The next day, Crows arrived to Gyutaro and Tanjiro as they were eating Breakfast with their Siblings. "Gyutaro and Tanjiro Kamado, you have a Mission!" Tanjiro's Crow said. Kie turned to Gyutaro and nodded her head, seemingly in confirmation. "Alright. We'll head out as soon as we finish our Breakfast" Tanjiro said. Hanako looked worried. She knew that what her Older Brother's did was important. They worked hard to save people, and they didn't mean to get hurt. But she still worried, "please be careful, all of you" she pleaded. Tanjiro smiled at his younger Siblings, "of course we will be" he replied.
As they finished eating and went to get ready, Tanjiro's Crow added some extra information, "you will be joined on this Mission by Zenistu Agatsuma and Inosuke Hashibira! Along with Sound Hashira Tengen Uzui! Meet him at the gate!" he said. "The Sound Hashira?" Tanjiro asked.
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"Took you lot long enough to get here!" the Hashira called when they finally arrived, finding Zenitsu and Inosuke already there. Gyutaro recognized the man as one of the Hahsira who'd been against their Sister's. Tengen looked them up and down, before scoffing, "you were those unflashy Brother's who carry around their Demon Sister's, right?" he asked. Gyutaro gripped the strap of Ume's box tighter, and held his head up, "so what if we are? I've said it before, and I'll say it again, Ume and Nezuko have never attacked or tried to eat anyone, meaning they aren't Demon's you need to worry about. And if something does happen that sets them off, we will deal with keeping our Sister's under control, got that? I don't care if you're a Hashira or not, just keep your hands off them. Understand?" he asked firmly, with a glare at the man.
Tanjiro watched the two adults closely, worrying about if he'd have to intervene. But Tengen's lips quirked into a grin, "maybe I was wrong about you. You're a bit flashy at least" the white-haired Hashira replied. He then became serious as he looked the group over. 5 rookie Demon Slayers and 2 Demons. Looks like he had his work cut out for him. "Alright, listen up! I- am a God!" Tengen cried, making Gyutaro sweat-drop, 'what?' he thought. "You five, are trash!" he continued. The green-haired 27-year-old felt his eye start to twitch. "You turn into Monkey's if I say to! Turn into dogs if I say to! Pander to my every whim and order! And don't forget! I am a God!" The Hashira cried. Gyutaro stared in dumbfounded disbelief at the man in front of him, 'this guy's a complete idiot! I guess the Master let's anyone become a Hashira' he thought.
Suddenly Tengen became serious again, "I'll explain our Mission when we're closer," he turned around, "now, get ready to run flashily!" he cried, before shooting off down the road. "Ah! What the hell?! How's he so fast?!" Zenitsu cried in shock. "Let's go!" Tanjiro called, as he began to run after the man. As everyone began to run, Gyutaro just knew that this Mission was going to go horribly wrong, "be ready Ume. This Mission is going to be harder than any other we've had" he muttered to his younger Sister. "Alright" the Demon woman replied, as she went to sleep in her box to try and retain as much energy as possible. Gyutaro stared at were his little Brother was running, Nezuko asleep on his back. His expression hardened as he remembered the wounds Ume and Nezuko got during their Mission to Natagumo Mountain, 'I won't allow anyone to harm any of my younger Siblings. This time, I will protect them!' he thought furiously as he easily caught up with the others.
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It took several days to reach their destination, a city with a former Lords Castle on the outskirts. It was nighttime when they arrived, and almost everyone was asleep, and every business closed. All but one. The Sound Hashira led them to a Wisteria House in the city, opening the door and entering, "Sorry to intrude" he said. A man came over to them, "are you all Demon Slayers?" he asked. "Yep" Tengan replied. "I see. Then please, enter, and let me show you to your rooms" the man said, leading to way to a set of rooms down the hall. Gyutaro looked around. Whatever Demon was nearby must be strong, because his bad feeling was getting worse than ever.
"Here. Please rest, you will be brought food shortly" the man said, before leaving the room and closing the door. Suddenly Ume started scratching on the inside of her box frantically, as Gyutaro tried to calm his nerves using Total-Concentration Breathing, and focusing on his breaths did help, but still. His whole body was prickling like mad, and he felt sick to his stomach. He shuddered, causing Tanjiro to look at him in concern, and Tengan to stare at him, unimpressed, "you were so flashy before, but now look at you. You're shaking like a leaf! How unflashy can you be!" he groaned. Tanjiro moved closer to Gyutaro, "is it that same bad feeling from yesterday big Brother?" he asked. The green-haired young man nodded, while Tengan raised an eyebrow, "there's defiantly a Demon Here. A strong one. This Mission might be too dangerous for us" he replied. He leaned over and opened Ume's box.
The white and green-haired Demon stepped out, growing to her normal size and moving to the window, growling threateningly, with slitted eyes and large veins protruding all over her body. "Big Brother. Whatever is in that Castle is no regular Demon. I'm sure of this- it's one of the 12 Kizuki" she managed to get out through her growls. "WHAT?! YOU'RE TELLING ME ONE OF THOSE MONSTER'S IS HERE?! AAAAAHHHHHHH! I'M GONNA DIE FOR SURE!"He screamed. "Weren't you going to try to be brave for your Master's sake Zenitsu?" Tanjiro asked. "I meant with regular Demons Tanjiro! That doesn't mean I want to go running into certain death!" Zenitsu shrieked in reply. Tengan eyed the Castle with an intense look in his eye. Then he turned towards the other's in the room, wincing from Zenitsu's loud voice and got up, "SHUT THE HELL UP ANREADY, YOU'RE GONNA BURST MY EARDRUMS!" He yelled, punching the blond in the stomach and knocking the Thunder-Breathing User unconscious.
Then he turned to face the other's in the room, the unconscious Zenitsu at his feet, "anyone else have a problem with our Mission?" he growled, making the other Demon Slayers quickly shake their heads in the negative. "Good. Get ready for bed, 'cause as soon as we've finished dinner, I want you all asleep. We'll gather information starting first thing tomorrow" the Sound Hashira ordered, before leaving the room.
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That night, as Zenistu, Inosuke and Tanjiro lay asleep in bed, Gyutaro found himself kept awake by the horrible feelings he had. If this really was an Upper Rank Demon, they may very well die tomorrow. He looking up at the stars, 'Father. Mother. Please watch over us tomorrow. Help us survive. Help us win. So no one else has to die here' he prayed. Then he turned over onto his side, Staring at his Siblings. Ume and Nezuko were asleep in their boxes, and Tanjiro was asleep in his Futon. 'Please help me protect my family. I beg you' he thought, before his exhaustion finally caught up with him, and Gyutaro fell asleep.
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The next morning had an eager Inosuke, terrified Zenitsu, and determined Gyutaro and Tanjiro following Tengen through the town. They talked to different people about what was up with the Castle, and everyone said the same thing. That it was haunted, and anyone who went in, never came out. "Alright, that seems about the extent of the knowledge the people of this town possess on what's going on!" The Sound Hashira said. Tanjiro nodded in agreement, "whenever I tried getting more information, everyone said they wouldn't go near that Castle, so I don't see how we can gather anything else that might be important." Tanjiro agreed.
Tengan clapped his hands, "then let's storm the Castle tonight!" he declared. "WHAT!? B-b-but that's suicide!" Zenitsu quavered. "Well, what other choice do we have? We still have to kill the Demon here, so we may as well do it tonight, since we can't get anymore info" The Hashira replied, standing up. Gyutaro had to let out a breath and clench his pant-legs to keep his hands from trembling. That night. He'd thought they'd have more time to prepare. The green-haired man tried to shake himself out of it. Weather the Demon was an Upper Rank or not, they still had to find a way to kill it. Otherwise more people would die.
People like their Mother. Gyutaro clenched his fists, 'damn it, get a grip! Think of this as an opportunity. We can get more blood samples for Lady Tamayo! And Ume and Nezuko will be human sooner. We can do this. No. We will do this! For our family!' he thought in furious determination. "Wouldn't it actually be better to attack today? That way the Demon can't escape from the Castle" Tanjiro suggested, his arm up in the air. Everyone froze, as the Sound Hashira thought about it, "you know, that's not a bad idea! Everyone, get ready!" Tengen grinned widely, "we're storming the Castle right now!" he cried.
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'We're doing this during the day, so that it can't escape. Unless the Mission takes all day and into the night, the Demon can't leave this Castle. It's confined, trapped. So we'll have an easier time pushing it into a corner,' Gyutaro thought to himself. He clenched his fists, thinking about his younger Sister's, 'I have to at least try to get a blood sample from this Demon, and I know Tanjiro will be trying to do the same. Once Ume and Nezuko are human again, and that monster Muzan Kibutsuji is dead, then we can all go home together. We'll be safe. This is another step towards that goal. And I will do anything to make it a reality' he thought.
They found themselves in front of the Castle, "alright, let's go, but be careful. As much as I don't like being boring and unflashy, we'll need to a bit of stealth with this one. After all, if this Demon is a member of the 12 Kizuki, then you'll all be in danger" Tengen warned. They quietly entered the Castle, surprisingly even Inosuke and Zenitsu. As they snuck through the building, they all kept their senses open for the Upper Rank Demon. Suddenly, as they opened another door, they saw a figure sitting in the old throne. "Well, I expected Demon Slayers to come after me eventually, but I didn't think you'd be one of them, you useless shit" he spoke. Zenitsu froze at the sound of the Demon's voice, causing Tanjiro to glance at him as he smelled horror, shock and distress from his friend.
"It's you," Zenitsu spoke, his voice suddenly cold, but his emotions were still the same. Gyutaro glanced at the blond as he stared up at the Demon, "I never expected you'd be the Demon we were sent after," he began, as the Demon stepped from the shadows and into the moonlight. He was fairly tall, pale-skinned with black markings on his face. His hair was long and black, as well as spikey. And in his eyes was the Kanji for Upper Six, "Kaigaku" the blond finished.
To Be Continued