The air was still, darkness, though still hanging around, was on its way out of the quiet fishing village. Doors were shut tight, the town seemed dead at first glance, but they were very much alive. It felt as though the whole world had begun to hold its breath, waiting for some climatic event to force them to act. What happened instead was quite the opposite, it was rather ironic. Claws tore across the muddy streets, four legs moving as fast as they possibly could. A beast, one with jagged teeth and sickeningly pale skin was fleeing at a rapid face, a look of terror flashing across its orange glowing eyes. It looked back frantically, looking to the treeline and trying to determine whether it was safe, whatever it was fleeing from had made quite the impression. It panted, almost wanting to cry for help, though he knew there was nothing in the world that would offer him support, he had done terrible things.
Seven people had gone missing in the town of Pingwei, the monster responsible had devoured their victims, men, women, and even children among the mix. The demon had felt invincible, commanding fear over the small village, feeling like the lord of its own sick fantasy. That all changed when the resistance inevitably arrived, leaving that same demon where it was now, running for its life like a coward.
The demon continued to sprint through the village, looking for any possible nook or cranny to hide from its pursuer, knowing that the sun would rise soon to claim its life could it not escape. It halted abruptly, reaching the edge of the water, looking across the expansive lake, the remnants of moonlight shimmering on its surface. The demon hit its hand across the water's surface in frustration, beginning to feel desperate.
"I'm running out of time! It will surely be the end of me if I stay put, I should've thought this through… Oh, you stupid greedy bastard!" the demon said, its voice breaking as it coiled up like a dying snake. A quick burst of air rustled its matted hair as it felt a presence appear behind him, the demon's blood ran cold.
"Actually, your time just ran out," a stable and controlled voice said, a figure standing over the demon, his form shrouded in shadow.
"You should have thought this through when you murdered innocents, those families lost everything because of you, and you showed no remorse," the sound of metal swished through the air.
"That is why you meet your end, no time to delay, nowhere to run," another burst of air, this time followed by a flash of blue light, the sky lit up as if it was an early dawn, doves fleeing from nearby branches. The sound of metal once again, and a metallic click, followed by two dull thuds. The demon lay sprawled out, its head lying next to its crumpled torso, a look of sheer terror still plastered on its face as it looked up at the attacker, beginning to wither away.
Takeshi looked down on the demon, his face cold and emotionless, he looked much more mature, hardened, but somehow even more broken beneath the surface.
"I will not hesitate to seek out and cut down every single one of you who takes advantage of innocent lives, I have made it clear that your actions are inexcusable," Takeshi said, adjusting his haori, the same blue and gold pattern as his favorite kimono, in which it had been made from.
"Take in the sunrise as you rot, farewell," with that, Takeshi turned and walked away, his steps measured and calm, his breathing had never wavered.
As he walked through the village, the sun creeping at his heels, the village began to awaken, door opening and townsfolk beginning to murmur. They all watched as the swordsman disappeared into the forest, following the path back where he had come, a crow landing atop his head as he walked.
"Saeki, I'd like my one question today to be this, how many demons have I defeated? You have been keeping track?" Takeshi said to the crow, the bird looking down at him curiously.
"FORTY SEVEN. TAKESHI SLAYS FORTY-SEVEN. FORTY-SIX BEFORE THAT, FORTY-EIGHT AFTER," the crow squealed loudly, giving a routine peck to Takeshi's scalp.
Three more, and I can begin my Hashira evaluation, Takeshi thought, reminiscing about his encounters over the past year and a half. He had turned 18 some months ago, his birthday celebration in the form of cutting down a demon who had stolen a shepherd and its entire flock of sheep from a village north of here. Another more memorable one was the demon that spoke in reverse, using its feet to attack and walking on its hands, it was quicker than he had expected. It dawned on Takeshi just how long he had been alone in his travels, the only form of human contact coming from concerned villagers and the occasional vendor, he didn't count the two or so sentences a day to Saeki. He received a few letters from Kazuo, mostly inquiring about his health, reminding him of technique, and asking him to visit, Takeshi had not had a chance to respond just yet, though he had sent Saeki a couple of times.
His demeanor was different, much quieter, his face cold and sharp, the trace of his signature smile had not appeared in months. Takeshi looked aged beyond his years, his body well formed and athletic, his shoulders broad and strong, he had no choice but to adapt to his situation with maturity. He spent so much time in silence and solitude that it was no wonder he was so quiet, the loudest voice being the one in his head, which never seemed to let up. Takeshi had jumped from assignment to assignment, taking no breaks and often journeying to the next site immediately after dealing with the previous. One thing that had not changed was his goal, he held his temari tightly in his hands as he walked, looking up at the treetops wavering in the morning gusts. The sound of mourning doves accompanied the sunrise, a conversation between birds loud and clear for the whole forest to hear. He felt a warmth inside, though it didn't manifest on his face, he felt content with himself even just for a moment.
The demon he had just dealt with had been quite an urgent matter, Takeshi had barely slept over the past couple of days and he could feel it starting to wear on him. He had used Total Concentration Breathing to keep his fatigue at bay to this point, but even technique is no substitute for rest. He emerged from the trees into a sort of meadow, a basin of long grass in the shadows of mountains from each side, their snowy peaks seemingly worlds away. He decided that it was a decent enough spot to rest for a while, finding a spot of flat terrain and placing his bag down, Saeki perched on a nearby sapling, pecking curiously at the leaves as they rustled in the gentle breeze. Takeshi half sat, half collapsed onto the ground, resting his head on his bag for support. He stared up at the puffy white clouds in the afternoon sky, watching as they slowly flowed about, morphing slightly but always retaining their general shape. He felt the warmth of the sun on his face, the rays feeling as though they reached as far as the bone. Takeshi couldn't fight sleep any longer, he began to close his eyes involuntarily, drifting off in mere seconds. He momentarily felt the sun warming his closed eyelids, a bright red hue shining through, not dampening the light much at all. In just a few short moments, Takeshi's breathing slowed down, and he began lifelessly still, fatigue had caught him, and he had dallen into a deep slumber, totally unaware of his surroundings. Saeki made a sighing sound, realizing that it was going to have to keep watch as its master slept. The wind echoed the swordsman's long deep breaths, and the meadow exhaled and inhaled, all was serene and peaceful for one refreshing moment.
He opened his eyes, he recognized this place. The mountainside, the cliff, the coo of mourning doves, he had dreamed this dream for months now. He knew how it went, the temari, the serpent, the unraveling, the leap. Even though he had seen it night after night, he still could not gather what its significance was. The pieces all seemed so important and clear, but he just couldn't figure out what they had to do with one another, why was he seeing it so often? He held out the temari ball, waiting for it to unravel as it always did when something out of the ordinary landed right on his shoulder. A butterfly, its wings a beautiful incandescent purple, perched itself on Takeshi, slowly flexing its wings as they glistened in the moonlight. He was taken aback, frozen in place in surprise, nothing had changed for months, not even the slightest detail yet there it was. Just as quickly as it had landed, the butterfly took off once more, now landing briefly on the temari ball in Takeshi's hand. Stopping only for a moment, the butterfly grabbed the end of the temari, gliding its way toward the night sky with one end of the fabric in tow. Takeshi watched as the butterfly unwove the fabric into its familiar shape, eventually, the serpent began to take form once again. Once again to his surprise, the butterfly began to mimic the serpent's movements, the two ending up in a cycle of reciprocal movement.
It looks like… a dance…. It's so beautiful, Takeshi thought, he couldn't help but take in every moment of the dance, watching as the butterfly and serpent weaved magnificent patterns throughout the night sky. He watched for what felt like hours, the beating wings of the butterfly and the clicking of the serpent's scales creating an unlikely harmony, the scene was fantastic. After a moment, Takeshi made his way to the cliff's edge, He gazed down at the intimidating drop, not fearing what came next, it had become second nature for him. He took one last look at the scene above him, and leaped from the cliff, wind whipping through his hair, he closed his eyes and awaited his return to reality. It appeared his dream had one last trick this time.
He felt his velocity slow down, at first just some slight resistance, and now building to a complete stop. He opened his eyes and gasped, thousands of butterflies had gathered around him, all holding to him and flapping in unison. He thought about fighting to free himself, but his curiosity got the better of him and he allowed the mass of insects to carry him higher and higher into the sky. Takeshi couldn't believe it, he'd dreamed one thing since that fateful night, and today it has changed so much that it was barely recognizable. He sat back, watching as the scenery began to fade away, the flapping wings all beating in unison, taking him higher and higher. He was so close to the moon that he felt as though he could touch it, its brightness getting more and more intense as he was forced to squint his eyes, his pupil dilation not seeming to translate over to his dreams. He suddenly felt a rushing warmth envelop him, reaching from the tips of his hair to the very ends of his toes, he took a deep breath in that felt like it may never end. He held his arms out, feeling as though he may lift off the ground, he was air, he was freedom, he was light. He wanted this feeling to last forever, closing his eyes and allowing whatever was at play to fully have him, he felt burdenless, his worldly troubles behind him somewhere at that mountain face, the butterflies had flown him far away. And then, he was falling.
Takeshi jumped violently back into consciousness, grabbing a handful of the grass beneath him to try and steady himself. He tried to reign in his breathing, his body feeling heavy and stiff, his burden was back. In an instant, Takeshi remembered who he was and more importantly, what he was, he was a Demon Slayer, and he had a job to do. His look of panic changed abruptly back to the measured and cold face he had cultivated in his solitude. He looked around for Saeki, he was ready to continue, he didn't wish to dwell on whatever he had experienced for any longer than he needed to, he was afraid it would slow him down.
He stood and brushed off some dust and dew that had accumulated on his body as he had slept, placing the wavy blue and gold haori back over his shoulders, and securing his blade at his hip. Almost on queue, Saeki plopped suddenly back down onto Takeshi's head, seeing his beady black eyes peering down at him from the top of his peripheral vision. He reached into his knapsack and produced a handful of seed, lifting it above his head for the crow to observe. Saeki did not think twice, pecking frantically at the seeds as if he had not eaten in years, though Takeshi had observed the many empty shells surrounding the area where he had slept. In between pecking at the seed, Saeki was obviously trying to say something, not lowering his volume at all despite the obstacle of eating.
"NOR…TH… JOB FOR TAKESHI…. DISAPPEARANCES… NO REMAINS… SHARP ROCK… CAVE NOISE… HASHIRA PRESENT," the crow spat, dropping a mouthful of seeds in his hair before taking off towards the north. Takeshi knew this drill all too well, he grabbed his knapsack with haste and took off after the bird, he had learned the hard way that Saeki would only show the way once. Gripping his sword with one hand, he moved steadily through the evening air, the grass swishing beneath his movement. The mention of a Hashira made Takeshi realize he hadn't even paid much attention to his rank, his unbelievable pace that he had kept over the past few months had allowed him to soar through the ranks. He looked down at his forearm, making a fist and revealing the marking he had received from the final selection.
Kinoe, the marking read, without even realizing, Takeshi had become quite the respectable swordsman, he was just a few more tests away from being able to try for an opportunity to become a Hashira himself. Takeshi had never exactly had this as a goal, but nonetheless, he thought it was a great indicator of his strength, and he relished the idea of being amongst such strong and fierce comrades. He merely needed to vanquish three more common demons or a member of the twelve Kizuki, Takeshi shuddered and closed his eyes, once again seeing the haunting image of the ruthless demon he had encountered with Kazuo.
I can't be afraid anymore, Takeshi thought, I can keep up, I'm on that level, I just need to keep pushing ahead.
The sun continued to drift lower and lower, finally sinking beneath the mountains, painting the landscape in a reddish hue, Takeshi marveled at the beauty, but also could not seem to shake the feeling that something awaited in the future, something dangerous. He dilated his pupils, Saeki did not stop for darkness, Takahashi would have appreciated that.
The young swordsman's footsteps were nearly silent as he maneuvered through the night, dodging fallen trees and exposed roots. He moved with purpose, a Hashira would respect punctuality and effectiveness, he thought. His bright blue eyes were almost luminous in the pitch dark, burning bright with determination, their supply was near unlimited.