now she's dead. Murdered. And Nii-san blames himself even though It wasn't his fault! I know with every fiber of my being that Nii-san would have done anything to save her!
"Nii-san" I say as evenly as I can, "Here is your tea…. Please feel better."
Nii-san is sitting up in his futon with his head down. His black hair draped over his face. Slowly and shakily he reaches up and takes it, and I sit there and watch as he just holds the cup in his hand. He doesn't bring it to his mouth, even long after it's cooled.
"Nii-san?" He doesn't respond.
"Nii-san!?" I shake him gently on the shoulder, and he looks up at me. His face is covered in sweat, and it's deathly pale. I put my hand on his forehead… He's burning up.
"Nii-san please drink your tea," I say as my eyes fill up with tears again.
Nii-san gives me a wry smile as if he's trying to tell me not to worry, but how can I not?
Somehow, I start to realize that he's not sick from the withdrawal, It was too soon for that, and Kocho-san never gave him such high doses… Nii-san is torturing himself.
But If it weren't for the demons… He wouldn't be in so much pain, and the Kocho sisters would still be at home with their parents. They would still be happy.
I swear that I will keep fighting the demons who hurt us. I will become as strong as I can!
The corps doctor said that Nii-san would be fine. He had some injuries from his battle with the demon, but his fever would be going down as long as he got plenty of bed rest and stayed hydrated.
I can't say I'm relieved though. As soon as he's gone, I return to Nii-san's side.
He's groaning as I wring out another wet towel for him. The doctor said that the groans were just his body's unconscious response to the physical pain he was in and that his injuries were not serious, but still…
I stop working for a moment because I start to think of Mom, and the night we lost her… I can't lose Nii-san. Those memories of him getting eaten alive… of bleeding out… of convulsing like that. It scares me more than anything.
"Please please please… Please don't let Nii-san die. please don't let anything else happen to him."
"Muichiro… muichiro…"
"Nii-san! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to wake you" I hadn't even realized that I was praying out loud.
"It's fine, you didn't wake me. I wasn't really sleeping" Nii-san's voice sounds so quiet and… not weak, he sounds exhausted.
"How are you feeling?" Is all I can think to ask him.
He doesn't answer me. He raises his arm and motions for me to come closer.
"Come here Mui. Come and be here with me for a bit."
I need no further invitation. I lie down on top of the covers beside him, and he wraps his arm around my shoulder and pulls me in.
He seems better. He's not shaking like he was earlier, but he still feels hot.
"Nii-san, should I bring you another wet towel?" I ask, but he doesn't respond to the question.
He closes his eyes and tells me; "There was a guy called Mononobe… I couldn't save him either. I wonder if he had a family."
"Nii-san, don't talk. You need to rest! Here, let me bring you that towel."
I try to get up, but he tightens his grip on me. He's not preventing me from getting up, he's just telling me in this way that he doesn't want me to go just yet.
"I'm not in pain Muichiro." he says. "And I know that what happened wasn't my fault. I'm just… really confused right now."
"What are you confused about Nii-san."
"A lot…. Like how I ended up here. Going on a mission so damn far from you… letting you stay in the corps"
So it's as I thought. Nii-san was giving me the choice when he didn't have to earlier when he asked me whether or not I wanted to stay,.. but now he regrets it.
I know it's because he doesn't want anything bad to happen to me but… I can't help but feel like I did something wrong.
I wonder if Shinobu ever felt the way I do now. I'm sure that Kanae… has felt the same way as Yui countless times…
Poor Shinobu… I can't imagine how she must be feeling right now.
"I thought I had changed," continues Nii-san, "but I'm still the same old me… I couldn't even give comfort to a fellow corps member before he died… Mononobe Yukio… I didn't know him, so I didn't feel anything for him, but you would have helped him. You're kinder than me."
He opens his eyes halfway and turns to me.
"Muichiro… your one of the chosen ones… not me."
I don't know what to say, but even if I did, Nii-san is finally asleep.
I'm sure he was just delirious from the fever anyways. I get up and get him his towel.
After the sun goes down, I finally think to ask Ginko to check on Kocho-san and see how she's doing since I know how horrible the pain she must be feeling is. When Ginko refuses at first, Nii-san wakes up and reprimands me.
"You're too soft with that crow Mui. Ryokucha should be sleeping in the birdhouse on the Engawa. Wake him, and tell him that I order him to find out."
"That, I will do Bocchan," Ginko says. "But I will not stray any further from you than that in your time of need." And then flies out of the room before I can say anything.
"You're just like her, Nii-san…" I say sadly. "You only ever think about me. That's why your so hard on yourself."
"Ya'know what I'm thinking about now Mui?"
"No. What is it?"
"How many demon I'm going to kill. The one that killed Kanae… I won't let you face him. I'll tell you more about him later so that you'll know to run when you see him but…"
He pauses.
"In every other fight, I'd like having you to watch my back. I'd much rather have you for a partner than anyone else."
Even though I'm sad right now. Even though I feel like curling up into a ball and crying forever, What Nii-san just said… makes me so happy. It's a confusing mix of emotions that I'm feeling right now.
I stay by Yui's side until the next morning when he's well enough. Then at his insistence, we go outside and train together. I've once again renewed my vow to become as strong as I can be and save as many who are suffering from the demons as I possibly can.
Ryokucha came back with news about Kocho-san… and the date of Kocho ane-san's funeral.
