The Life and Times of Hinode Kamado

Hello everyone and welcome to the final chapter of the Swordsman and the Asura! Been something of a journey, hasn't it, and the amount of support you've all given for this story has been both surprising and inspiring. So I'll leave off the usual advertisements this time and instead mention this one little bit of business: an alternate ending. I know many of you weren't the biggest fans of Susamaru's passing and I mentioned I'd look into doing an alternate ending where she lives. So I talked it over with the requestor and here's how this is going to work. Obviously read the ending here first and decide whether or not you're satisfied with it. If not, let me know in the comments or your reviews that you'd like an alternate ending. I'll leave an announcement about the result with an update to this chapter and the newsletter on my Pat reon. Now then I've said my piece and with no guest review questions, on to the final chapter!

Europe: Another Home of Giyuu Tomioka

It had been a long time. No, not just a long time, a very long time. Hinode and her father had fled to Europe as planned and managed to find a place to settle, for a time. But then, the world seemed to go out of control. War broke out in Europe and more or less enveloped the entire continent.

It was the first time she or her father saw such conflict, where people were killing people in such numbers. What made it even worse was the fact that their own people were among the aggressors. The half demon girl had been hearing it for some time while they were in Japan, the indoctrination, the call to military action, but she never believed her homeland would actually go to war. The next couple of years would prove to be a nightmare as they fled from place to place, the actions of their people causing fear in the world's populace. They were suspected at so many places they went and it wasn't until finally running into some of their other friends and family who'd also fled Japan that they found refuge.

Giyuu finally rejoined them after that and helped them find a home in an abandoned village. Several of Tanjiro's other demon slayer comrades would join them and help it thrive for a time. When the war ended a few years later, many returned to their homeland but not the Kamado family nor the former water pillar. Hinode had learned a lot during the pandemic of their town and began travelling around, helping to rebuild the places damaged by the Japanese during the war.

She had to change her face at first, remembering all too well the fear people had felt at the sight of her and her family because of their countrymen. But the fear faded soon enough and over the next few years much of the damage would be repaired. It brought out a sense of wonder and adventure in the four-armed girl, seeing people working together to fix what was broken. So with the blessing of both her father and Giyuu, Hinode began to travel and see the world.

It was slow going at first. She had to learn many things before going to more obscure countries and occasionally she had to take on odd jobs when she made the occasional minor miscalculation with her funds. But she had adventures, so many adventures in so many wonderful places. Often she'd travel alone, then started bringing along friends and family and sometimes she brought new friends to meet the family.

She sailed, flew, drove, rode, ran and walked to her destinations, living her life not just for herself but for Fumiko, Hannah and all the other friends and family she lost along the way. And as she traveled the world changed and shifted, with new things appearing in places she'd been before and even new places becoming accessible that she'd somehow missed the first time. It truly seemed endless, until she received a message to return to Europe. The kind of message she'd become more familiar with than she'd ever wanted too.

This instance in particular, returning to the home of Uncle Cool, would be the first time she realized just how many years she'd spent traveling. "Thank you for coming….everyone," Giyuu more sighed than spoke while lying in his bed, "I realize it was…short notice." It didn't take a doctor to see the cause of his weakened state. Thanks to his time as a hashira and continued use of Total Concentration Constant healing his body he'd lived to be over a hundred years old. Though he'd long forgotten his duty of being prepared for the possibility of Hinode becoming a threat, instead training out of both habit and a desire to watch his niece in all but blood grow.

His hair had turned grey in that time and his eyes and body had grown weak, but even those limitations didn't keep him from recognizing the presence of his friends and loved ones. "You're a part of the family, Giyuu," Tanjiro reminded from a seat positioned next to the bed, "after all this time you should know we'll always be there for a member of the family." The former Breath of the Sun wielder had grown older himself, his dark reddish hair now graying and the formation of many wrinkles could be seen.

"I'm personally surprised you invited me," Yushiro spoke up from his position near the window, "you and I never really hit it off as big-time friends." He too had grown older even despite his status as a demon. Kanao had surmised before she passed away that Tamayo's cells in his body had been losing their regenerative properties for some time ever since her death and could no longer stop the effects of aging as they had before. Upon further study the former Breath of Flower user also determined that Hinode's cells would one day lose their own regenerative properties and she too would feel the effects of aging.

In fact, it was possible even Muzan himself would've succumbed to aging in time but that wasn't seen as an issue to Hinode or Yushiro. As far as they were concerned the two of them would probably live more than long enough, especially given that Hinode only looked twenty despite being over a hundred years old herself. And speaking of Kanao, her descendants as well as Nezuko's descendants were also present to observe what was about to occur. Joining them were the descendants of Inosuke and Aoi along with many others who were descended from former slayers.

Even Kiriya Ubuyashiki's grandchild managed to be present. "I invited….everyone I could think of," Giyuu explained, "our time as slayers…..and our time as friends and family….have connected us all. That's something I wanted everyone…..to remember. My last hope when you all leave here…..is that you realize…you are never alone and that friends and family…..can come from even the most unsuspecting of places."

"I understand what you mean," Tanjiro agreed while putting a hand on his oldest friend's shoulder, "I still think about that snowy day when we first met. Did you know it was really you who started the change that eventually led to Muzan's fall? That one decision, that one choice to let my sister live and tell me about the Demon Slayer Corps, it changed the course of everything. I can never thank you enough for the life we were able to have because of the fateful decision you made that day."

"You repaid that debt….a hundred times over," Tomioka assured, "you saved my life….in more ways than one. I'm the one who's grateful…..I was able to live my life in happiness…..thanks to the decisions you made. Being accepted into your family…..has been the greatest joy of my life. Thank you…..thank you all." He closed his eyes for the final time then, a peaceful smile on his face as he passed on into the next life.

Another Hundred Years Later: Japan

Shortly after Giyuu's passing was when Tanjiro and Hinode decided it was finally time to return home. They buried their friend and family member next to the graves of his fellow slayers, Sabito and Makomo, and their instructor, Sakonji Urokodaki. It took time to get settled and adjust to all of the changes their homeland had undergone since their departure. Whole towns existed in places where there were once only long tracks of land.

Already large cities had not only expanded further but higher as well with buildings that reached so high one could hurt their neck looking up at them. New vehicles and other modes of transportation sped along and congested the streets, trains ran above and below ground at seemingly impossible speeds and currency now came in not only a physical form but a digital one as well. So many new and strange devices had been invented to help make life more convenient, though not all of them succeeded. Even despite Tanjiro and Hinode being aware of much of the new technologies and developments it was still a little overwhelming to see how Japan had transformed in the time they were gone.

Thankfully, they managed to adjust with a little bit of help from friends and relatives, finding both a new home and work they were able to do. Following that was a pattern of moving from one job to the next and occasionally moving to a new location entirely in order to keep people from getting too curious. After all, even the most unobservant people would start to get suspicious of someone working in the same place for decades without aging at the same rate as everyone else. It was a problem which would persist for a long time, proving a mild irritation even after they retired.

Or to be more precise, Tanjiro retired as his age finally began catching up to him. Little surprise given that he was well over a century and a half old. It prompted Hinode to retire from her own, or rather latest, profession to take care of him. She would remember this as the favorite of the houses she lived in during her life. Even if it did contain the memory of this day.

The day she was tending the garden around their house, sneaking the occasional glance at her father to make sure he hadn't fallen asleep again. But his red eyes remained open the whole time, seeming to stare off into endless space as he admired the beauty of the nature around him. He'd recently turned two hundred years old and his body had finally caught up to him. Gone were the muscles that had seemed ever present on his body for the first part of her life, his once strong shoulders now seeming to sag with the weight of all the years he'd lived.

He'd also grown skinny which Hinode had found concerning and then confusing when Tanjiro chuckled in amusement. She'd been reminded then that his own father had become quite skinny and seemingly frail in his final days. Now she had a clear picture of the man who raised her father, one who smiled often but rarely had a huge emotional outburst, almost like a plant. And speaking of plants, Hinode had just finished up her work in the garden.

"Father," the half demon girl approached her sitting parent, "it's starting to get cold. Why don't we go in where it's warm?"

"Thank you, Hinode, but I'd like to stay out a bit longer and admire the flowers," he requested, "the sky is also perfect for watching the sunset this evening." It was true, the sky was clear all the way to the horizon and the sun was low enough that it didn't hurt to look at it.

"I guess there's no harm," the four-armed girl admitted, taking a seat next to Tanjiro, "you might not be able to meditate under a freezing cold waterfall anymore but you can still probably take a draft or two." She didn't need to ask why her father wanted to admire the flowers. Not only were his and her favorite ones among the garden, her mother's favorites were also scattered about. Even now, after nearly two hundred years he still thought of his first and only love.

"I haven't even tried that in decades," he chuckled lightly, "I'd be flattened for sure if I tried it now."

"Good thing there are no waterfalls nearby then," Hinode remarked with a smile before frowning a bit. "By the way, you've got that look on your face. Is there something important you wanted to talk about?"

"I'm not sure how to describe it," Her father sighed slightly, "lately I've felt like my family, our family, your mother is closer than ever. You know I've heard them before, speaking to me, helping me soldier on. But it feels different this time. For some strange reason, I've felt the need to get my story straight, to try and remember everything that's happened since the first day I met your mother."

"I don't see how you could forget," the half demon woman laughed, "I've heard the story of how you and mom met so many times and we've both read her journal until it wore out and we had to get a copy made. But if you're worried about it, I can help. Why don't we start from the beginning: tell me again, about how you met mother."

"How we met," Tanjiro smiled in fondness of the memory, "it was nighttime in Asakusa where the home of Lady Tamayo was turned into a battlefield. Had either of us been told how that night would change our lives, I doubt we would've believed them." And even hearing it now the tale was still pretty amazing in Hinode's opinion. They talked for a long time about his adventures with Susamaru, the blossoming and eventual culmination of their love that gave birth to Hinode, and her eventual sacrifice and passing.

It was a story that always made Hinode laugh, cry and cheer, even now when she was approaching two hundred years old. They continued to talk about the twists and turns and other obstacles life had thrown them and how amazing and unbelievable it all was. Finally, they talked about what the future might hold for them. It would be in the middle of this discussion when the sun was in its final moments of setting that Tanjiro appeared like he wanted to say one last thing before going inside.

"Hinode," he began, "I don't know if I say this often enough, but being your father has been the greatest adventure of my life. You've grown up so strong, so smart and so kind, using the gifts you've been given to help others. I'm not sure if I raised you exactly the way your mother would've wanted, but I've no doubt she'd be proud of the woman you've become."

"I had a good role model," Hinode complimented, "and lots of crazy relatives and friends to teach me things. I've learned so much from you and everyone else, it's thanks to all of you that I was able to overcome every challenge I came up against while I was traveling the world. And more than that, it's thanks to you I learned how to appreciate every little thing that life gives us."

"Yes, you're one of the most capable people I know," Tanjiro stated, meaning every word, "I know you'll be able to thrive no matter where you go from this point on. I don't have anything left to teach you and only one thing left to say: I love you Hinode. You're my precious daughter and I wish you all the happiness in the world. Continue to live your life and find joy. That is my one final wish for you."

His final few words were little more than a whisper. As the last rays of the sun disappeared and the sky turned to night, the former slayer's eyes closed and his head slumped forward. "Dad," Hinode choked out, putting her arms around him. She didn't need to feel his pulse to know that those had been his final moments, she'd seen enough to recognize the signs. "I love you, dad," Hinode whispered while kissing Tanjiro's forehead and holding him in her arms, "say hi to the family for me." She'd sit there with her father through the night until her tears finally stopped flowing, not moving from that spot until the first rays of a new day shined.

The Afterlife

'How long have I been walking,' Tanjiro mused as he looked around at the strange area he'd woken up in, 'I don't even really remember how I got here.' One thing he did notice was that he wasn't wrinkled anymore, in fact he seemed to be back to his adult age before he started getting wrinkles. Though even with his joints feeling better than ever he was starting to get a little tired from all the walking. The mysterious trail was also bright yet foggy, so much so that he couldn't make out anything.

'I might want to take a break and get my bearings,' he rationalized. Right before he stopped, however, he caught a scent. 'Someone else is here, someone…?' He actually feared completing the thought, almost afraid to hope that it might be true. Then, he heard a voice.

"Absolute pain in the ass," the distant voice seemed to echo, revealing itself to belong to a female, "what sort of dickhead decides to do things like this? Everything is nice and fine and when the one person arrives who could make paradise even better I'm told I gotta find his ass myself. When I see….oh, there you are."

"Su," Tanjiro gasped out, not believing his eyes or even his powerful sense of smell which had never been wrong before, "Susamaru. Is it really…..you?"

"Maybe, only one way to find out, right?" She replied with a radiant smile. Tanjiro broke into a run then, forgetting the fatigue he'd felt and the soreness in his legs. All that mattered right now was embracing the one woman he'd loved in his entire life. He was so happy that he basically jumped the last couple of feet, and then incredibly confused when her fist suddenly knocked him in the face and onto his back.

"Ow, Susamaru," he groaned from his position on the ground while holding his cheek.

"It's about damn time," she exclaimed with her arms thrown up in exasperation, "I know I wanted you to live a long and happy life but two hundred years! Demon or not that's a long time to keep someone waiting you know?!"

"You're annoyed I didn't die sooner," Tanjiro asked while stifling a laugh, "you know that's not something I have total control over, and I still had some responsibilities in the world of the living."

"I know," Susamaru smiled before kneeling down and hugging her husband, "I just had to get that little bit of frustration out. The one thing I don't like about being here is that I wasn't able to be with you down there. I've missed you so much."

"And a day hasn't gone by that I haven't thought of you," her husband choked out before they both embraced each other tightly with tears of joy streaming down their faces. Thankfully, the tears wouldn't flow for long and they'd lock lips for the first time in nearly two hundred years. Be it dead or alive the sensation was indescribable, even more so with the sweet taste of reunion. They would carry on this kiss for minutes, hours, or possibly longer than that. Finally, though, the two would need to separate for air but still kept a vice like grip on each other.

"So, I know what you've been up to the last couple of centuries," Susamaru revealed, "but I want to hear it from you. How has life been for you and your daughter?"

"Don't you mean our daughter," Tanjiro corrected, "she was nursed and brought into this world from your womb, remember?"

"I gave birth to her," the formerly demon girl affirmed, "but…I was never present in her life. I never held her or fed her or cared for her. She didn't even get to meet me. She is my child, but can I really call myself her mother?"

"Without a doubt," the former slayer didn't even hesitate, "Hinode inherited so much from you besides just demonic genes. Every day I saw her I was reminded of you, every time I saw her with a Temari or acting playful I'd recognize it as something you'd do. You passed on so much to her and the journals you left behind made her want to be as wonderful of a person as she could be. She is your daughter as much as she is mine and you have every right to call her our daughter. Because that's what she is, whether you were able to be present in her life or not."

"It makes me happy to hear you say that," Susamaru admitted, "I'd always wondered if she bared any sort of resentment towards me for not being there. But it's clear she also inherited your kindness as well. So, since we have all the time in the world now, would you mind telling me about our daughter?"

"I'd love too," Tanjiro smiled before launching into the first of many tales: the day Hinode hatched from the egg she'd been in. Countless stories would follow this one and as they talked, familiar faces began to arrive. Both Tanjiro and Susamaru's families showed up to listen along with many of their departed friends. It was a touching reunion even by the standards of the afterlife.

Five Hundred Years Later: Japan

So it was possible for her to get old after all. Strangely, Hinode found she didn't have a problem with it. The half demon woman had truthfully started to wonder if it was even possible for her to get old once she hit five hundred years and still seemed to be going relatively strong despite what Kanao had predicted centuries earlier. So much had happened after her father passed on. She'd inheritied his earrings and wore them in his memory and practiced the traditional Kagura dance that he'd learned from his own father so long ago, as had been the Kamado family tradition.

For the longest time she'd found it difficult to return to the house she'd shared with her father in his last moments and only returned occasionally to make sure it was still there and taken care of. Perhaps she somehow knew at that time that she'd wind up there again. Whatever the case it was the one place in the world she insisted her families see at one point or another during their lives. Ah yes, her families, the bulk of her experiences after her father passed away.

Admittedly it had taken a while before she was really, truly ready. She'd made up her mind at four hundred years old and tied the knot with a guy who was descended from the Rengoku family. His endless optimism had been infectious and made her feel more alive than she had in a long time. They had several children and grandchildren before he passed away.

He reminded her, as so many others before had, to live her life and keep searching for happiness. And search she did. Hinode would marry a few more times, sire more children and they, grandchildren. She'd make countless memories during this time and witness other memories being made by her friends and their families. The half demon woman would learn to enjoy life in both the good and bad times, passing on several nuggets of wisdom along the way.

Eventually, Hinode felt she'd traveled enough and finally returned to the home of her parents. Family came to visit relatively frequently but only she actually lived here now, finding comfort in the quiet and solitude. "What a time it's been, this life," Hinode mused aloud as she finished writing in the last of many journals she'd created over the years, "looking back I can't say I have as many regrets as I thought I would have." The four-armed woman looked out the window then, deciding it was a nice night for a visit.

It became far less pleasant, however, when a slight pain crossed her heart. 'Oh,' Hinode thought, feeling the place where the pain occurred, 'it seems it might be time.' With that possibility in mind, she pushed herself up out of her chair and discreetly slipped out of the house. The walk to her parent's graves was far less pleasant than she hoped but it thankfully wasn't far and she reached it in short order.

"Hey Mom, Dad," she greeted, kneeling before the graves, "hope things are going well on the other side. You probably already know I haven't been exactly busy lately but that's what happens when you retire for the tenth time. The family, or I guess I should say the current family is doing well, but that's to be expected right? I taught them everything you taught me and a couple other things I picked up along the way."

She let out a sigh then. "It's been hard sometimes too. I've never gotten used to watching the ones I love pass away, but, you'd probably say that's a good thing. I know they've all moved on to a better place and I've soldiered on, mourning them when I could and living for them the rest of the time. And I've got you to thank for that, for giving me the courage to keep on smiling and seeking happiness."

The half demon woman gripped her chest as more pain shot through it. "Now, I think I finally understand what it was you were feeling in the end. After going through so much you weren't really all that afraid of dying. The only thing that made you afraid was whether or not I'd be okay once you were gone. And I am a bit, I'm worried that I might have forgotten to mention an important fact or lesson to my children and grandchildren over the years."

She smiled then. "But like you I also have faith. I've watched them grow and mature over the years and the accomplishments they've made. The families have been through a lot of challenges and have managed to overcome them, even without my help. And I've got you to thank for all of that, Dad, and Mom, for giving me a life to live and showing me how to live it until the very….end."

Her head drooped forward then as she breathed her last. The old woman would remain there throughout the night and not be discovered until the family came to visit the next day. When asked later on, the family would say she passed with a smile on her face.

The Afterlife

"Huh," Hinode wondered aloud while examining herself, "back in my prime. Even when I shapeshifted to look younger I didn't feel younger. And I don't remember how I got here, so does that make this-."

"The Afterlife," a voice from the past answered that made her freeze. It was a voice she hadn't heard in centuries but it sounded more full of life than ever before, more full than even when she was a child. "And you've had quite a journey getting here." Hinode slowly turned her head, hardly believing her eyes.

"Dad," she choked out with tears welling up in her eyes, "it's really you, isn't it?"

"Hello Hinode," Tanjiro greeted with a smile, "how has my little girl been doing?"

"DAAAAD!" Hinode cheered, throwing herself into her father's arms in a powerful embrace.

"Gah, strong as ever I see," he half laughed, half groaned before hugging her back, "it's wonderful to finally see you again. I have a surprise for you." They released each other and he held his hand out, indicating a second figure who'd come along with him, a woman bearing a striking resemblance to her. Or to be more precise, Hinode beared a striking resemblance to the woman.

"Hey," the stranger greeted timidly, "I don't know if you recognize-."

"MOTHER!" Hinode cried out in joy, flinging her arms around her just as tightly as she did with her father, "It's really you, I finally get to meet you mother!" Susamaru was surprised for a few moments before returning the hug.

"Hinode, my precious little one," Susamaru began once they broke apart from the hug, "I wanted so much to be a part of your life. But things didn't-."

"You don't have to apologize mother," Hinode assured, "I know you and dad did everything you possibly could to build a happy life. It's not your fault things didn't turn out as well as you'd hoped. But even though you weren't physically there, you were still a part of our lives. Your thoughts and feelings were with us every step of the way and now, now we can finally catch up."

"And not just us," Tanjiro informed while pointing towards what looked like a large Japanese house filled with several other people, some she knew and several she didn't. "Hinode Kamado, meet the rest of the Kamado family and all of our friends." Everyone waved to them, yelling that they needed to hurry up. It seemed a celebration was in order.

"Welcome home, Hinode," Tanjiro offered. The family joined hands then and proceeded into the great beyond to spend eternity with their loved ones.

The End

And so we draw our story to a close as the swordsman, the asura, and their daughter are at last reunited. It's been quite a road to get here and I hope you've all enjoyed the tale that was weaved. But once again I cannot call this the final chapter unless you do as well. So tell me what you think in your comments and reviews: do you want an alternate ending? If the overwhelming majority say yes, then it shall be. If, however, you're satisfied with this ending then the only ending it shall be. Either way, I shall see you all in my next writings. 'Til then.