Kimetsu no Yaiba doesn't belong to me. This story is a translation of another fanfic of mine. I hope you like it!
Kokushibo emerged from his hideout as the sun set. During the day, he had been hiding inside a cave he had found in the area.
He had decided to start the mission that Muzan had personally entrusted to him. After thinking about it coldly, he decided to start in the Tohoku region, one of the northernmost.
He wouldn't go after the hunters first. The best way to end the Corps was to destroy their resources. That is, the wisteria houses scattered throughout the country and, if he was lucky, find and destroy the village of the blacksmiths.
Although he was aware that by starting by destroying the wisteria houses, he would attract the attention of the hunters too quickly. But that was something he counted on, and being the First Upper Moon, they couldn't defeat him. Perhaps the Pillars had a chance of beating him, but Kokushibo wondered if the Corps would be willing to lose several of their precious and powerful swordsmen. Not anyone was suitable for such a position.
Of the three tasks that Muzan had entrusted him with, that was the easiest. Finding and turning Sumiko Kamado into a demon and finding the Ubuyashiki family mansion required patience and a stroke of luck. And maybe, by doing that first, he could achieve the other.
He began walking towards the city that was a few kilometers south of where he was. Hirosaki would be a good place to start. Being a city with so much population, it was possible that it had more than one wisteria house.
It had been a long time since he had visited a place like this. When was the last time, 200 years ago? He felt some curiosity about what the city was like now. He had heard Douma comment on the progress of humans on numerous occasions. Although, until that moment, he had never bothered to go and see them personally. It wasn't something that had generated concern or curiosity for him.
He had avoided large cities. The less attention he drew, the better, and he had devoted himself to hunting in small villages, not staying in one place for too long. He smiled a little, it seemed like a good time to change his habit, he could also take the opportunity to feed a little.
How much noise would he have to make to attract the attention of the Pillar of the region? Perhaps if he ended the lives of a hundred people, he would get his attention, although he could also leave a gift for that human, a small signature of authorship of the act. It would be fun. He smiled maliciously as he thought about it.
Four centuries ago he was unable to exterminate the Corps, and this was the perfect opportunity to make up for that mistake. He also didn't know how Muzan would react if he failed in that task again, and he didn't want to find out.
Nezuko paced nervously around her room, beginning to lose what little patience she had left. She had gone days without hearing anything from her sister. She knew Sumiko was in the house, but every time she had tried to leave her room to see her, Rengoku or Kocho had stopped her and escorted her back. By this point, Nezuko was sure they weren't allowing Sumiko to see her either.
Scratches on one of the walls in her room marked the days she had been locked up without being able to see her sister. She didn't know if Rengoku or Kocho had noticed the marks when they escorted her back the night before, but she didn't care.
She growled in frustration, remembering the argument she had had with her sister. Sumiko might not even care about not seeing her. She could be off flirting with Kanao, for all Nezuko knew. The thought made her blood boil. She clenched her teeth, barely containing her anger. All the time she had spent fighting her instincts to devour humans, just to protect Sumiko, felt like a waste.
She closed her eyes and tried to calm herself. No, it wasn't worth dwelling on. Her sister might be acting foolishly, but she was still her sister, the only family she had left. It was Nezuko's duty to protect her, not put her in danger.
With that in mind, she took advantage of the cover of darkness and quietly opened her door. She hissed when the door creaked, holding her breath and waiting nervously. But after a few minutes with no sign of either Pillar, she left her room and went straight to her sister's room. She frowned when she realized Sumiko wasn't there. She knew her sister was at the Butterfly Mansion, based on Rengoku's presence, so if she wasn't here, that could only mean...
"The infirmary," Nezuko muttered to herself. If Sumiko was there, she would be discovered if she went. She bit her left pinky nail in thought.
"What are you doing here?" she heard Rengoku ask behind her. She frowned and turned to face the Flame Pillar.
"Isn't it obvious?" Nezuko replied haughtily. Kyojuro, noticing her tone, looked at her with a furrowed brow.
"Come on, I'll escort you back to your room," he said sternly.
"No."
"I wasn't asking," Rengoku said, grabbing her right arm and trying to pull her away. In response, Nezuko increased her size to resist him.
"She's in the infirmary, isn't she?" Nezuko persisted.
Rengoku didn't answer and continued to try to drag her away. But as much as he hated to admit it, he wasn't strong enough for that. He didn't stand out among the Pillars for his strength.
Nezuko, who had run out of patience, resorted to the first thing that came to mind. She lifted her left leg slightly and without hesitation, kicked him in the groin. Rengoku, who hadn't expected that, widened his eyes and let out a cry of pain. He let go of her and held his hands to the affected area.
The young demoness didn't waste any time and ran towards the infirmary. She didn't know how long it would take him to recover, so she wasn't going to waste any time.
Sumiko was profusely sweating, lying on one of the beds in the infirmary, barely conscious. The demon she had faced had used his blood technique on her, injecting poison into her bloodstream.
Shinobu clicked her tongue, worried, although she had already applied an improvised treatment, it didn't seem to be having much effect. The young girl continued to sweat and her temperature was rising.
She could try to create another antidote, but there was no guarantee that it would be effective. There was something she was missing. She glanced over at Kanao, who had not left Sumiko's side since her arrival. And Rengoku, if she hadn't asked him to fetch more cloths, he wouldn't have left either.
The door suddenly burst open and the two women looked over, expecting to see Rengoku. Standing in the doorway was Nezuko, who, upon seeing her sister in that state, did not hesitate for a second to cross the distance that separated them.
She stopped abruptly on the other side of the bed, completely ignoring the presence of the two women. Shinobu, if she hadn't been in that situation, would have tried to take the young girl back to her dormitory. But, if Sumiko didn't make it, at least she could say goodbye to her.
Nezuko, trembling, took her sister's free hand and, unable to help it anymore, burst into tears. She understood perfectly well what was happening, the weak pulse she felt was indication enough.
But she could save her, if she turned her into a demon, although Kocho would immediately realize her intentions and wouldn't allow it. She held her sister's hand tighter and closed her eyes, instinctively knowing what she had to do.
She heard the exclamations of surprise from the other two women, but completely ignored them, focused on what she was doing. Although, not seeing what was around her, she didn't notice someone else enter and push her roughly, causing her to fall to the ground and open her eyes in surprise.
Giyuu walked towards the infirmary. He wanted to say goodbye to Shinobu before leaving again and ask her if she thought it was okay for Aoi to accompany him. It's not that he intended to turn her into his successor. But it was true that he had been looking for someone who had the potential to occupy his position for a long time and he believed that this girl could serve. Or so he hoped. She still needed to mature quite a bit and gain experience, but that always came with time. He would take care of preparing her for it.
He quickened his pace until he almost started running when he heard two screams coming from the infirmary. He stood in front of the open door and opened his eyes wide when he saw what was happening.
Fire. One of the beds was on fire, but the fire was crimson in color. A blood technique, Giyuu understood. Without thinking twice, he advanced towards it and, roughly, pushed the girl holding the hand of the young woman lying there.
As soon as he did that, the fire went out. Giyuu, with some fear, looked over there, hoping he had arrived in time to save the other young woman's life. His surprise was immense when he saw that both she and the bed were unscathed.
Shinobu, who had recovered from her surprise, took charge of the situation immediately and began giving orders.
"Giyuu, please accompany her outside," said the Pillar of the Insects, nodding her head towards Nezuko. Giyuu nodded and grabbed the young woman, completely ignoring her protests, and knocked her out with a precise blow to the neck, carrying her out in his arms.
Shinobu visibly relaxed when they were alone again and placed her hand on Sumiko's forehead. The fever had disappeared, the woman noticed, amazed. She looked at Kanao, who, despite everything that had happened, had not let go of Sumiko's hand for a moment.
"I didn't feel heat coming from those flames," the girl responded to her teacher's unspoken question.
"That was a blood technique, but how?" Shinobu murmured to herself. Nezuko, having not eaten humans, should not have been capable of something like that. But she had done it. It was undeniable.
And it seemed to have healed Sumiko, although Shinobu did not like to jump to conclusions, so for now, she would keep the young woman under observation.
Kanao squeezed Sumiko's hand a little more, which she still held, despite what had just happened.
"Is that possible, teacher?" the young woman murmured.
"It shouldn't be, no."
Giyuu, following Aoi's instructions, who had seen him carrying Nezuko in the hallway, took the girl to the room he occupied.
However, as he turned the corner of the hallway to get there, he found Rengoku lying on the floor. The Water Pillar raised an eyebrow and approached him, still holding onto Nezuko. Only then did he realize that the man was unconscious and that there was a puddle of vomit just a few centimeters away from him.
But with Nezuko in his arms, he couldn't tend to him. So, the Water Pillar hurriedly entered the room and placed the girl on the bed. Then he closed the door and locked it with the key Aoi had given him.
Only then, with that problem solved, did he approach his companion. He knelt down and examined him closely. Rengoku had his eyes closed and some of the vomit stained his mouth. Giyuu opted to shake him a little, trying to wake him up. A while later, he succeeded and Kyojuro opened his eyes.
"Rengoku, are you okay?" Giyuu asked. Rengoku grunted a little and tried to sit up, trembling. When he realized it was too hard, Giyuu helped him up, holding onto him with some force when he wavered.
"Yeah, don't worry," Rengoku replied.
"If you've eaten something that didn't sit well with you, you should go see Shinobu," the Water Pillar commented, glancing at the vomit. He was going to have to ask one of the girls to clean it up.
"It's not necessary," Rengoku said. He didn't feel like telling him what had happened.
"Nevertheless, you should go see her."
Kyojuro sighed and leaned against the wall to walk better. That area still hurt. Giyuu, who didn't believe him, observed him carefully.
"I'll come with you," he decided, ignoring Kyojuro's protests. He passed his arm over his shoulders and started the journey to the infirmary. He didn't think he was in any condition to go by himself.
Due to Kyojuro's condition, who continued to refuse to tell Giyuu what had happened, it took them longer than expected to reach the infirmary. Tomioka didn't want to hurry and make his condition worse either, as it was evident that the Flame Pillar was feeling a bit dizzy. Although he didn't seem to want to vomit, which Giyuu believed was a good sign.
He opened the door to the room and entered with Kyojuro. Shinobu, who had been attending to an awake Sumiko, turned around and, seeing the state of the Flame Pillar, who was quite pale, quickly approached them.
"What happened?" asked the woman, looking at Giyuu. She knew that, with how proud Kyojuro was, she wouldn't get a clear answer from him.
"I found him unconscious in the hallway. He had vomited," said Giyuu. Kyojuro frowned when he realized they were acting as if he wasn't there.
"Have you eaten something bad?" Shinobu finally deigned to ask him.
"No," said Kyojuro, while Giyuu, following the woman's indication, accompanied his partner to one of the beds and helped him sit down.
"What happened to you then, Rengoku?"
"Nothing."
"Am I to assume that you vomited and fainted for no reason?" Shinobu smiled, making an effort. She had forgotten that within the Pillars, Kyojuro Rengoku was one of the most complicated. His stubbornness almost surpassed that of Sanemi, which was saying a lot.
"How is Sumiko?" Kyojuro asked instead. He didn't want to answer that question and was worried about his successor. He had been surprised to find her awake and like that, it almost seemed like nothing had happened to her.
Shinobu gave a warning look to Kanao, who interpreted it immediately and, somewhat reluctantly, got up from the chair, said goodbye to the four of them, and left quickly. Giyuu, perhaps thinking that he didn't belong there anymore, was about to leave too.
"Giyuu, can you watch over Nezuko while we talk?" Shinobu asked, serious. The man nodded and left quickly.
Sumiko, worried, sat up, not knowing what had happened. But seeing that Shinobu wasn't smiling as usual, she deduced that something serious must have happened. She swallowed nervously and tried to get out of bed, but the warning look Shinobu gave her made her stop.
"First, I'd like to know what happened to you, Rengoku," Shinobu said. "You were supposed to be watching over Nezuko."
"I was, yes, but..." Rengoku stopped for a moment before continuing. "She knocked me out," he admitted, not very willing to go into detail. Shinobu raised an eyebrow, questioning his words.
"How is that possible?" the woman wanted to know, pressing Kyojuro.
"I'd rather not say."
"Well, it doesn't matter," said Shinobu, almost giving up. That wasn't important right now. "As you can imagine, Nezuko came here."
"I imagined it, yes, and what happened?"
"She has a blood technique, Rengoku. She was able to burn the poison that had been injected into Sumiko. Or that's my assumption. I'd like to have Sumiko under observation for the moment before confirming it."
Rengoku opened his eyes wide and looked at Sumiko. He had almost asked before about his pupil's sudden improvement. "Are you sure about what you're saying, Kocho?"
Kokushibo stopped in front of the wisteria house. It had taken him longer than expected to find it, but he was finally there. He had found the first wisteria house in the city. He reached for the handle of his sword and, with some relief, reverted to his original form. In order to walk around the city without attracting attention, he had to camouflage himself with a human appearance, hiding his demonic features.
He unsheathed his sword, a katana with a red blade adorned with crimson-pupiled eyes. He heard people screaming around him, but he ignored them completely. A woman was shouting, asking someone to call the police.
"Moon Breathing, First Form. Dark Moon: Evening Palace," said the demon as he moved his weapon vertically. Numerous waning moons emerged from the blade and advanced quickly towards the door, shattering it instantly.
He watched as a crow flew out of one of the windows of the house, but he paid it no attention. That was precisely what he was looking for. Ignoring the animal, which fled in terror, he walked towards the entrance of the house. He entered and began to search for the inhabitants of the house.
Although he didn't have to search for long. In the middle of the hallway, a man was waiting for him. He was a young person, Kokushibo noticed, and judging by how he was trembling, he was terrified. He was holding a kitchen knife, a useless weapon against him.
The demon walked towards the human and sheathed his katana. He stopped a few meters from the host and looked him in the eyes.
"Are there more people living here?" Kokushibo wanted to know. The man gritted his teeth and, without answering, lunged at him with a knife in hand. He tried to stab Kokushibo in the chest, but he simply grabbed his face with one hand and squeezed, crushing his unfortunate victim's skull in a matter of seconds.
Afterwards, he tossed the body carelessly to the floor. He had given him a quick death, for having the courage to stand up to him. A way of honoring his worth.
"Father? Is everything okay?" a child asked, opening a nearby door and peeking into the hallway. Kokushibo looked in that direction. It was a boy, a kid who, judging by his height, must have been eight or nine years old.
The boy, upon seeing him, let out a scream of terror and quickly closed the door. The demon sighed a little and headed towards it. He had to make sure not to leave any humans alive.
He placed his hand on the doorknob and prepared to turn it. But before he could do so, he heard a group of footsteps coming from the entrance. Several humans had just entered the house.
"Stop! Police!" the newcomers shouted. Kokushibo looked at them with little interest. Six humans armed with pistols. Several dared to shoot at him, but Kokushibo paid no attention to them; those weapons couldn't harm him. He let them shoot him, and to the horror of the humans, he healed himself in a matter of seconds.
"He's a demon!" one of the policemen screamed, horrified. Kokushibo contained the urge to laugh at that; wasn't his appearance enough proof of his nature? Determined to continue with what he had come to do, he returned his attention to the door.
He frowned a little when he noticed that the door was locked. When he felt several bullets hit his body again, the First Upper Moon completely lost his patience. He unsheathed his katana again and turned, facing the police officers.
He executed the first stance of the Breath of the Moon again, splitting the police officers in half. The walls and floor began to fill with the blood flowing from the bodies. Kokushibo, satisfied with the result, turned his attention back to the door and effortlessly tore it off and threw it against the wall behind him.
He entered the room and, with his six eyes, observed the different places where a child of that size could have hidden. Under the bed that was against the wall or perhaps inside the wardrobe at the other end. He wasn't going to stop and look. He stopped in front of the bed and prepared his weapon to attack.
"Moon Breathing. Sixth Stance, Lonely Moon in the Eternal Night: Eternal Hell," he said, and numerous bursts of waning moons came out of his katana, shredding the bed. Kokushibo waited a few seconds and, not seeing the floor stained with blood, turned to the wardrobe.
It had to be there. He brandished his weapon and, using the first stance again, split the wooden furniture in two. This time he could see the blood staining the wall. The child had met the same fate as the police officers in the hallway.
But there was still one detail missing. Kokushibo was not yet satisfied with that. Although there were no more humans in the house, something was missing. He had to claim responsibility for that act. He left the bedroom and approached the dead police officers.
He stained one of his fingers with blood and began to write his title on one of the white walls. He wanted to make it clear that this crime was his doing. He was satisfied when the kanji for the First Upper Moon were written on the wall.
Mitsuri watched as the crow landed in front of her. It wasn't hers, she was sure of that, as it didn't have the ornament she had placed on its head to distinguish it from the others.
"Is something wrong?" the young woman asked, thinking that perhaps it was the crow of one of the Pillars or another demon hunter.
"Attack by a demon at the Hirosaki wisteria house!" the animal finally screeched. Mitsuri, who had been sitting on a wooden bench under an umbrella, enjoying a bit of shade, jumped up like a spring.
"Take me there," the woman demanded immediately. The crow took flight almost immediately and Mitsuri began to run after it, thinking about the news.
It wasn't normal for a demon to attack those places, as they were usually protected by wisteria trees. Only one powerful enough would be able to withstand such a toxic environment for a demon. And that would also explain why they had notified her and not a hunter of lower rank.
So it was quite likely that it was one of the Twelve Moons. Mitsuri hoped it was a Lower Moon and not an Upper one.
Getting to the scene of the crime was relatively easy. Fortunately, it wasn't too far from the city, and the crow had guided her fairly well. Although that didn't change the fact that it had taken her almost three days to get there.
The entire area around the house was cordoned off with police tape. There were several officers keeping watch and keeping curious onlookers at bay. Mitsuri searched in her pocket and pulled out her identification card as a member of the Demon Slayer Corps.
With that in hand, she approached one of the officers and showed it to him. He took it and examined it carefully. Then he returned it to her and looked at her.
"Please follow me, Miss Kanroji," he said, lifting the tape slightly. Mitsuri crouched down and passed underneath. The two entered the house in silence. The Love Pillar observed, with concern, how destroyed the door was. "There have been a total of six fatalities," the officer said at that moment, and Mitsuri paid attention again. "The two residents of the house and four of my colleagues."
"I am very sorry for your loss," Mitsuri said as they reached the hallway and came across the first bodies. The four officers. The woman covered her mouth with her right hand, trying to contain the horror she felt.
Her gaze stopped at what was written on the wall. First Upper Moon. She couldn't help but shudder at the implications of that. He was acknowledging authorship of it, almost as if he were proud of that massacre. It was not common, it could be a deception, it was something that Mitsuri could not dismiss.
But if it was true, if the First Upper Moon was roaming freely in his territory, it was her responsibility and obligation as a Pillar to put an end to all of that and hunt him down. Although Mitsuri was not foolish, rushing at him without more information was not a good idea. If she did, she risked running the same fate as Uzui. She had to inform the rest of the Pillars and wait for reinforcements.
"Urara!" the woman called to her crow, which, faithful to her, had been waiting outside the house. The animal flew in and perched on her left shoulder. "I want you to inform the boss about what happened. Tell him that the First Upper Moon is around here and that I need reinforcements."
That was something she had to do. The boss had to be informed of what was happening. The police officer watched all of this in silence, not missing how worried the woman was, which increased his nervousness and the certainty that what had happened in that house was much more serious than it seemed. When the bird left, Mitsuri paid attention again, and they resumed the tour of the house.
The woman, upon seeing the state of the next body, was about to vomit. His skull was completely destroyed, and from where she was, Mitsuri could see his brain. She closed her eyes and tried to control her breathing, looked away when she opened her eyes, preferring to look at the wall rather than see that macabre scene.
"Miss Kanroji, as it is a demon attack, we did not want to touch the bodies," confessed the officer. It was an attack of extreme brutality, something that the man, in all his years of service, had never seen.
"I understand, I..." Kanroji didn't know what to say either. She was still somewhat shaken by what she had seen.
"You will avenge my colleagues, won't you?" the officer asked, taking her out of her thoughts. His voice trembled, and it seemed that the man could barely maintain his composure.
"Of course I will," Mitsuri replied, perhaps with more confidence than she felt in that moment. But she couldn't let such an act go unpunished.
"Thank you very much," murmured the policeman. It had been he who had to take on the difficult task of informing the families of the deceased. And he regretted not being able to be completely honest about the cause of their deaths.
See you soon with the next chapter! Don't forget to leave a review! I would love to hear your thoughts!