Kimetsu no Yaiba doesn't belong to me. This story is a translation of another fanfic of mine. I hope you like it!
Kanroji arrived nervous at the meeting. There were still two months left until the usual date, but all the Pillars had been urgently summoned by their leader. At least, she hadn't been given any further explanation.
She quickly approached Obanai upon seeing the Snake Pillar already there.
"Hi, Obanai!" she greeted, trying to hide her unease even though her voice lacked its usual cheerfulness. Kanroji preferred to think that her friend had noticed her unease right away.
"Is something wrong, Kanroji?" he asked when the girl reached him. Nervously, she began to wave her hands, trying to calm him down.
"No...well, I don't know...," she admitted. "It's just that I don't know the reason for the meeting."
"And that worries you," Obanai stated. Kanroji simply nodded. "The truth is, I don't know either," the other Pillar admitted. "But it must be something important."
Obanai sighed inwardly. He would have liked to be able to say something more to reassure her, but he wasn't good at that. He didn't even know what to say most of the time, he wasn't used to talking with others. And when he had to do it, he preferred to get to the heart of the matter.
Kanroji opened her mouth to say something else, but at that moment, the arrival of other Pillars distracted them. Rengoku and Shinazugawa had just entered the courtyard. The Flame Pillar immediately approached them, smiling broadly. The other one didn't even bother to greet them. It wasn't like they were friends or anything.
"How are you guys?" Rengoku asked energetically.
"Very well, and you?" Kanroji replied immediately. Obanai looked at both of them with some envy. Whenever he saw another man talking or getting too close to Kanroji, he couldn't help but feel that way. He was aware of how absurd that was, but it was always there.
"Eager to get back," the Flame Pillar admitted immediately. "How are Sumiko and her sister doing, Kanroji?"
Neither of the Pillars missed that he had referred to her by her name, but they refrained from making any comments about it.
"Very well! They're both adorable!" Kanroji admitted.
If Obanai had learned anything, it was that practically everything seemed adorable to the Love Pillar, and that like her former master, she tended to be in a perpetually good mood.
"Rengoku, do you know why we've been summoned?" he asked, to steer the conversation to something more important.
"Well, no! And Shinazugawa doesn't know either."
"Wow," Kanroji murmured, feeling worried again at so much secrecy.
"The leader will tell us when he arrives," Obanai tried to encourage her. "I'm sure it's nothing serious."
Kagaya looked sadly at the nine Pillars. They had exchanged the usual greetings of each meeting, but the pattern regretted being the bearer of such dire news.
"My dear Pillars," he began, although he didn't like it, he couldn't delay it any longer. "The last crow I received brought alarming news."
Shinobu tensed and looked away, while the rest exchanged concerned looks.
"One of the hunters who was sent to Hokkaido was killed by a demon," the words stuck in his throat and he was delaying the moment of revealing his identity.
"Is it a Upper Moon?" Muichiro asked, unable to bear it any longer.
The patron gently shook his head. "As confirmed by the crow, it is a former member of the Corps," aware that he had to say it, he gathered the courage he needed. "The Flower Pillar, Kanae Kocho."
His statement was followed by a deathly silence. Those who had known her were pale and trying to assimilate the news. Kanroji, Obanai, Rengoku, and Muichiro knew almost nothing about her, except that she had been Shinobu's sister and that, although they did not find her body, she had died at the hands of the Second Upper Moon.
Himejima cried as he quietly chanted a prayer for his companion's soul. Giyuu looked worriedly at Shinobu, who, despite having known it beforehand and being prepared, was having difficulty hiding her anger. Uzui's expression, on the other hand, revealed nothing.
"I-Is this a joke?" Shinazugawa trembled. It was not uncommon for a demon hunter to end up becoming a demon, but that had never happened among the Pillars.
"I'm afraid not, Sanemi," Ubuyashiki lamented. "But now, there is only one thing we can do for her. Kill her. That was the only alternative they had left.
"I want to take care of it myself," Shinobu finally spoke up. She looked at the pattern and waited for his approval. She opened her eyes wide when the man shook his head.
"I'm afraid you're too involved in this, Shinobu," the patron wanted to spare her that.
"But she's my sister!" she protested, losing her composure. "I should be the one to take care of it!"
"I understand how you feel, but it's better for someone else to take care of it and you stay out of it," Kagaya insisted, unmoved by her words.
Shinobu gritted her teeth. She didn't understand, it wasn't fair at all. Did he really think that just because she was her sister, she wouldn't be able to carry out her task? If anyone had to give Kanae peace, it had to be her.
"Muichiro, Kanae was last seen in your area," the patron continued. "I want you and Giyuu to take care of it. Keep me informed, there is a possibility that, by now, she may have already left the island."
Both nodded immediately, without protest.
"Is there anything we can do?" Himejima asked, serious.
"I'm afraid not, for now there is nothing else."
"Patron," Shinazugawa finally intervened in the conversation. "Have you considered my request from the last meeting?"
The Wind Pillar had tried to convince Ubuyashiki to accept being protected by several high-ranking soldiers, something he had refused.
"I'm afraid my answer is still the same, Sanemi."
"But, this place is completely unprotected, if a demon were to find it..."
"Don't worry, I'm prepared for that," the man assured him. The mansion had a series of underground tunnels through which to escape in case of such an event. Although they had never had to be used before.
The wisteria blossom trees that covered the place served as a barrier against demons.
"We would feel more at ease if someone were watching over your safety," Kanroji confessed.
Shinobu looked at the man in silence. She had always respected him, even though she couldn't understand some of his decisions. But when she found out some time ago that he had hidden Tamayo's existence from them, it was as if she woke up from a dream. She could no longer see that man in the same way.
But denying her the possibility of saving her sister was too much. She was very careful not to express it out loud.
When the meeting ended, Shinobu was the first to leave, not wanting to stay in the presence of the boss any longer than necessary.
"Kocho, wait!" she heard someone call, and she stopped. Giyuu was hurrying towards her.
"What do you want, Tomioka?" she asked, for once not bothering to smile. She didn't have the energy for it.
Giyuu looked around, making sure no one could hear them. "If you want, I can update you on the mission's progress in Hokkaido."
Shinobu stared at him, trying to process what she had just heard. But she recovered quickly. "That would go against the boss's orders."
"But it's your sister," Giyuu replied.
"You could get in trouble if they find out," Shinobu warned.
Giyuu shrugged. "I don't think they would give me a major sanction. I think you deserve to know at least how everything is going."
Shinobu looked at him seriously. He didn't seem like he was going to give in on this, and although she was grateful for it, she couldn't do anything but refuse. "I don't want you to get into trouble for this, even if Kagaya might be benevolent in many cases, no one knows how he would react to disobedience from one of the Pillars."
"It's better not to do it, I appreciate it, but I don't want you to get into trouble for this," she repeated.
Giyuu looked at her in silence, and although he seemed a bit unsure, he eventually relented and accepted. "Well then... I hope we see each other at the next meeting."
Shinobu nodded. "Me too, and thank you, Tomioka," she murmured. The other nodded and quickly retreated. The Insect Pillar watched him go.
She sighed a bit. She hadn't expected that from the Water Pillar, it had caught her off guard. Maybe she had judged him wrongly, the woman thought as she followed his example and continued on her way.
She would never reveal that conversation to anyone.
Muichiro was waiting for Giyuu to arrive, he had managed to buy tickets for the boat trip to Hokkaido. It was barely dawn and there was a slight chill in the air, but his uniform insulated him perfectly from the cold.
It was the first mission he had to do with another Pillar and he was quite excited about it, although he would have preferred to be paired with someone else.
He had arrived a little early, so it wasn't like Tomioka was running late, he thought to himself as he looked around, waiting to see his companion arrive. As far as he knew, the Water Pillar was one of the most veteran Pillars and had known the Flower Pillar.
He didn't know much about that breathing style, beyond the fact that it was derived from water.
"Have you been waiting long?" Muichiro was startled by Tomioka's voice, he hadn't felt him arrive. He had been somewhat distracted thinking about that.
"No, no. I've already got the boat tickets," he said as he handed one to the adult. Tomioka took it and examined it briefly.
"How much was it?" he wanted to know as he reached into his pocket and searched for his wallet.
"It's not necessary," said Tokito, it hadn't been a great expense, and they had more important things to focus on now. "Shall we go then?"
"Yes, of course." Tomioka put his wallet away and the two Pillars went to the boat and, after showing their tickets, boarded the ship.
They went to the port side, taking advantage of the fact that there weren't too many people in that area.
"We'll start by asking people in the nearby area," said Giyuu, serious. Tokito nodded slightly. "But, at this point, I doubt she's still around."
"What was she like?" Muichiro asked. Tomioka sighed a bit and remained silent for a while, so much so that the young man thought he wasn't going to answer.
"One of the kindest people I've ever met. She felt compassion for the demons," the older man recounted. "Her dream was for them to coexist peacefully with humans."
"That's not possible, it's foolish."
"Perhaps, but we already know of three who live among humans without any problems."
"They're exceptions," Muichiro immediately rebutted.
Muichiro nodded in agreement, understanding where Giyuu was coming from. It was strange that Kanae had been a demon for over two years and they had only found out by chance.
"It's possible," Muichiro said. "But why would they want to keep her existence hidden?"
Giyuu shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe they were afraid of how we would react, or maybe they were trying to protect her."
Muichiro frowned. "But if they were trying to protect her, why would they turn her into a demon in the first place?"
Giyuu didn't have an answer for that, and they fell into a thoughtful silence as they continued their journey towards Hokkaido.
As they approached their destination, Giyuu turned to Muichiro. "Remember, we're not just here to hunt a demon. We're also here to find out what happened to Kanae, and to make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else."
Muichiro nodded, feeling a sense of determination and purpose. He was ready for whatever lay ahead.
Douma wasn't stupid, he knew that even though he had been assigned such an important mission as finding the blue spider lily, it didn't mean he enjoyed any kind of favoritism from his lord. That was a privilege, if it could be called that, that only Kokushibo and Akaza enjoyed.
But he knew he wouldn't refuse, or at least hoped he wouldn't, such a request. Both Kanae and he could feel Muzan's gaze fixed on them, although neither had the audacity to return his gaze or stop kneeling before him.
"So you want to challenge the Sixth Lower Moon," commented the Demon King at last.
"Yes, my lord," murmured Kanae, not lifting her gaze from the wooden floor.
Kibutsuji observed her with some interest, the idea of having another member of the demon slayers among the 12 Moons was quite tempting, besides it provided the perfect excuse to finally get rid of Kamanue.
"If you manage to win, I'll provide you with more of my blood," said Kibutsuji then.
"I will make sure to deserve such an honor, my lord."
Muzan nodded, apparently satisfied with the answer. "The combat will take place now," he decided. "Nakime, summon the rest of the Moons."
Both the Upper and Lower Moons appeared at a safe distance from where their lord was. And as soon as they saw him, the eleven demons kneeled before him. The oddity of being all gathered there was reflected in their thoughts, something that Muzan captured perfectly.
"Nakime, prepare the room for combat," he ordered, causing unrest among the Lower Moons. His lord fixed his gaze on them. "I've received a request for a combat for the position of the Sixth Lower Moon, and I've given my approval."
Kamanue stiffened upon hearing that, and his gaze involuntarily turned to his lord. No, it couldn't be, after all he had gone through to occupy that rank...
It wasn't really necessary to ask who his opponent was going to be. The woman next to Douma, undoubtedly, it was her. And she exuded enormous confidence, which only increased his insecurity.
He could refuse, but that risked unleashing Muzan's wrath and being killed on the spot. But if he lost, he would have to live for eternity with the shame of having lost his position.
Everyone felt how Nakime modified the room for the event and stood up when Muzan gave them permission. Kamanue and Kanae were left alone in the center as the others watched from the sidelines.
The demon barely had time to react, the woman, with her sword unsheathed, lunged at him and managed to cut off one of his hands, as he couldn't move out of the way in time. He hissed in pain, although he regenerated immediately.
He tried to respond to the attack using his blood demon technique, he could extend his limbs at will, it wasn't too useful, but he hoped to at least immobilize her.
Kanae easily dodged the arms and jumped at him, sword at the ready. But Kamanue managed to strike her and make her crash to the ground. The demon's arms returned to their usual length. But both knew that it was far from over. Kanae had gotten up without any issues, and although her clothes were somewhat dirty and torn from the blow, she was intact. She lunged at him again, this time using the first stance of the Flower Breathing.
Kamanue, who had expected everything but that, opened his eyes wide and fear overtook him in that moment, and he instinctively moved away as much as he could.
Muzan observed with little surprise the escape strategy of the Sixth Lower Moon, he had known from the beginning the fear he felt towards demon hunters and their breaths. He was a coward, and he was demonstrating it to everyone.
"This is pathetic," commented Akaza, disgusted with what he saw. Had someone like this managed to get a position within the Twelve Moons?
Douma, on the other hand, observed the fight with some interest. The longer it lasted, the more irritated his lord would be, and the more likely Kanae would secure a position, thought the blond demon as she again managed to cut off one of the limbs with her sword.
"The winner has already been decided," Kokushibo declared, glancing at his lord, perhaps hoping he would put an end to that sorry spectacle.
"You're right," Muzan conceded, having lost all interest in that fight by that point. He closed his right hand and Kamanue's head exploded. The body fell to the ground and the surrounding area began to soak with his blood.
Kanae stepped back several paces and sheathed her katana. When she felt her lord's footsteps approaching, she knelt down and looked at the ground. She was nervous and her heart was beating fast.
"Raise your head and look at me," ordered the demon king, and she hastened to obey. "You have earned the right to be a part of the Twelve Moons, occupying the rank of the Sixth Lower."
With that said, he placed his left hand over Kanae's left eye, and the demon felt excruciating pain, although it only lasted a few seconds. She was trembling slightly.
Finally, Muzan withdrew his hand and, without giving Kanae time to process what had happened, he plunged it into her neck and began providing her with more blood.
Giyuu and Muichiro observed the area with serious expressions. The crow of the slain demon hunter had led them to the place where the fight had taken place.
The Water Pillar crouched down to observe the ground more closely, grateful that there was still enough light to see. The bloodstains, already quite dry, were difficult to spot.
"There are too many," he commented when he stood up. It was obvious that Kanae had taken her frustration out on the unfortunate demon hunter.
"Here's her sword," Muichiro said, picking up the weapon, or what was left of it, from the ground. It had been shattered multiple times and the pieces were scattered around the nearby area. "Do you think anyone could have seen anything?"
"It would surprise me, but we can always ask. We're not going to get anything else from here."
"Then let's go," Muichiro had already turned around and was walking away, although Giyuu quickly caught up with him.
Both, quite quiet by nature, made no effort to talk during the journey. And the silence was not uncomfortable for either of them.
Hitomi, a tall woman with dark hair, looked at the two men who had approached her as they asked her a question.
"I haven't seen any woman like that," she said, perhaps a little too quickly or, maybe, it sounded too curt, because her answer didn't seem to convince them.
"Are you sure?" intervened the younger of the two.
"Are you calling me a liar?" she had tried to make her voice sound indignant enough to be believable. "Two strangers approach me in the middle of the street, ask me a question, and when I answer, they treat me like a liar. How rude!"
She walked away as quickly as she could, in the direction of the temple. She had to inform Douma as soon as possible, if he was there, that it was quite likely that people would arrive asking about Kanae. She had not implicitly told them to lie in case they spoke to them, but Hitomi did not intend to sell the man who had saved her life and given her a new chance years ago.
She relaxed a little when she was in the temple and, after leaving the food she had gone out to buy in the kitchen, headed for the high priest's quarters.
As usual, two men were stationed outside the door, on guard. She approached them with a smile and greeted them.
"Is the high priest inside?" she asked. "I wanted to talk to him about something of utmost importance."
The burliest of the two, Takeshi, nodded and, after opening the door and peeking inside, announced her presence to Douma.
"Come in, come in," the other immediately requested, and the woman hurried to obey. Takeshi closed the door behind her, giving them complete privacy. "Come closer, dear, what happened?"
"There are two men asking about Kanae. They want to know if anyone has seen her."
Douma, who was already expecting that, stood up and approached the woman. "Did they ask you?"
"Yes, but I haven't revealed anything to them."
"Perfect~"
Suma was barely conscious, unaware of how long she had been held captive. She had nothing to indicate the passing of hours or days.
All she knew was that her captor was not going to stop until she gave her the answers she wanted so badly. She had already broken all the fingers on Suma's hands, and in the last torture session, she started tearing out her nails. So far, she had only taken two, but the demon's enjoyment in it was disturbing.
Then her stomach growled, another reminder. She had gone without food or water for a long time, so by that point, she would die of starvation. She preferred that to giving the information to that being.
Suma regretted all the arguments she had had with Makio and wished she could have gotten along better with her. She was going to die without being able to say goodbye to the people she loved, the kunoichi realized at that moment.
See you soon with the next chapter! Don't forget to leave a review! I would love to hear your thoughts!