Kimetsu no Yaiba doesn't belong to me. This story is a translation of another fanfic of mine. I hope you like it!
Amane and Kagaya listened solemnly to what Mitsuri's crow was telling them. Both furrowed their brows, growing more and more concerned by the news.
"What should we do, Kagaya?" Amane asked. It could be the First Upper Moon or not. It was too early to tell.
"The fact that it could enter a house protected by wisteria indicates that it's not just any demon," the pattern acknowledged with difficulty. Speaking was too much of an effort, and if he overexerted himself, he usually ended up coughing up blood. In fact, he began coughing now, having strained himself too much to say that. He covered his mouth with his right hand and, upon removing it, saw the blood staining his palm. He wiped it away with a cloth that his wife gave him.
"We can't send other Pillars as reinforcements right now," Amane said, looking at her husband out of the corner of her eye, worried, though she didn't say it aloud.
"What do you suggest, then?" Kagaya asked, serious, looking at his wife.
Amane remained silent. It was a very complicated situation. While it was very likely that it was an Upper Moon, they still didn't know its plans. It could still be just a random attack.
"I think it's best to wait and see what happens," the woman opined a while later. "And if the situation continues, then we'll send several Pillars."
"We can ask Mitsuri to take charge of it for now," Kagaya said hesitantly. "And to keep us informed."
Amane couldn't help but sigh in relief at that decision. She knew they were risking losing Mitsuri, but there wasn't much they could do.
"I'll write the response now," the woman announced. Kagaya nodded and, with effort, lay back down on the futon. He was sweating profusely and could barely keep his eyes open. The illness he had recently suffered from had left him even weaker, and he spent most of the day sleeping.
Amane watched him silently, there was nothing she could do for him except make sure he was as comfortable as possible. She rubbed her eyes, having gone days without being able to sleep well, thinking that at any moment, she would lose her husband has started to take its toll on her.
It wasn't as if it was something she hadn't known from the beginning. She had always tried to handle it as best as possible, but now that it was so close, Amane didn't know what to do. She felt overwhelmed, and to top it off, things in the Corps were becoming even more complicated.
She left her husband's room and went to the office. She sit in the chair behind the desk and opened one of the drawers, taking out a piece of paper. Amane left it on the table and, after dipping the pen on the desk in ink, began to write the letter to Mitsuri.
When she finished, she went to the aviary where Mitsuri's crow rested, tired from the journey. She whistled softly, and the bird took flight, perching on Amane's outstretched arm, allowing the woman to tie the paper to one of its legs.
Once that was done, Urara took flight once again, this time back to its owner. Amane went back inside the house.
Kanae and Douma knelt as soon as they entered the latter's room and saw Muzan sitting in one of the armchairs in the room.
The Demon King stood up upon seeing them and approached until he stopped in front of them.
"Have you made any progress with what I asked of you, Douma?" he asked.
"No, my lord. I haven't found any conclusive evidence of the existence of such a flower," the other replied, keeping his gaze fixed on the ground.
"How is it possible that you can't do something so simple?" Muzan asked, somewhat annoyed. "I assigned you that mission because, of all my Upper Moons, you are the one with the most resources."
"I'm sorry, my lord," murmured the Second Upper Moon. There wasn't much more he could say.
Muzan didn't say anything to that. The only hope of getting out into the sunlight was to obtain that plant. Something that, in the last thousand years, had not been possible. So it was to be expected that other demons would doubt the existence of such a plant. And he was starting to do so as well.
He observed the two demons, serious. He had read both of their thoughts before and knew what Douma wanted to ask him. To form a bond between them. It wasn't common, demons, except for a few exceptions, were solitary beings. Rui and his family and the two demons occupying the position of the Sixth Upper Moon were the only ones who had that kind of bond.
He turned his attention back to Douma. It wasn't that the request had caught him completely off guard. The change that the Second Upper Moon had undergone since being with Kanae was obvious. And granting him what he asked for would be a way to reward Douma's financial support.
"Douma, since I turned you into a demon, you have been of great use to me," Muzan began, serious, noticing Douma's surprise at those words. "And I would like to reward you for that. Is there anything you desire?"
Kanae and Douma exchanged a quick glance and the Second Upper Moon, after a moment of hesitation, cleared his throat, visibly nervous.
"I would like to form a bond with Kanae," Douma finally declared.
"Are you sure that's what you want? Wouldn't you prefer that I share more of my blood with you?" Muzan asked, wanting to check to what extent the other demon desired it.
"Yes, that's what I want. I am very grateful for your offer, my lord, but what I want is to share my blood with Kanae."
Muzan nodded. He still didn't know how that would turn out, but undoubtedly, it was quite interesting and he wanted to see how it would end.
"All right, if that's what you desire, you have my permission to do so."
"Thank you very much, my lord," both demons said at the same time.
The Demon King, seeing that he had resolved that issue, turned his back on them. It was time to go.
"Nakime," he said, and an open door appeared in the middle of the room. Muzan walked towards it, and without saying goodbye to the two demons, left. Once he crossed the door, it vanished, as if it had never existed.
Douma was whistling a small tune as he took a small deep plate from the kitchen. He was particularly happy at that moment. He examined the object, looking for any possible imperfection or breakage. Not seeing any, he smiled, obviously content, and walked quickly back to his bedroom.
There, sitting on the floor, Kanae was waiting for him. As soon as she saw him, she stood up and approached him.
Douma continued to smile and showed her the plate he had chosen. Kanae laughed a little, amused. She liked seeing that side of him, seeing him so excited about something like that pleased the young woman a lot.
The demon placed the plate on the table. He grew the nail of his left ring finger and, after placing his right arm over the plate, made a deep cut, allowing his blood to fall onto the object, almost filling it completely.
Kanae watched all this without saying anything. When Douma handed her the plate, she took it without hesitation. And she drank. As soon as she swallowed the blood, she felt excruciating pain, let go of the plate, and it shattered on the floor.
She was about to fall to the ground, but Douma caught her in time. Kanae felt him holding her in his arms. Kanae protested about that, in pain. The demon carried her to the bed and carefully laid her on it.
He moved away a bit to give her space. He still looked at her worriedly, although he knew that it was normal for her body to show an adverse reaction to his blood, he hoped it would pass soon. It wasn't like he had given her a large amount.
Kanae closed her eyes, and judging by the way her breathing became regular, she fell asleep. That made Douma relax. It was normal, he told himself, nothing that was happening indicated that she wouldn't be able to handle it. Kanae was quite strong, she could do it.
Kanao accompanied Sumiko around the house, unsure of what to do. Although Sumiko had been on the brink of death not too long ago, she insisted on returning to training as if nothing had happened.
Her friend, knowing she wouldn't listen to reason, had decided to accompany her to keep an eye on her.
"Kanao, I'm fine, really," Sumiko said, stopping and looking at the other girl. She had caught the bittersweet scent emanating from Kanao and quickly put two and two together.
"Shinobu wanted me to keep an eye on you," Kanao quickly improvised a lie. Sumiko observed her silently, but eventually nodded and resumed walking towards the training room.
Kanao followed her immediately and caught up with her. On impulse, she grabbed Sumiko's hand to stop her.
"I'm just worried about you," Kanao admitted, averting her gaze as she felt herself blush. She felt the warm touch of Sumiko's hand and that made her even more nervous.
"I'm fine, really. Nezuko completely eliminated the poison," Sumiko reassured her.
"I know, but..." Kanao hesitated. Although she had felt first hand that the fire didn't burn, she still felt uneasy.
They arrived at their destination, and Sumiko smiled a bit, trying to calm Kanao down.
"Do you want to play tag?" she asked. They could improve their reflexes. Kanao was much better at the game than Sumiko, who had yet to catch her.
"Sure, why not?," Kanao said, pulling a coin out of her pocket. Even though she no longer used it, she always carried it. "Heads or tails?"
"Tails," Sumiko decided, and Kanao tossed the coin into the air and caught it with both hands. Without opening her hands yet, she placed the coin in her left palm and then removed her right hand to see the result.
"It's heads. I'll catch you then," Kanao announced, and without giving Sumiko time to react, she lunged at her to try and catch her.
Sumiko, who wasn't expecting it, didn't have time to move and Kanao fell on top of her, both ending up on the floor. Kanao on top of Sumiko. They both turned red as tomatoes, and Kanao, embarrassed, quickly got off of her.
"I'm sorry!"
"It's my fault!" Sumiko exclaimed. "I should have been more careful!"
Both avoided looking at each other, still quite red from what had happened. And neither knew exactly what to say. Kanao tucked some of her hair behind her ear. Sumiko glanced at her doing that. Thanks to her acute sense of smell, she could tell how nervous the other girl was.
"We should keep going," Kanao finally said. They couldn't just stand there doing nothing.
"You're right," Sumiko agreed and tried to normalize her breathing to calm down. "I'm going!" she shouted before trying to catch Kanao, who easily dodged her.
Hinatsuru breathed a sigh of relief, they had finally managed to descend from the mountain before it got dark. It was the training that Makio and her executed most frequently. They still felt that they needed to strengthen their lungs more.
"This time it took us less time," Makio commented, smiling. They had become faster.
"Yes," Hinatsuru said, panting a bit. But they still couldn't break the rock. They had to perfect the Sound Breathing technique even more.
The two headed back to the house. They were going to take a shower before dinner. They couldn't go in any way after training. They had fallen several times and their clothes were somewhat dirty.
Makio had mud stains on her arms and one cheek, and sweat was visible on her body. Hinatsuru, on the other hand, had not fallen as much as Makio, but had sweated quite a bit.
They entered the house and, while Makio went into the bathroom to prepare the bathtub, Hinatsuru went to the room to get a change of clothes for both of them. Once that was done, she entered the bathroom.
Makio was kneeling on the bathtub, checking the water temperature. Once she was satisfied, she plugged the drain and began to fill the bathtub.
"Do you have everything, Hinatsuru?" Makio asked, turning around and noticing the other woman.
"Yes, of course," Hinatsuru replied, leaving the clothes near the bathtub. Makio undressed calmly and got into the bathtub.
Hinatsuru hesitated for a moment, the two could enter without any problem, but she didn't know if it was a good idea.
"Aren't you getting in?" Makio asked, while taking the soap and starting to wash her legs.
"Oh, yes, I'm coming now," Hinatsuru said, taking off her clothes and leaving them next to Makio's, who moved a little to give her space.
They hadn't done this, bathing together, since the deaths of Suma and Tengen. They had been avoiding it all those months. Their absence hurt them and they had spent all that time getting used to the idea. The training they had undergone was of great help to distract themselves and not constantly think about the two of them.
Hinatsuru got into the bathtub and sighed. She closed her eyes and let the hot water relax her. She was exhausted after training.
"Can you help me with my back?" Makio asked, turning around and giving her back.
"Sure," Hinatsuru said, taking the sponge that the other woman handed her. She began to rub Makio's back with it. And, for a second, Hinatsuru couldn't help but remember the good times when all four of them were together. And, without realizing it, she began to cry.
Makio heard her and, concerned, turned to look at her. Hinatsuru wiped her tears with her free hand, but continued to sob and the tears continued to fall down her cheeks. The other woman hugged her and tried to comfort her.
Nezuko looked at Rengoku, serious. She had been searching for him around the house and finally found him coming out of her brother's bedroom.
"Can we talk?" the girl asked, making sure the man was paying attention. Kyojuro nodded and crossed his arms, waiting to hear what she wanted. "Now that I have a demon blood technique, I'll be able to accompany my sister on missions again, right?"
Rengoku, who had been waiting for that question, firmly denied it. Nezuko frowned and looked at him, extremely annoyed.
"It's better for you to stay here, under Kocho's supervision," he said.
"And why is that?" the girl hissed, almost baring her teeth at the adult but managing to suppress that instinct at the last moment.
"It's the safest thing for Sumiko."
"I doubt that," replied Nezuko. She refused to believe such an obvious lie. How could that be best for her sister?
"Not all hunters will accept your presence. You're still a demon and..."
"And what does that have to do with anything?" Nezuko interrupted him immediately. "I just want to protect my older sister."
"Sumiko can defend herself," Kyojuro reminded her, not giving in an inch.
"Do you think I don't know that?" Nezuko replied. "I just want to help her."
"You help her by staying here quietly."
As a response, Nezuko growled. There was no way to get the Flame Pillar to give in, and it was beginning to be truly irritating. It almost seemed personal.
"Look, I can understand that you're worried about your sister," Kyojuro acknowledged. "But you have to understand that it's better this way."
"And how long do I have to stay idle?" asked the young woman, serious. "I can fight now, I can be really useful."
Kyojuro sighed, tired of her attitude, but he couldn't give in and let her have her way.
"It doesn't matter, it's better for you to stay here, and I'm not going to repeat it again," the Flame Pillar said, settling the matter.
Nezuko clenched her fists and her nails, sharp as claws, dug into her flesh, causing her to start bleeding. But those wounds didn't take long, a couple of seconds, to close.
"You have my word that if my sister dies on any mission, I'll hold you responsible," Nezuko spat, irate.
"Are you threatening me?" Kyojuro wanted to know, placing his right hand on the hilt of his katana.
"No, I'm just stating a fact," the demon said, looking suspiciously at the demon hunter's weapon.
"Be careful what you say," he warned her, not relaxing in the slightest.
Kanae woke up startled and sat up in bed. She looked around, uneasy, recognizing the place she was in. It was Douma's bedroom and she was sitting on his bed.
She was alone, she couldn't see the other demon anywhere and she didn't know how long she had been unconscious. She got out of bed and touched the floor with her bare feet. Although she felt how cold the wood was, she didn't flinch. It was not something that affected her, demons were immune to diseases and ilness, so she wasn't going to catch a cold.
She smiled a bit when she located her katana. Douma had left it near the bed. She approached and picked it up, placing it on her waist, securing it with the cord of her obi.
She rubbed her eyes a little and headed towards the dresser that Douma had kindly installed for her some time ago. It was a white piece of furniture, with numerous drawers and a mirror. The demon sat down in front of the dresser and, opening one of the drawers, took out a comb and began to brush her hair.
When she had eliminated all the tangles in her hair, she looked at herself in the mirror again. Her hair reached down to her waist, and more than once she had considered cutting it for convenience, but when the time came to do it, she always hesitated.
She sighed a bit, the best she could do was to tie it up a bit. She opened another drawer and took out a pink ribbon. She left it within reach and with both hands she tied her hair into a ponytail, securing it with the ribbon.
She looked at herself in the mirror and frowned a bit. In the past, when she was a human, she had used two butterfly-shaped hairpins . She closed her eyes and suppressed the unpleasant emotions that threatened to surface. She didn't miss that life, in fact, she was grateful to have lost those hairpins that day. That way, she wouldn't have anything to remind her of what she had left behind.
She opened her eyes again and observed her reflection. No, those days would never come back, nor did she want them to. She preferred to stay by Douma's side, even if that meant having to face her sister someday.
She turned around when she heard the door open, letting Douma in. The young woman smiled a bit, stood up, and approached him.
"Are you feeling better now?" the demon asked, mentally, concerned. Kanae, who had not expected that, looked at him, surprised.
"Yes, of course," she replied, also speaking telepathically, raising her right hand and wiping with her thumb the blood that stained the left corner of Douma's lips.
Not only could she hear the other demon's thoughts, Kanae noticed at that moment, she was also able to perceive Douma's emotions. It was strange, but at the same time comforting. She smiled, content, grateful that Muzan had allowed them that.
Douma gently caressed her hand, once again drawing the woman's attention.
"You look beautiful with your hair tied up like that," he commented, noticing it for the first time.
Kanae smiled a bit and moved away from him. Douma observed her, trying to figure out what she was thinking.
"Do you miss your sister?" he asked, curious, a while later.
"No," the woman denied, perhaps too quickly, and added, "I don't miss anything from when I was human."
"And what will you do if you meet her?"
"I'm a demon and she's a hunter," she reminded him, serious. "She's not going to welcome me with open arms."
"That doesn't answer my question," Douma pointed out.
"I don't know what I'll do," Kanae acknowledged. With the bond that connected them, it was foolish to try to deceive him. "When the time comes, I suppose I'll know."
Mitsuri trembled as she observed the remains of the house. Once again, she had arrived too late, that demon had continued to be one step ahead. And innocent people had ended up paying for her ineptitude with their lives.
Her body shook as she began to sob, unable to maintain her composure. She didn't know how she was supposed to hunt down that demon. That demon wasn't even hiding his actions, yet she still couldn't keep up with him.
Although the most worrying thing was that he only attacked wisteria houses. And Mitsuri feared he wouldn't stop at destroying all of them in her territory. She sighed and tried to regulate her breathing. She wiped away her tears and, with little enthusiasm, entered the house.
She observed the walls carefully, searching for that signature mark that demon left behind. The woman shuddered when she saw the kanji for the First Upper Moon. She already knew he was the culprit, but seeing that mark made her skin crawl.
How was she supposed to find him? She had no experience in that. What would Rengoku have done if he were in her situation? What was clear was that she couldn't do it alone.
It was true that the leader had asked her not to request reinforcements from the other Pillars for the time being. But he had never said she couldn't inform them of the situation or ask for advice.
She swallowed, if she did that, she wouldn't be disobeying the leader, right? She hesitated for a moment and made a decision. She would inform him before it happened and ask for permission to notify the other Pillars of the situation.
Yes, that would be the best, Mitsuri thought seriously as she quickly left the house. She would go to the inn where she was staying and send her crow with the letter to the leader from there.
They had to put an end to this situation as soon as possible. She hoped the man would accept and allow her to ask for help.
See you soon with the next chapter! Don't forget to leave a review! I would love to hear your thoughts!