Gyutaro and Tanjiro travelled together to where they'd been told that Final Selection would take place. Neither spoke for a while. Then Tanjiro decided to start, "Master Rengoku told me that he'd make me his Tsuguko when I became a Demon Slayer" he said. "Really? Master Himejima said the same thing. Let's both do our best, so that we can become strong and protect our family Tanjiro" Gyutaro replied.

U*Ğ.Ķ

It took all day to reach the site of the Final Selection. As they did, Tanjiro was in awe of the Wisteria trees, "isn't Wisteria out of season right now Big Brother?" he asked. Gyutaro wasn't very interested in the flowers, but he answered his younger Brother anyway, "I don't know. Nezuko and Hanako were more into that stuff. You know that Tanjiro" the green-haired man replied. "True" Tanjiro replied with a nod. Finally the two Brother's reached a stone staircase. Upon reaching the top, they were surprised by how many people there were there. Well, Tanjiro was surprised. Gyutaro knew that the normal civilians were going to need all the help they could get against the Demons, and so the more Demon Slayers there were, the better they could do their job.

Looking around, Gyutaro's gaze was drawn to a particular girl. Or, more like young woman. She was tall and had shaggy brown hair. Her eyes though, seemed to be white and pupilless, just like his Teacher and Kagaya. Though, judging by how they darted around, staring at each person there with a critical gaze, Gyutaro could say that she was not blind like they were. However, the thing that really drew his attention, causing him to stare at her, were the burn scars that covered one of her hands and disappeared into her Haori sleeve. Even if they were different from each other, and also had different backgrounds and situations, the scars that marked the woman made him feel a connection to her. "Hey! Big Brother Gyutaro, Big Brother Tanjiro!" a familiar voice that neither had heard in years called out.

The two Brother's turned to see an older Takeo walking towards them. The 13-year-old looked pretty much the same, except he had slightly wilder hair and a sword on his hip. He also had a mask on the side of his face- a stylized Kitsune mask. The mask was decorated in blue and gold flowers and swirls and had blue and gold outlines around it's eyes. Gyutaro and Tanjiro ran over to their younger Brother, "Takeo? What are you doing here?!" the green-haired young man cried. Takeo's expression fell, so Tanjiro tried a gentler approach, "Takeo, you know this test is dangerous, right? as in, you could die?" he asked. Their younger Brother frowned in determination, "yeah, that's why I'm here. Even if most of us will be moving to that, Hashira Estate place or whatever soon, you two won't always be there to protect us. That's why I'm going to become a Demon Slayer, and protect our Siblings for you. I've already got permission from the Corps Master to do that. You knew I was training for that exact reason" Takeo explained.

"But, Takeo-" Tanjiro began, before their Older Brother put his hand on his shoulder. Looking back up at Gyutaro, he saw the 27-year-old young man shale his head. "It's his choice Tanjiro. Mr Urokoddaki has judged that Takeo is strong enough to be here. Let's respect both their choices" he said. Suddenly, two voices caught their attention: "welcome" Gyutaro turned his attention to the area in front of them, where two little- girls? Now stood before them. One had white hair and the other black, but other than that, and a slight difference in clothing, he couldn't tell weather they were girls or not. For all he knew, they could both be boys. Hold on, those were Kagaya's kids. He recognised their eyes. He hadn't met all of them, but he knew that the man had one Son and four Daughters. All of the girls had white hair like their Mother and the Son had black hair like his Father. So the black-haired one must be Kagaya and Amane's only Son, Kiriya. As for who the white-haired girl was, well, Kagaya had 4 white-haired daughters. So he had no clue. "Tonight, you've come to enter the Demon Slayer Corps Final Selection. Thank you all for being here" they said together.

"Here on Mount Fujikasane, there are several Demon that were captured alive by Demon Slayer Swordsmen," the white-haired girl began to explain. They are kept here for this event" she continued. "The Wisteria Blossom's prevent them from leaving. They bloom on this mountain year 'round. And they cover everything, from the bottom to halfway to the top" her Brother continued. "But the Wisteria ends here, so Demons abound from this point on" the white-haired twin added. "In order to complete Final Selection, you must survive for seven days beyond the Wistera's protection." Kiriya continued. "Now, your trial begins" both said in unison, bowing. The three Kamado Brother's looked at each other, before moving to enter the forest

U*Ğ.Ķ

Gyutaro, Tanjiro and Takeo ran through the forest, relying mostly on Tanjiro's sense of smell to guide them through the darkness. They paused for a moment before a large tree. "Those twins said that we had to survive for a week, not that we had to kill Demons. So we just focus on staying alive. We should head to the East, where the sunlight will hit first" Gyutaro said. Takeo nodded, "good idea. Once the sun rises, we can rest and search for food. We should try to avoid getting hurt as much as we can too" Takeo agreed. "I'll take point, searching for Demons with my sense of smell. Takeo, you should follow after me, while Gyutaro watches our rear. Are you two ready?" Tanjiro asked. The other Kamado Brother's nodded in understanding. Suddenly Tanjiro sniffed the air, "move!" he ordered. Gyutaro and Takeo leaped and rolled out of the way.

A Demon suddenly leapt down from the trees and slammed into the ground where the Siblings had just been standing. "This is, a Demon?!" Takeo cried, trembling in fear. "Takeo! Calm down! We've all trained for this! We can beat him!" Gyutaro barked. The youngest Kamado Brother present forced his body to relax and gripped his sword, "right!" he replied. The Demon snickered, "I was just looking for a good meal, and lucky me- I got a large portion right off the bat!" he cried, leaping towards the closest human to him, which happened to be Takeo. The 13-year-old drew in a deep breath, "Water-Breathing, First Form: Water Surface Slash!" he cried, leaping forwards as water seemed to appear around the blade of his sword. Then he cut the Demon's head off. Takeo landed on the ground, skidding to a halt as the Demon faded away into ashes. He panted as he stood straight. "You did it! Great job!" Tanjiro said with a proud smile.

Before Takeo could reply, Tanjiro cringed and gripped his nose, "what's that horrible smell! It's so thick and it feels like it's burning my throat!" he cried. "Tanjiro? What's-" Gyutaro began, before the sound of something huge moving though the trees caught the three Brother's attention. Gyutaro grabbed his two younger Brother's and quickly pulled them behind a tree to hide. Takeo covered his mouth to keep from screaming, while Gyutaro bit his lip. Tanjiro looked like he was trying his best not to throw up. 'What the fucking hell is that?!' Gyutaro thought in horror, unable to keep himself from trembling despite his best efforts. An absolutely massive Demon with an uncountable number of arms was slowly moving through the forest. A sound alerted them to someone else nearby. The Demon shot out one of it's many arms, which stretched all the way into the trees, latching onto something which screamed.

A teenager was violently yanked out of the trees by his leg, futility trying to cut the arm with his sword but couldn't reach. Gyutaro noticed Tanjiro trembling, but it seemed to be as much with fury as with fear. "Tanjiro?" he whispered, but his attention was drawn back to the other boy as he screamed again. The Hand Demon had opened his huge mouth, about to lower it's prey into it. Tanjiro suddenly shot out of the trees with his sword in his hand- when had he drawn it? "Flame-Breathing, Third Form: Blazing Universe!" he cried, flames seeming to engulf his sword as he sliced the Demon's arm off. The other teen fell to the ground, Tanjiro landing in a roll, before standing back up again. "Let's go big Brother Gyutaro, Tanjiro can't fight that thing by himself" Takeo hissed, drawing his own sword and running out of the trees.

Gyutaro grit his teeth and followed his younger Brother's out to face the Demon. After all, he wasn't about to let them fight that thing alone. The Hand Demon looked surprised that someone had just interrupted his meal, "well, well, well, what do we have here?" he asked as he regrew his arms in a minute. "Big Brother!" Takeo cried, stopping behind his Older Brother and preparing to fight. When the Demon caught sight if him, however, his interest spiked, "ah! How fortunate for me. Another sweet little fox has wandered into my clutches!" he said excitedly. Gyutaro glanced down at Takeo, the only one of them to have been trained by Urokodaki properly, and the only one of them who was wearing a Kitsune mask. "Tell me fox cub, what year is it? are we still in Meiji?" the Demon asked. The green-haired young man moved protectively in front of his Brother, "it's the Taisho Period" Tanjiro answered once he saw this.

"Taisho?" the Hand Demon asked, before he began screaming and ripping chunks of flesh from his own body. "ALREADY?! WE HAVE PASSED INTO A NEW PERIOD?! AGAIN! AND I'M STILL STUCK INSIDE THIS WISTERIA PRISON! DAMN YOU UROKODAKI! DAMN YOU! DAMN YOU! DAMN YOU!" he cried furiously. Takeo shivered at the sight, before stealing himself, "you know, my Teacher?" he asked warily. The Hand Demon calmed himself, and turned his attention back to the boys, "know him?! He's the one who captured me and brought me here!" he replied, indignant. "What does that have to do with my little Brother?" Tanjiro asked, gripping the handle of his sword tight. "I've been trapped in this Flowery cage for 47 years, ever since Urokodaki captured me. And since then, I've sworn my revenge." He said, beginning to count up on his fingers, "11, 12, 13, that mean's you're number 14!" the Demon laughed.

"Wh-what do you mean? The 14th what?" Takeo asked, beginning to tremble with fear and anger. "After tonight, you'll be the 14th of Urokodaki's Students I've eaten!" the Hand Demon clarified with glee. All three Kamado's were shocked, Meanwhile, Takeo was horrified. Over the last year, Urokodaki had said he'd finished training him, and two other kids a bit older than Tanjiro had started training him instead. They'd told him that they were Urokodaki's Students, but if this Demon had eaten all of them before him- "the ones who stood out to me the most were those two. The boy's hair was an unusual shade of pink, and he had a scar by his mouth, he was the most powerful of the lot. The other was a girl in a flowery Kimono. Small, not much power, but she was awfully agile. When I told her what I had done to the others, she started crying and fell into a rage. I gabbed and ripped her apart, limb from limb and feasted!" the Demon cackled.

Takeo clenched his teeth furiously, grip on his sword handle tightening. "Takeo! Calm down!" Gyutaro called. Tanjiro was also furious, but since he'd never met the two people in question, he was able to keep a cooler head. "Wait Takeo, don't rush in!" he cried worriedly. "But he-" the 13-year-old hissed, trembling with rage. "I know you're angry, but the Demon wants you to attack blindly. I won't lose you like we lost Mom" Gyutaro replied. Takeo grunted,but tried to calm himself. "Too bad it won't matter weather you attack me or not!" the Hand Demon jeered. Tanjiro suddenly caught the Demon's scent, "everyone jump!" he cried. The three Brother's were able to dodge out of the way of the multiple hands that shot out of the ground to grab them. As they landed, more hands came at them, aimed specifically at Takeo. "Like hell am I gonna let you kill and eat my little Brother!" Gyutaro snapped, both he and Tanjiro hacking at the arms furiously. "Run away! He's going after you!" Tanjiro called back to the frozen form of his younger Brother. Takeo may have been angry, his instincts, honed over two years of training were screaming at his that he couldn't beat this thing.

Even so- "I can't just leave you both! Please, let me help-" Tanjiro tackled him to the ground, just before several of the Demon's arms exploded out of the ground where he'd just been standing s moment before. Takeo stared in horror at just how close he'd come to death, beginning to hyperventilate as the full weight of what was happening sunk in. A murderous Demon who wanted to eat him was coming after him. A Demon who wanted to eat him was coming after him. Takeo felt a bone deep sense of horror and terror fill him from his stomach to the tips of his fingers. He just barely avoided dropping his sword by way of habit. Tanjiro pushed himself up and off of his younger Brother, "Takeo. Run" he ordered seriously. The 13-year-old wasted no more time, scrambling to his feet and running as fast as he could away from that monster.

Tanjiro stood and moved to stand beside Gyutaro once more, veins popping out of his face in his rage, "you won't lay a finger on our younger Brother" he swore furiously. "Oh really? Then I'll just have to eat you both first, before going after the fox brat!" The Hand Demon sneered, before merging five of his arms into one bigger one and shooting it out at the two Kamado Brother's.

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

Takeo ran, tears in his eyes. His body was trembling all over and he ended up tripping over a tree root and falling to the ground, scraping his palms and knees as he lost his grip on his sword. The 13-year-old reached for the blade and wiped the tears that had built in his eyes. 'So much for becoming a Demon Slayer to protect my family, I can't even fight the Bastard who killed my Sibling Students without running away like a damn coward!' he thought. His thoughts then turned to his Older Brother's, who had stayed behind to fight the Demon that was after him. 'Gyutaro, Tanjiro, please, don't die!' he begged to the heavens, praying that his Parents, Grandmother, anyone would hear him and protect them.

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

"Well, you may not be sweet little foxes, but I could have a snack before the main course" the Hand Demon taunted, sending his arms after the two Brother's. Tanjiro and Gyutaro had to work to keep up with them, lest they be caught and ripped apart. 'Damn it, what do I do? It's taking everything I've got just to avoid hitting Tanjiro with my attacks. And this Demon's regeneration speed is so high. We've got to cut off his head no matter what. As long as his target is Takeo, we cannot let him live. Not to mention, if we did, he'd just go on to kill more of Mr Urokodaki's Students after this. We have to kill him here and now!' Gyutaro thought furiously. The Hand Demon sent a punch at Tanjiro. Which, even though he dodged it, grazed his forehead over his scar, and ripped the skin off.

The teen was distracted by the pain on his head, and didn't notice the hand that punched him in the side and sent him slamming back against a tree. "Tanjiro!" Gyutaro cried, moving to stand in front of his little Brother protectively, chained sickle held out to attack. Glancing back at the teen, the older Brother found that he had been knocked unconscious, blood trickling down the side of his head from where his scar had once been. Both he and Ume had been very worried when they came home one day from town and had soon the burn on their little Brother's forehead. Tanjiro had told them that he'd gotten it protecting Takeo from being burned by the stove when he'd been playing near it and knocked it over.

It had hurt him, but he had still been glad to get it, he'd told them, because it had meant that Takeo hadn't. Gyutaro turned his focus back on the Demon, clenching his grip around the handle of the Sickle as well as the chain. "You're not getting an inch closer to either of my little Brother's! You hear me Asshole!" he cried, some of the personality he'd had back when he'd only been 10-years-old coming back in his determination. "Oh, really? Heehee, then I'll just have to eat you in order then, won't I? Oldest to youngest!" the Hand Demon sneered. He attacked again, Gyutaro knocking the hands away with the weight on his chain. It may look light because of it's size, but it was actually made of a much heavier metal, so that it would have more weight to it.

His Master had promised that when his Sickle was remade with the Nicherin Ore that he picked after Final Selection, that the weight would be reattached to it as well. Due to this weight, the hands were knocked away from him. Then Gyutaro ran forwards, slicing off the arms that came at him with the Nicherin Sickle. It didn't matter to the Demon, since the arms were back in a heartbeat. However, despite his regeneration speed, the Demon couldn't get any closer to killing Gyutaro or Tanjiro. Despite his strength, Gyutaro was unable to make a move in beheading the Demon, as he had to protect Tanjiro. They were locked in a stalemate. 'Damn it! At this rate, my stamina will run out before I can kill him! Then we'll both die!' Gyutaro thought furiously.

Meanwhile, Tanjiro was still unconscious. "Tanjiro! Tanjiro, wake up!" a familiar voice called frantically. 'Mom?' Tanjiro thought. "You have to wake up! If you don't, you'll die! And leave your Siblings all alone!" Kie Kamado called out to her Son. As the faces of all of his Older and Younger Siblings flashed into his mind, Tanjiro's eyes snapped open. The Hand Demon had been reaching a hand out to crush Gyutaro's head, when Tanjiro jumped in and head-butted it away. "Oh, so the other one is awake now? You're not as weak as I thought!" the grotesque creature taunted. Tanjiro narrowed his eyes and breathed-

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

Takeo was sitting against a tree, head in his hands, trying to convince himself to go back and fight. 'Is this the result of all my training? Is this as far as I can go? What happened to wanting to protect my family? If I can't even be brave enough to avenge my Sibling Students, how could I ever protect all my little Brother's and my Sister from Demons?!' he thought, furious at his own weakness. He imagined his Father killing that Bear, despite being so sick, how his Mother had killed a wild Boar to protect him and Nezuko. 'And they weren't even Demon Slayers!' he clenched his fists around the handle of his sword, "if they could do that, then I can fight too!" he said, before turning and running back to where the fight was still raging.

Ư*Ğ.Ķ

"Be careful Tanjiro!" Gyutaro called, attacking the Demon alongside the younger Kamado. The Hand Demon knocked them both away from him. "Big Brother, let's coordinate our attacks!" Tanjiro cried. Gyutaro nodded, using his Sickle and weight to cut apart and knock away the arms 'Stone Breathing, Second Form: Upper Smash!' he thought. 'I'm not as strong as my Master, but at least I can help here' he thought. Tanjiro leapt at the Demon as well, faint images of flames around his sword, 'Flame Breathing, Second Form: Rising Scorching Sun!' he thought, slicing off several arms with an upwards slash, then having to dodge as those same arms tried to grab him and rip him apart. The Demon once again tried to get Tanjiro, but Gyutaro continued to cover him.

Suddenly, just as the arms reached for them again, Takeo seemed to fall from the trees, and pinned the arms to the ground with his sword. "What?!" the Hand Demon yelped in shock. "I know I'm not as strong as my Brother's, so I can't avenge all of my Sibling Students that you've killed! But they can!" Takeo cried, using all his strength to hold the arms down. More arms grew along their length, all aiming towards the 13-year-old. Gyutaro cut them all with his Sickle. While the Demon was distracted with both of them, Tanjiro leapt for his neck. Illusory flames wrapped around his blade as he drew in a deep breath, "Flame-Breathing, First Form: Unknowing Fire!" he cried, decapitating the Demon in one swift blow.