The Dancing Star

Chapter 23

12Thirtypain03

WARNING: This story is rated M for mature-rated content. If some acts of violence, blood, or anything easily triggering make you uncomfortable, please leave and do not read. Any change to a character, when introduced, killed, changed into a demon/human, or more will be labeled in the chapter of occurrence. If a character has died in a chapter, that chapter will give a cause of death to that character.


With Zenitsu, Genya, and Kanao


Perhaps it was the events that occurred during the Final Selection, or that normally only a handful of demon slayers survive the Final Selection regardless, what the demon slayers knew when they woke up, was that they were the only three to survive out of a total of perhaps forty. That was not only mentioning the extra demon slayers that were required to intervene due to the fire of the wisteria within Final Selection.

Kanao was the first one to wake up.

Not only was she the least injured, but she was the most resilient. She had been more skilled than the other two currently surviving demon slayers.

But by her standards, she was a bit upset with herself about the best of her abilities, however considering all she needed to do, was to survive, she at least knew that she completed what she was told.

Zenitsu was the next to wake, around three days after, and he immediately panicked.

"W-What?! Where am I? Am I dead?!" Zenitsu cried out as he immediately began to cry out loud, "WAA! I'm sorry Gramps! Sorry, for not finishing- OW!" Zenitsu immediately rubbed his head after a slap struck Zenitsu on the cheek.

He immediately rubbed it as he cried more, "What was that for?" He murmured.

"For being loud! You are in a place for recovering demon slayers, so the least you can do is be quiet and let the others sleep." Aoi sternly told Zenitsu, and he quickly shivered and cried.

"Why are you so mean to me…" He cried as he held his cheek tightly.

"Oh brother, why did you survive, and how…?" Aoi mumbled, which Zenitsu heard.

"Wait, I lived?!" Zenitsu perked back up as if he was surprised.

"Yes, you dimwit…" Aoi mumbled as she deadpanned, eyeing Kanao, feeling bad the poor girl had to witness and heard this for a bit.

"Do you need me to move you out?" Aoi asked Kanao, who merely turned to her pocket and flipped her coin in the air.

It landed heads.

"Yes, please." Kanao responded after a bit, and Aoi nodded, "I'll get on it, perhaps I should have split this by gender…"

Before the two girls knew it, they had managed to move Kanao over to a separate room for her to relax and recover. "Hope this works."

"Thank you, Aoi." Kanao nodded toward the girl.

"It's nothing, I don't want Shinobu nor Kanae to be mad about you not recovering." Aoi smiled at Kanao. They truly were siblings in everything but blood.

Kanao then flipped her coin, watching it land in her hand before she asked. "How is Kanae doing?"

Aoi sighed before she prepared herself to explain everything.

"She's recovering fine, but Shinobu is still doing some tests to see if she has permanent damage in her eyes. She's worrying that Kanae using that form of Flower Breathing might have damaged her eyes."

"Is there any progress with that?"

Aoi sighed, "Her right eye seems perfectly fine, but she did bleed somewhat on her left eye. We're not sure about the left eye."

"I see. Thank you." Kanae gave Aoi a small smile before Aoi walked off.

While this was going on, Zenitsu continued to complain, as he was still unsure of whether he was alive or not.

Of course, once he felt enough pain to cry, he realized quickly that he was alive.

Not to mention that Genya had woken up and had gotten up and started to comedically choke Zenitsu.

It took the calming of the three butterfly sister and Aoi to finally get Zenitsu to calm down.

Of course, Aoi would have gotten more involved in maintaining Zenitsu's state of quietness, if not for a specific wild animal that was eating a large amount of Aoi's food she would prepare.

It really did piss her off, because she had prepared the food for so long, and yet it was disappearing so quickly, without a trace.

And so, Aoi had to prepare for a trap. She was sure that depending on the size of the food being eaten, it must have been a large creature.

As a result, that night, she prepared a large trap for the individual that was sneaking into the kitchen and taking the food she would cook.

After which she decided to look over many of the demon slayers that were recovering.

Of course, Kanao was able to move after a bit, and she was walking a bit, albeit with a struggle. She had apparently suffered the worst injury to her leg.

Then, there were Zenitsu and Genya, both would heal. Genya just needed to sleep a lot, and that was that.

As nighttime came, Aoi knew that the master was planning to get the coronation going after he had heard the demon slayers were all awake.

But now that Aoi thought about it, she could have sworn that there was a demon slayer missing.

The Kakushi had told Aoi about five demon slayers, which included Kanae.

Kanao, Zenitsu, Genya, and another demon slayer.

Aoi was missing one demon slayer, and this immediately made her confused and concerned.

Coincidentally, this was around the same time that Aoi heard a loud noise go in the kitchen.

"Argh! Who put this contraption here?!" The voice was loud and comedic, and it made Aoi quickly run into the kitchen.

While she was expecting a person to be in the kitchen trying to eat, what she didn't expect, was the characteristics of the individual she found in the kitchen.

It was an individual, with a boar's head. The individual was very sturdy and bulky whilst appearing to be just taller than Aoi.

"Who the hell are you?" Aoi asked.

The boar's head turned around, "I'm Inosuke Hashibira! Hahahaha! Are you the person who makes food?!"

Aoi looked very confused, "Yeah, I am, why?"

Immediately, Inosuke quickly came down before hugging Aoi.

Needless to say, the usually serious girl who didn't really show much was surprised by the sudden hug.

"Now give me more food, woman!" Inosuke suddenly blared out, and it was here did Aoi realize who this individual was.

"Wait, you're the other demon slayer who needed to be cared for, what are you doing out of your bed?" Aoi asked.

Inosuke laughed, "Please! The great Inosuke will never be kept down on a bed!" Aoi could only sigh in exasperation.

"No wonder nobody wanted to be around him…" Aoi thought to herself in a bit of annoyance.

"No! You must go back to your bed!" Aoi sternly told Inosuke, clearly not playing around and trying to get Inosuke back in bed.

"Ha! Only if you can catch me!" Inosuke pumped his chest out, and it was here did Aoi realize he was shirtless.

"Oh lord… Please take off your mask and get a shirt on! Go back on the bed!" Aoi yelled to Inosuke as she was already losing it.

"No!" Inosuke yelled back, almost like a spoiled child.

Aoi sighed in frustration before she got an idea. "Fine, if you won't, at least get away from the kitchen, I need to fix some stuff."

"And why should I care?" Inosuke asked.

"Because you can't cook and make food in a dirty kitchen!" Aoi responded, and for once, Inosuke seemed to understand.

"No food? Well, what are you waiting for woman? Clean the kitchen!" Inosuke yelled to Aoi.

Stereotypes aside, Aoi sighed in exasperation. "That is not the right thing to say to a woman…"

"This demon slayer is going to give me an aneurysm…" Aoi mumbled as she placed a hand on her head.

However, she immediately knew what to do to get Inosuke back in the supposed room he was to reside in.

She had spent around half an hour setting up a row of foods that Inosuke would consume that led to a room with a one-room lock.

Aoi hoped the boar head wouldn't be incapable of breaking down the door, but she knew that if she wanted the boar head to stay in the room, she would need to give him some food to keep him in there.

Obviously, there would be other risks for doing this, for example, Inosuke conditioning himself to have this happen constantly. Aoi didn't want that.

And so, as Aoi led the food from inside the sturdy room, to the kitchen, she saw Inosuke turn to face the bread that Aoi cooked.

Without hesitation, Inosuke immediately jumped to eat the food, before he noticed another, and an entire line of small crumbs of food that he had been wanting to eat.

"Haha! Inosuke has hit the jackpot!" Inosuke pumped himself at the accomplishment he had apparently gotten.

And so, he without hesitation grabbed the food and followed the trail.

This eventually led to the boar head being on the bed munching on a larger loaf of bread before Aoi took the opportunity to lock the door.

She closed it, before sighing in relief. At least that was something she was done dealing with for the night unless the boar head bites into the walls and escapes his captivity.

The next thing Aoi would need is some sort of dungeon or basement to keep him still.

Aoi sighed, "Since when did these responsibilities get stuck with me…"

And so, as Aoi continued to assist in helping almost all of the demon slayers from the Final Selection recover, she eventually did learn that Inosuke was indeed the other demon slayer to survive.

Making a total of four demon slayers.

Apparently, a masked demon slayer had carried Inosuke to the kakushi. The boar head was unconscious with a fractured rib and concussion but otherwise was alright.

Aoi sighed, this would be frustrating.

Especially with Shinobu focusing on making sure her elder sister recovered from the second instance of the same upper moon wanting to fight her.

Many of the Hashira naturally worried that Kanae was a target by Muzan since this is the second time the same Upper Moon has encountered and has been wanting to fight Kanae.

Regardless, Aoi sighed in relief, as despite the dark undertone that everything had with the Final Selection, some demon slayers were alive.

And even if the crybaby was as such, a crybaby, he was seemingly strong for being able to survive everything regarding the Final Selection.

Whereas when she took the Final Selection, she felt outclassed by the now, Mist Hashira, Tokito,

Now, considering everything that had just happened, she was paranoid.

While Aoi herself wasn't there in the Final Selection, she had understandably been traumatized by the events that occurred, especially since it was an event she herself had gone through.

But Kanao had gone through something much worse.

Something, that would traumatize anyone.

And even then, Kanao still chose to fight and be a demon slayer.

Aoi had been there when Kanao was first brought into the Butterfly Mansion.

She was dirty, neglected, and abused. It was a difficult time even watching the condition of the girl at the time. Aoi and Kanao were the same age, and if she remembered properly, Kanao was around seven or eight years old when she was taken in.

In the end, not only did they have to her a name, but they had to teach her everything. For the time being, they were also trying to teach Kanao as a caretaker role. To be a medic, just like Aoi and Shinobu.

However, Kanao was not as skilled at this as Aoi and Shinobu were. Even the butterfly sisters were able to know what to do, whilst Kanao was less than stellar when it came to homecare.

As a result, she wanted to become a demon slayer.

This was obviously rejected by both Kanae and Shinobu and whilst they were at least willing to give Kanao a prop of a nichirin blade, she had begun to learn Flower Breathing from watching Kanae.

She was doing this as a young child since she was not as skilled at what Aoi and the other sisters did.

In the end, Kanao watched both Kanae and Shinobu perform their breathing styles, and through it all, she too learned.

Of course, Kanao probably used her coin to decide whether she was to attend the Final Selection or not.

No doubt, Shinobu and Kanae would have not wanted her to do this.

But alas, Kanao did.

And whilst they worried, Kanae was aware of the work Kanao put into practicing the forms. Eventually, she decided to take Kanao in as a tsuguko. But even then, she never anticipated letting Kanao attend the final selection.

As a result, she was extraordinarily skilled.

From the breathing constant to the style and footwork, Kanao learned it all from watching Kanae.

That was it.

And she had succeeded.

Without much or serious injuries whatsoever.

It was a testament to the strength Kanao had, and it only reinforced her thinking she should be a demon slayer.

Of course, Shinobu once finished helping Kanae with her injuries, talked to Kanao.

However, seeing the progress that Kanao made regardless, made it aware that perhaps being a demon slayer was the role Kanao would have fulfilled.

Therefore, after Shinobu, Kanao would be the next in line for Hashira. She was exceptionally skilled, and the two eldest sisters acknowledged that.

For Aoi, it made her feel weak. Aoi always prided herself on being strong, so it did hurt her when she was outclassed by Tokito in the Final Selection when she took it.

That was perhaps an event that humbled Aoi, but now looking back, she had learned that Tokito was a Hashira a month or two after the Final Selection, Aoi knew that Tokito was gifted.

Aoi was just a normal person. Therefore, how she performed was normal for some demon slayers.

Of course, the difference here was that Aoi hadn't killed a single demon, and that made her think that she was incapable of slaying demons.

But, seeing how Kanao survived a circumstance much worse than Aoi, it made her feel that she had seriously gone weak. It was something she never wanted to admit.

She wanted to be strong, and yet, here she was. She was scared after the Final Selection, and yet Kanao went through much worse and was probably able to live through slaying demons.

It made Aoi feel that she had gotten off easy when it came to the test.

She got the easy version of the test, and Kanao got the hard version, and even then, Kanao got the higher score.

Aoi sighed. While it was still nighttime, she was walking slowly across the Butterfly Estate, and that was when she saw it.

Her rusted nichirin blade.

It's been very long since Aoi had last picked up the very blade. The blade itself has never been used to slay a demon. While she held it, she had never even swung it.

Aoi looked down, as she gripped the blade. It's been around a year or two since Aoi picked the blade back up.

She sighed, "Now, a part of me wants to pick it up and go back into demon slaying… because what if those I care for gets in trouble…?"

Aoi breathed in, before breathing out.

Alas, she knew that she would have to watch the coronation of the demon slayers that have properly passed, in spite of all the traumatic experiences they've faced.

Aoi sighed, for seeing those demon slayers pass despite everything, made Aoi a bit inferior.

And she didn't want that.

Perhaps she should do what Kanao did, and watch someone skilled enough to see if she could go back to the demon slayers.

However, even with her sudden intrigue with going back to demon-slaying, she knew that her ultimate association for the demon slayer corps was to get injured demon slayers recovered and nurse them back to health.

It was a valuable job, and overall, she was content. However, she knew that there was a gaping hole in how she felt about her life.

She knew something was missing, and thus, if getting back into demon slaying would help her fill in the gap she was feeling, then so be it.

Her thoughts were immediately interrupted by the sounds of pounding on the wooden walls.

Aoi sighed in frustration, "Seems that boar head is trying to escape… Why are some people like this…"

With that, Aoi got up and made her way to the room of Inosuke.


Within the Coronation


Kanao, Inosuke, Genya, and Zenitsu were all sitting inside the Butterfly Estate. Many of them, specifically Inosuke and Zenitsu were still recovering from their injuries sustained from Final Selection.

On a more positive note, Kanae was up and conscious, however, was relying on assisted help from many within the Butterfly Mansion to take care of herself.

It was a relatively serious injury, but thankfully, Kanae seemed to have not lost much vision from her left eye.

Looking closely, there were more white specks on her left eye than on her right, which may indicate that she had lost some vision in her left eye.

Despite this, she was alive, and that was all she needed to be happy.

Not to mention that they were seeing the Wind Hashira more often. Sanemi Shinazugawa had been visiting a lot more, which obviously caused him major discomfort, especially when they would always tease him for, "Being scared for his girlfriend."

Sanemi would obviously get angered by that, lashing out before he walked away awkwardly and with a blush on his face.

Despite the yelling they would receive, the butterfly sisters obviously didn't mind making the same jokes again.

All this time, Sanemi continued to visit Kanae, clearly caring for her deeply.

Even Shinobu smirked and made comments to Sanemi.

But regardless of this, the four demon slayers clearly talking about the entire ordeal of what happened in Final Selection.

Of course, Zenitsu and Inosuke were up, but they both had their reasons to pretend to be injured for longer. Inosuke wanted more food from Aoi, and Zenitsu liked the girls within the mansion.

"So how did you all survive the final selection?" Zenitsu was the one to bring up the conversation.

"Ha! I survived by waking up here!" Inosuke exclaimed as he pounded his chest.

Zenitsu got a bit sick of Inosuke's attitude, as he tried to punch Inosuke in the ribs. However, Inosuke did not feel them, as his abdomen was very muscular.

Kanao seemed uninterested in talking to the two. She merely picked up a coin and flipped it.

It went heads.

She sighed. "I was found by the kakushi, all I suffered was a fractured leg."

"What?! Only a fractured leg! I had so many injuries!" Zenitsu cried out, before pointing towards Genya. "He had no injuries!"

Genya slapped Zenitsu on the head, "Idiot! It's because I can eat demons!"

This only surprised Zenitsu more, "What?! You can eat demons?! Are you a demon?!"

Genya sighed, "No, idiot! I can use their powers temporarily!"

Zenitsu sighed exasperatedly, "Why are you all like this…"

"Idiot! Why are you like this? Stop being so loud!" Genya growled as he placed a hand on his ears.

"Like you are the one to talk, my hearing is amplified! So everything is loud for me…" Zenitsu mumbled.

"I see." Genya mumbled, "Sucks to be you."

"But how did you survive such an event?" Zenitsu asked Genya.

Genya sighed, "I got rescued in a demon slayer with a weird mask."

"Wait what?! I did as well!" Zenitsu yelled in surprise.

Kanao seemed to also be the one to nod in acknowledgment.

"What are you nodding about, Tsuyuri?" Genya asked so suddenly.

Kanao once again flipped her coin, but it landed tails, so she remained quiet.

Genya sighed, "Anyways, I got rescued by some guy in a mask. He was wearing a blue and white shirt with waves. I couldn't see anything else, but I could tell it was a boy."

"Weird… I could have sworn that the person who helped me was a girl…" Zenitsu mumbled as he scratched his head. "Not to mention her clothing was different."

"It could be a possibility that there is more than one masked individual." Aoi deciphered. "Not to mention that the boy was the one who was responsible for saving Kanae."

This caused many of them to raise their eyebrows at that, and even Kanao faced their direction.

"You mean to tell me… That boy was able to handle himself against a twelve kizuki…?" Genya was beyond shocked at what he was being told. "That boy, fought at twelve kizuki?"

"I saw it. Kanao and I both did. However, we don't really think he's alive anymore, for he was sent flying from the demon." Aoi looked down.

However, it was Kanao who broke the silence this time, mildly shocking Aoi. "He's not dead."

"And how would you know?" Zenitsu asked.

"The main focus for everyone was to eliminate the flames that were within the forest, meaning that the demon slayers could be picked up and taken to the morgue." Kanao explained, "No kakushi found the semblances of those mysterious slayers. That means they probably escaped outside the Final Selection."

This was enough to get many of them to remain quiet.

"So… They're still alive… That's great!" Inosuke pumped himself up, "That means I can fight them again!"

Zenitsu whipped his head to face Inosuke, "Again?! Did you see them? You never told us!"

"Haha! Of course, I did! They were the most formidable demon slayers I fought for quite a time." Inosuke exclaimed.

Aoi raised a hand to her ears, "This kid never knows how to talk quietly."

"Did anyone get their names?" Genya asked.

All of them shook their heads. "Either they did tell me and I forgot, or they didn't."

They all nodded in agreement.

"Well, that limits our findings… Were they also in the Final Selection, or were they already demon slayers?" Genya asked.

"This is the first time I've seen you so interested in something." Aoi commented to Genya, which successfully riled him up.

"Well of course! That guy was very strange!" Genya exclaimed.

"How so?" Zenitsu asked, clearly wanting to get involved.

"I can't explain. He seemed to be a normal demon slayer," Genya explained, "However, near the end of the fight, he felt similar to me."

"What do you mean, similar to you?"

"Like, he was able to turn himself into a demon," Genya explained. "I think he's able to eat into demons to gain their powers."

"That's strange, the girl had a very weird aura…" Zenitsu mumbled.

"How so?" Aoi asked.

"Wait, since when are you so intrigued by this stuff?" Kanao silently asked Aoi.

Aoi stammered, clearly not expecting Kanao of anyone to catch her with this. "I'm just intrigued, what I saw from the Final Selection was so…"

Aoi didn't have to finish, for Kanao didn't need to hear the rest from Aoi.

All this time, they continued to speak about their experiences with the Final Selection.

As for Aoi, every time they heard about the stories of each of them in the Final Selection, it really made Aoi feel somewhat weak.

All this time, she had been getting off easy, but now she was here, speaking to demon slayers who have gone through a trial much worse than what she went through, and she thought she went through a lot.

Once they had finished their own conversations, getting back to focusing on recovery, Aoi was on the sides of the butterfly mansion.

Having the four demon slayers who have successfully survived the Final Selection, the four demon slayers in question were just outside the Final Selection.

Through it all, they were all confused, except for Kanao.

Obviously, since the two children of Kagaya were outside.

"It is with our profound apologies for the incident that occurred during your Final Selection. It was unfair, and it probably caused the needless deaths of countless potential demon slayers." Kiriya explained while Kanata looked down, a sense of guilt and shame.

"I-It was so scary…" Zenitsu mumbled.

"Oh ho ho! What is going on right here?" The sounds of a rather tall individual eyed the scene in front of him.

His eyes narrowed as his mouth turned into a smirk.

It wasn't just the tall guy that also was joining, a rather short individual with a mask and a serpent, and finally Sanemi, or the individual with white hair and scars on his face.

"Genya Shinazugawa. Inosuke Hashibira, Kanao Tsuyuri, and Zenitsu Agatsuma." Kiriya started. "You all have managed to survive and adapt well to the norms of Final Selection. Not only have you adapted to the effects of Final Selection, but you have also managed to adapt when the wisteria began to burn."

"Gonna die… Going to die… I'm going to die…" Zenitsu mumbled, clearly worried about his future as a demon slayer.

Genya, for his part, was uninterested in the whole thing. He was also very confused, specifically about the mysterious masked slayer.

"Why aren't they also here? Were they even demon slayers in the first place?" Genya continued to ask himself.

He wasn't even paying attention, and it wasn't until the caw of a crow caused him to jump out in surprise. "What the hell are you doing here?!" Genya yelled out.

"You all will receive your own crow in addition to your blades in the future," Kiriya explained.

"Why is mine a sparrow?" Zenitsu called out, but his question was ignored.

"You will all choose an orb that will be forged with your blade. Your respective swordsmith will then forge your nichirin blade." Kiriya explained at last.

The children began to explain to them about the ranks of demon slayers, which includes the requirements for them to become a Hashira.

Once that was done, they were all allowed to either leave or remain a bit longer in the Butterfly estate to recover.

Eventually, the four demon slayers, plus Aoi, despite seemingly being a bit separated from each other, decided to stay together.

For the most part, the demon slayers communicated with each other. Aoi, for her part, picked up a blade for the first time in a year.

Kanao had come back, with Shinobu and Kanae seeing a new purpose for her.

Zenitsu was surprisingly able to survive and even though was terrified, he had shown the strength to thrive, especially in slaying the demon alongside the female masked slayer.

Inosuke felt somewhat proud about having survived.

And Genya, was majorly confused, about finding someone who was relatively similar to him.

And with that, four individual demon slayers, two tsukugos, and two normal demon slayers from the outside, all survived what appeared to be an impossible feat.

"Eh… neither of them seems interesting to me." The masked individual mumbled, Obanai.

"I agree," Sanemi explained, glaring specifically in protest at his younger brother for going down this route.

He didn't even acknowledge his younger brothers' accomplishments, hopefully, to deter him from continuing on his journey.

However, Tengen felt a bit of intrigue in seeing Zenitsu.

"Interesting… What a wimp! Not flashy whatsoever!" Tengen exclaimed, however, his sense of disappointment quickly turned to one of a challenge.

"I bet you anything I can turn this wimpy child into a flamboyant slayer!" Tengen exclaimed. "Usually, I don't bother with puny and pitiful demon slayers like you all. But you." Tengen explicitly pointed out.

"You are the most pitiful of any demon slayers I've ever met, at a level that is impossible for someone to be this unflashy!" Tengen exclaimed more as Zenitsu was cowering at hearing Tengen's loud and booming voice.

Zenitsu did not like what he was hearing. This demon slayer was very loud and scary. It was almost scary enough to make him fall asleep.

"I bet I can turn you into a flashy demon slayer within the time I can train you. I can let you be my tsukugo!" Tengen called out.

This immediately intimidated Zenitsu, his eyes widened as his hearing was ringing.

"M-Me, T-tsukugo?!" Zenitsu yelled out in shock, clearly not believing what he was hearing, even if it was amplified.

He didn't believe it. Since when did a Hashira want to take him in to be a strong demon slayer? He was weak! He couldn't even slay a demon in the Final Selection. He was asleep throughout it mostly!

"Yes, my tsukugo! I want the challenge to turn a pitiful and weak demon slayer like you into a flashy one!" Tengen explained his reasoning for wanting to take in Zenitsu.

Even Obanai and Sanemi expressed their opposition to this, for they saw Zenitsu as the weakest of them all.

"Questionable option from you, Uzui… Even I would have chosen the boar head over you." Obanai mumbled, as he clearly was not interested in what he saw.

"The quality of demon slayers has fallen so considerably…" Obanai said quietly as he walked off.

Sanemi had already been long gone, focusing on the whereabouts and the condition of Kanae.

Of course, this did hurt Genya a bit.

"Nemi cares more about his girlfriend than me… I guess I deserve it for blaming him for mother's death…" Genya looked down as he knew that whatever distance he and his brother had developed over the years was the result of him. He could see Sanemi twitch in denial when Obanai teased him for wanting to see Kanae, telling him she wasn't his girlfriend… Yet…

Genya shouldn't have blamed Sanemi for their mother's death.

But that was the past, and now, Genya was living the reality that he may have lost his brother permanently.

And that terrified him.

But that was why he was doing this.

While he watched a panicked Zenitsu being dragged away by Tengen at the prospect of being his tsuguko, Genya sighed as he pondered how he could reconnect with his brother.

Kanao looked seemingly unfazed, although knowing that her life would now change due to now officially being taken in as a demon slayer by Shinobu and Kanae.

Aoi eyed the rusty blade she had put down a year ago, only to now pick it back up, contemplating her contributions to the demon slayer corps.

Inosuke just wanted to fight and get more food from Aoi, that was it for him.

Though, he didn't mind going back out to fight more demons or live on the mountains again. Even though he couldn't go back since the pack of boars he lived with was, unfortunately, undergoing a war with another pack of boars.

Inosuke was separated during the war and eventually picked up demon slaying.

All in all, despite how different and complicated they all were, and the mystery behind the masked slayers, they all did admit they had a good time talking to each other.

"Hey!" They all looked at Zenitsu, who managed to escape from Tengen's grasp.

"If we all have any mission together, let's stick together- AH!" Zenitsu cried out as Tengen scooped him up and dragged him away to the Sound Estate, where he would become Tengen's tsuguko.

"What a lucky guy, getting to become a tsuguko just like that…" Genya mumbled.

"What did you have to do to become one?" Aoi asked, clearly intrigued.

Genya grumbled, "I had to move a large boulder 5 meters."

"WHAT?!" Inosuke yelled, "I can do that easily!"

And with that, Inosuke ran out trying to move a boulder that he had easily done.

"Um, Inosuke, the boulder was twice my height," Genya mumbled, as he face-palmed.

Aoi chuckled a bit at Inosuke's dumbfounded nature, while Kanao merely looked on in confusion.

"What an interesting group of demon slayers…" She thought. "Though I guess those masked slayers had unintentionally brought us all together, because of our suspicions of them…"

"In addition, if they truly are alive, then why are they not seen within the demon slayer corps… Almost like they are trying to hide them from everyone." Kanao thought.

"Eh whatever, I just need to follow orders masters give me, and that is that," Kanao concluded as she watched Genya, Inosuke, and Aoi communicate more. It was somewhat intriguing, but she digressed.

She then opened her coin, "Heads I join, tails I don't."

It landed tails.

She sighed and sat put. Watching Zenitsu's cries for help fill the air, the other three ignored him and eyed Inosuke trying to push a boulder.

Aoi turned to see Kanao sitting alone. Aoi herself was a bit unsure, but she did levy the idea of sparring and practicing with Kanao to regain some of her strength in demon slaying. Of course, she would lose, but she would improve.

Not to mention that once they get their first missions, everyone will be split up.

Meaning unless Kanao remains in the Butterfly Mansion due to her tsuguko status, Aoi would be training alone.

And as the two waited for Kanae to fully recover from her injuries, the two watched as the other surviving demon slayers continued on with their lives, waiting for their respective missions, which would come a week later, with the exception of Zenitsu, who was being trained by Tengen to, "make him into a flashy demon slayer."

Needless to say, the Thunder Estate would be much louder than it normally was.

Meanwhile, in the Butterfly Estate, an injured Hashira would begin to ponder on the weird phenomenon, that was the demon slayers who interrupted her battle with Douma.


Urokodaki's House


Tanjirou and Nezuko had prepped everything in their arsenal they needed.

The two, alongside Giyu and Urokodaki, watched over them to make sure they had everything.

Tanjirou had a separate area on his figure to place his shichishito, for he realized keeping it in a standard place was difficult due to the branching ends of the blade.

Nezuko had an easier time, for she decided to place the dagger tied to a place on her leg. In essence, she could kick up and strike a demon with the dagger if she was in a difficult position. Otherwise, her standard nichirin sword was sheathed in its place.

"Make sure you both take care of yourself," Urokodaki informed the two. "And also write to us when you get the time. I'll make sure Giyu responds."

"Of course, I will, but I get very few pen pals, so…" Giyu scratched his head.

Tanjirou frowned at that.

"That was just sad…" Tanjirou thought to himself.

"Well, I'll make sure to write to the two of you whenever possible. Maybe this could also help Nezuko communicate with the two of you." Tanjirou explained.

"Of course, now." Urokodaki started, "It is time we explain to you some important things about demons, that you both already know, but I will stress once again, for I don't want you getting seriously hurt over this."

Both Tanjirou and Nezuko nodded before they focused their attention on Urokodaki.

"The first thing I would like to explain about demons is blood demon arts. These are special abilities stronger demons can use once they achieve enough strength and energy. In essence, blood demon arts allow them to use their blood to infuse a special attack. These blood demon arts can vary widely and can be crucial for a demon slayer, whether they run into one or not. We aren't sure how soon you both will run into a demon with one, but it is a matter of when you inevitably run into them." Urokodaki explained.

"Since you both are new demon slayers and have specifically been sent to fight low-ranking demons, I'm not sure how soon it will be until you run into one inevitably," Urokodaki added.

"Wait, won't we develop blood demon arts?" Tanjirou asked, "If we're both demons?"

Giyu decided to answer this question. "Since the both of you are technically getting stronger and gaining energy without eating human flesh, there is a possibility that the two of you could develop blood demon arts. Unfortunately, I'm not sure what causes one exactly to activate a blood demon art." Giyu sighed before he thought of something.

"Unless, Tanjirou." He pointed to the burgundy-haired boy, who immediately nodded a 'hai,' before standing straight.

Giyu continued, "Your blood demon art may be the fact you can eat demons for energy and strength. Have you tried biting into demons whilst fighting them?"

Tanjirou scratched his head before he remembered the battle he had with the snake-eyed demon.

"Yeah, I bit into the shoulder of a demon in the Final Selection area, and it took a bit for their shoulder to fully heal it seems," Tanjirou explained.

"Perhaps your bite can stall the regeneration of demons, however, we may be unsure what could accumulate… Especially with you briefly fighting that Upper Moon…" Giyu sighed.

"Oh, right…" Tanjirou mumbled.

"That reminds me, make sure you stay your distance from demon slayers. I can't say I was against what you did, but you took a great deal of risk exposing yourself when you went to save Kanae." Giyu warned Tanjirou.

"I couldn't just let her die when I felt that I could do something…" Tanjirou mumbled.

"I know…" Urokodaki placed a hand on his shoulder, "I can't go against the morals you hold, as pure as they are. But I am aware that even you know that the world has cruel ways to turn those morals out."

"I understand, but the world has already corrupted me enough, but all that has done is enforced my morals." Tanjirou gripped his hands, as a sense of determination began to fill his body

But deep down, Tanjirou still held a large deal of hesitation and uncertainty.

"Knowing my track record, I will probably fail to unlock a blood demon art..." Tanjirou thought to himself, clearly not finding the aspect of a blood demon art fun.

"Regardless, be cautious of any demon you meet, for they may surprise you with what they are capable of," Urokodaki concluded that first point he wanted.

"Understood." Tanjirou nodded,

"And finally, you both are aware of the demon that turned the two of you into demons, right?"

Almost immediately, Tanjirou's veins on his face and arms began to protrude, as he felt a large influx of emotion he knew all too well.

Anger.

Something he never really liked to show, but since Urokodaki and Giyu knew very well of his story now, he had no reason to hide everything. He could show some emotions to them, without the fear of being hurt obviously.

"Yes… Kibutsuji Muzan…" Tanjirou growled as if saying that name alone caused a decent amount of anger to flow into Tanjirou's body,

"As the two of you might know, he is the only demon that we know of, who can infect humans and turn them into demons. Muzan is the demon king, the progenitor of all demons." Urokodaki named, the fact that the demon king was the one responsible for turning the two of them into demons, meant that the aspect of fighting and fulfilling any revenge was not in the picture, at least in the near run.

Urokodaki and Giyu looked a bit concerned but noticed they were just angry, and not going to lash out at anyone.

"I've fought him as a human…" Tanjirou mumbled, "I know how he fights. The next time, I will do better, and maybe even kill him."

"As much as I wish that was the case, nobody's even seen the demon king since five centuries ago." Giyu explained, "Therefore, the fact you've already met him once is a lucky straw. Two times, and we might think you know where he is."

Tanjirou sighed, "So I probably broke the one chance to defeat him…"

"Once again… I was useless… This was the reason why I became a demon slayer, and now… I already lost the chance. I really am worthless…" Tanjirou thought to himself.

"Don't think negatively about yourself, for nobody in the five centuries could have even stood and witnessed Muzan, and lived to tell the tale," Giyu warned. "Even if you both are demons, he probably has ways to kill you. So exercise caution."

"Understood," Tanjirou nodded. The two of them had grabbed their respective masks. Urokodaki was nice enough to make them spares, in the event that they get ripped off during a fight with a demon.

"But you both should be incredibly impressed with yourselves." Giyu praised them. "It usually takes the average demon slayer two to four years to complete and start their journey. The sheer fact you two are heading out within now is impressive." Giyu spoke about the two's progress.

"Well, it was because we had early experience, and because of a dance…" Tanjirou mumbled, clearly not wanting to let them hear that.

"Another thing, make sure you both retain your human characteristics." Giyu explained, "Once you or the other, or even both take on a demon form, it becomes evident to demon slayers that you both are demons. So, for the sake of safety, make sure you always retain your human forms." Giyu added.

"Where did you learn this about demons?" Urokodaki asked.

Giyu sighed, "I took some books from Kocho's library."

Nezuko immediately whispered mentally to Tanjirou, and the boy sighed.

"Do I really have to?" Tanjirou asked.

"Yes!" Nezuko exclaimed.

"Are you sure you stole the books, or did you have to do something for them?" Tanjirou asked.

Giyu's head whipped to Tanjirou's mind, eyes widened a bit. "What do you mean? I stole the books because Kocho was focused on the state of her elder sister."

"Oh, I see," Tanjirou explained, though he could smell a bit of a lie.

"He's lying. She knows." Tanjirou thought.

"Nezuko says you lying. And your smell does show a bit of hesitancy. You shouldn't be lying to two people with advanced smell, and one that can see the thermoregulation of your body." Tanjirou advised Giyu.

Giyu for his part only sighed again, "I can never get a break from the two of you."

"Yes, but also!" Tanjirou exclaimed. "Did you start writing in your journal?"

"Yes, I did, actually." Giyu nodded, "It's been very helpful and I've been able to perform my duties with a lot more focus."

"I'm glad." Tanjirou gave Giyu a small smile before he turned to Nezuko.

"Seems like he enjoyed it." Tanjirou told his sister, who shouted a 'yay,' in reaction to that.

"But what about you and that doctor? Do you write about her?" Urokodaki asked, clearly teasing Giyu.

Giyu placed his hands over his face a bit annoyed, but answered truthfully, "I did write about her and the other people in my life. I only said that Kocho has a big forehead, but that kind of represents how intelligent she is."

"That is so adorable!" Nezuko exclaimed in delight, clearly liking what she was hearing.

"Are you two done talking about me?" Giyu deadpanned, and Tanjirou shook his head.

"Trust me, I have no intention but Nezuko does, and I'll allow her voice to be heard," Tanjirou explained.

"Very well." Giyu sighed as he got up, stretched, and brought out his journal, he then opened it and started to write in it. "Congratulations you two, you've made your debut in my journal."

Nezuko was clearly happy about that, and hugged Giyu, while Tanjirou gave a small nod, "Thank you, nice to know you care for us."

"We can talk about that if we all meet again, but for now, you two have a mission to do, or about to receive, right?" Giyu asked.

Immediately, Tanjirou and Nezuko recoiled in realization, "Shoot! You are right, thanks for the reminder."

Urokodaki looked on, "Just remember to stay away from the sun, avoid other demon slayers, and complete your missions. Keep your human instincts high. We will take care of your expenses, so Tanjirou, you can buy food if you want, as long as it keeps you from wanting to eat human flesh, and Nezuko, while you did not undergo the same training as Tanjirou, I assume sleeping will help you regain your energy."

Both siblings nodded, as they decided to get a move on while it was nighttime. The closer they could explore, and head out, the sooner they could complete their goal and become demon slayers.

To get revenge of Kibutsuji Muzan.

And instantly the two packed their stuff and began to walk down the mountain.

Tanjirou waved to Giyu and Urokodaki. "Bye!" He called out.

However, when he saw his family, minus his father waving back at him, it confused him greatly.

"Wait, they waved for me the night before they were all killed… But why?" Tanjirou asked himself, before his eyes widened a bit, "But the way those two are waving…"

Tanjirou shook his head. "No, there's no way a demon will come and kill them, they are the most powerful demon slayers for a reason!"

"Also make sure you stay away from the sun, and hold yourself when you come across a bloodied human corpse," Giyu warned.

"Shoot, I forgot we were demons…" Tanjirou chuckled nervously.

"Seriously?" Nezuko deadpanned in Tanjirou's mind, which the boy nodded seriously.

As Urokodaki and Giyu began to talk about some stuff about the technicalities for Tanjirou and Nezuko, Tanjirou and Nezuko made their way down the mountain, eventually meeting the foot.

Similar to their original home, there was a rather nice and simple village where they could choose to rest.

However, Tanjirou knew that they could also take those trains, for a large and efficient travel distance.

As they continued to walk, they decided to at least jog. Being demons, they were mostly able to run continuously. They say mostly because Tanjirou in his human form was still somewhat weak compared to demons.

Once they made it to a nearby village, they realized the sun was coming up.

"Guess we will have to bunker down for our first day, huh?" Tanjirou commented, earning him a flick on the forehead from Nezuko, who deadpanned him.

"Idiot, we can take the nearby trains in the box and see where it takes us," Nezuko mumbled.

"Are you sure?" Tanjirou asked. He worried that they would be very far away if they had slept for the day.

"No, but sometimes it has its advantages for shortening the distance a lot," Nezuko explained.

"Guess I'll grab another map…" With that, Tanjirou grabbed a map and looked at everything within the area.

"Nezuko, let's bunker for today, you need the sleep," Tanjirou confirmed, speaking in a caring, yet authoritative tone, that Nezuko knew too well.

"Understood, make sure you sleep as well," Nezuko told her brother as she went to sleep.

Something Tanjrou envied his little sister, was how easily she was able to sleep.

For Tanjirou, his entire body felt hyperactive, and thus it took him a bit longer actually to fall asleep.

Regardless, he was able to fall asleep after a bit.

They needed to regain their energy for their fights, and sleeping or eating food was always better than human flesh.

Eventually, it was time for them to wake up.

In the cusp of darkness, where the night sky showed itself, and its face, the two began to plan and properly observe everything.

"Nezuko, the outside is dark, we can come out," Tanjirou told his sister, as he put on his mask, Nezuko following suit as the two immediately made their way to the village.

Both noticed their respective crows flying ahead, clearly acting as a sense of direction for the demon siblings to head towards.

"Even though Urokodaki and Giyu had repeated everything about the blood demon arts, I don't know why but it all seems familiar…" Tanjirou thought to himself before he forced himself to focus on the mission ahead.

Once they made it to the village, they immediately began to search for clues of suspected demon activity.

Of course, they had the whole night to observe and see if they could find anything.

Alas, it was harder than they thought.

Since the two wore masks, it was a bit threatening naturally for them to approach normal humans, who either could sense that Nezuko was a demon, or that the design of the mask and their overall uniform freaked them out.

Tanjirou nor Nezuko were unsure of what to do.

That was until they caught their ears onto something.

"Kazumi is look very bad and unhealthy right now…" Tanjirou and Nezuko immediately turned to the woman speaking about someone she seemed to know.

"I know… It's probably because of Satoko's disappearance… I know she means a lot to him, and ever since she's been missing, he's been miserable… Not to mention-"

"Shhh! Don't talk so openly about these things!" Two village women seemed to be gossiping about a seemingly abnormal disappearance of women.

This matched one part of what the crows explained, but now they had to find a way to see if this was accurate.

Was the girl in her teens, and had she disappeared under the guise whilst walking with others?

And so, Tanjirou and Nezuko continued, until they spotted an individual who easily was identifiable as Kazumi.

He was an individual who seemed to be just on the cusp of adulthood.

Alas, he had the hopeless stare of an older adult who had lost everything.

It made Tanjirou feel bad for the guy, imagining what he had to go through for this to happen.

All this time, Tanjirou and Nezuko continued to walk, to catch up to Kazumi. However, Tanjirou could smell confusion and anger coming from the boy.

He did not want to cause the boy to lash out. It was the last thing he wanted to do.

Eventually, he gently tapped Kazumi on the shoulder.

"Excuse me, are you Kazumi?" Tanjirou asked.

Kazumi turned to face the two masked individuals, "Yes, what is it?"

"If I may ask, and be allowed to see, my sister and I would like to learn more about the disappearance of your fiancé, Satoko." Tanjirou explained, "We may have an explanation for why she is missing."

Kazumu looked a bit down, "Y-You think you know where she went?"

"Not necessarily, but we may have an idea of what happened to her."

Kazumi sighed before he began to walk. It was in the same direction he had been going, and so this intrigued the two of them.

That was until they came across a small trial. Tanjirou immediately could tell that this was an easy place to be kidnapped if you don't look at them for around a couple of seconds.

"This is the spot," Kazumi confirmed. "Every night ever since the disappearance of Satoko, I've been coming back here constantly, hoping for something, anything to come up. Of course, there's been nothing so far…"

"So you've been waiting for her to come back?" Tanjirou asked.

"Yes," Kazumi confirmed, nodding, a small amount of tears falling from his eyes, highlighting the hopelessness he was feeling.

"I see," Tanjirou mumbled. He felt sorry for him and wished that in his next life things could be happier for him.

However, as Tanjirou was doing this, he sensed something.

"Wait, Nezuko, can you see anything different with that area?" Tanjirou asked, pointing towards the spot Kazumi was near.

"Yes, it seems that something, probably a demon, had encompassed this area… Though with what, I'm unsure." Nezuko explained.

"I can smell two individuals… One of them is a girl, maybe the one you mentioned, but the other…" Tanjirou mumbled, "Is a demon…"

Kazumi's eyes widened, "What?! But demons don't exist! How can a demon be responsible for this?!"

Tanjirou merely looked on. "Do you have any other explanations as to where your fiancée went?"

Kazumi looked down, and after a bit, he shook his head, "No…"

Tanjirou sighed. Kazumi meanwhile pondered, as he knew very little about these situations, what to do in these situations. He supposed the best he could do, was allow the individual to do what he needed to do.

Tanjirou looked on and thus needed to do something.

That was when his smell was amplified, as it told him something was coming.

"The demon is here! Nezuko, get ready…" Tanjirou told Nezuko, as he unsheathed his shichishito, the branched weapon clearly surprising Kazumi from the sheer oddity of it.

And as the smell got stronger, and being able to map out the specific demon, he quickly smelled the arms of a demon trying to grab his sister.

His eyes widened before they narrowed in response to this.

"Nezuko, look out!" Tanjirou called out to his sister in his mind. Nezuko quickly dodged out, and right on time, Tanjirou retaliated.

Hinokami Kagura, Third Form: Raging Sun

Tanjirou quickly unleashed two strikes across, to slice off the demon's two arms that were trying to grab his sister,

Of course, the demon's hands were sliced cleanly. The demon for its part yelled out in pain at the sudden slice of his arms.

Tanjirou heard the scream and immediately knew the sound to be male-like.

Kazumi, for his part, seemed to be in complete disbelief. Whether it was about the prospects of demons and demon slayers, Kazumi needed to be protected from the demon.

Perhaps the demon might try and get rid of him by evidence tampering.

"Where did the demon go?" Nezuko asked, as she suddenly was trying to find the demon.

However, because she was able to see the infrared trials of the demon and the girl they most definitely had in their possession.

Tanjirou too could smell the demon's scent. Considering this demon didn't seem to be visible with the typical, naked eye, both the demon siblings both had to utilize their other senses. The demon in question smelled relatively foul, but not that strong.

Once the demon tried to grab Nezuko yet again, they were able to see what was going on.

Water Breathing, Seventh Form: Drop Ripple Thrust

Before the demon could even try and retreat back, Nezuko stabbed her blade into the area where the demon supposedly was.

Tanjirou however, was contemplating everything, and he seemed to know what was going on.

"This is a blood demon art…" Tanjirou mumbled, clearly getting the idea of this. "No wonder this demon seems to be confusing us…"

"With this blood demon art, I've eventually learned that I've encountered a blood demon art with the Upper Moon demon I've encountered… By comparison, thankfully, this one looks much easier and weaker to maneuver through…" Tanjirou exclaimed to himself, with Nezuko hearing in the background.

Blood Demon Art: Swap Demon

Tanjirou thought to himself as he saw the figure manifesting itself above the plum of black aura.

Hinokami Kagura, Tenth Form: Fire Wheel

The demon in question tried to attack Kazuki, however, Tanjirou noticed this, and immediately jumped and sliced the demon, causing him to be exposed in front of them all.

This only further exposed to Kazumi the true reality of demons and those that go out of their way to slay them.

The demon in question clenched his teeth in response to being cut.

"Why are you kidnapping the girls?" Tanjirou asked, clearly laying it to him straight. He wanted to get answers as soon as possible.

"Grr…" The demon mumbled as he tried to go back into his black dimension.

"Crap!" Tanjirou yelled out, as he began to think of where the demon could come from.

"Nezuko, warn me where the demon comes from," Tanjirou warned his sister who nodded.

"We will have to wait for the demon to come out," Tanjirou told her sister.

"But then again, the demon could travel anywhere, we would be constantly chasing it." Tanjirou countered his own statement.

However, they had to act quickly, for the demon had tried to sneak up on Tanjirou.

Water Breathing, Fourth Form: Striking Tide

If not for Nezuko striking the demon with her own blade. She had quickly counterattacked, returning what Tanjirou had done for his sister just moments prior.

However, what Tanjirou quickly realized was the demon was holding someone around his back.

Tanjirou growled at that, and with one swift motion, he kicked the demon out of his dimension, and quickly broke the connection between both the unconscious girl, and the demon.

Tanjirou quickly carried the girl and chose to give her to Kazumi.

"Keep her safe, we'll take care of the demon," Tanjirou told Kazumi as he quickly got back into the battle.

Blood Demon Art: Self-Replication

Unfortunately, the demon seemed to have split himself apart into three clones, and Nezuko was struggling a bit. She would have to use a large swat of strikes to get a large number of opponents, or replicas of such.

Water Breathing, Sixth Form: Whirlpool

Nezuko attempted to catch them all as they got close, but only one was struck and retained outside while the other two went into their plum black dimensions.

The demon growled in pain before he started to complain, "Stop interfering with my meal!" The demon exclaimed as he was the only one of his three clones that were outside the swamp dimension.

"The girl is fresh right now!"

Tanjirou, Nezuko, and Kazumi immediately got confused and asked what the swamp demon was meaning.

"What does that mean?" Tanjirou asked.

"Isn't it obvious?!" The demon asked, "She's at the prime of her age for tastiness! Once they get past sixteen, they get less tasty for every moment that passes!"

To say that was said, Nezuko was incredibly pissed and disgusted by what the swamp demon had just said.

"You monster!" Tanjirou yelled at them, as he was clearly disgusted too by what the swamp demon had just stated.

Nezuko's veins were bulging in anger as she was trying to hold in her demonic instincts but was going ahead.

She was fighting on whether she should fight in her human form or demon form. The demon continued to tease Kazumi before he began to show the hairpins he accumulated throughout the meals he had.

Tanjirou knew this demon was terrible.

He was showing no signs of remorse for the actions he did. Not to mention that he was the demon responsible for consuming the teenage girls that had gone missing.

This swamp demon would definitely continue to do this with pride and greed.

Tanjirou did not see this demon for any redeeming qualities.

But before he could continue to think, Nezuko was the first one to strike.

Water Breathing, Third Form: Flowing Dance

Unfortunately, Nezuko missed, and he sank into the ground. Nezuko growled, as the swamp demon sunk into the ground.

"Nezuko, calm down…" Tanjirou warned his sister. "Don't let your demonic instincts take over."

"Sorry…" Nezuko mumbled in response.

Still, Nezuko looked somewhat determined to finish the demon off, and Tanjirou could tell that Nezuko was debating on doing something.

Tanjirou realized just a tad too late. "Nezuko, no, don-" Tanjirou's eyes widened in shock, as he watched his sister jump into the pool.

"Damnit! Why! Why Nezuko?!" Tanjirou exclaimed, as his eyes widened in shock, he immediately worried for his sister but also knew if he went through, then Kazumi would be vulnerable.

As a result, Tanjirou made the difficult decision to remain outside to protect Kazumi and the unconscious girl.

Tanjirou was angry. He felt a bit of his demonic side coming out, but for now, he made sure to retain his human side. Tanjirou could only stare at the place Nezuko had jumped in, all hearing the lack of care the demon had for human life.

"This demon as a terrible odor…" Tanjirou mumbled as he hoped Nezuko was alright.

In the meantime, Nezuko tensed at how bad the swamp area smelt.

"This demon smells terrible, and even I'm not the one with the smell…" Nezuko grunted.

She quickly spotted the demon, who was trying to grab her. Nezuko could feel the thinning air of the void, but her lungs were conditioned for such environments.

It was the Kamado lungs coming in clutch for her.

If Nezuko remembered properly, the Swamp Demon had split himself into three parts.

However, only two of the demon replicas were present.

"Brother must be dealing with one of them…" Nezuko thought to herself.

Water Breathing, Sixth Form: Whirlpool

As Nezuko began her onslaught with the demon, she continued to ty and attack, as the demon seemed to hold the belief that Nezuko would asphyxiate.

The Swamp Demon continued to laugh, after dodging the strike from Nezuko.

However, further complimented her strike by immediately keeping the pressure.

"If I can go continuously for as long as possible, then the sooner I can kill these replicas." Nezuko thought as she twisted her blade.

Water Breathing, First Form, Modified: Serene Waves

Nezuko launched herself upwards, before flying towards the two demons with a mighty charge. The fluid of the Swamp Dimension allowed her to utilize the fluids to be aerodynamic.

"What the crap?!" The swamp demon asked, alarmed. "How are you not suffocating?! The air here is tight! It matches that of some of the highest mountains in Japan!" The demon exclaimed before he seemed to notice something.

"No, you're a demon! No wonder you look different!" The swamp demon exclaimed, "Why is a demon protecting humans?!"

Nezuko ignored him, as she continued to lay a beatdown on the demons. She didn't need to rely on air as much as a human since she was a demon, but she continued to twist her body. Using her breathing form to dodge the demon's swipes.

Water Breathing, Ninth Form: Splashing Water Flow, Turbulent

Nezuko was somewhat curious about the ordeal of using the adjusted footing in an environment.

And it worked off amazingly, for she was able to move in ways she didn't expect, either did the Swamp Demon.

"Damn you!" He yelled out, as Nezuko managed to slice apart one of the replica's arms.

Water Breathing, First Form: Water Surface Slash

She then coupled the strike with another simple one, that struck the upper head of one of the replicas.

The replica cursed, knowing that the wound would take a bit to heal, and in the meantime, would be unable to see for the time being.

The demon, however, had another idea.

One demon went underneath her, and the other one faced her level.

Nezuko growled, clearly knowing what the demon was going to do.

She gripped her blade and acted accordingly.

Water Breathing, Second Form: Water Wheel

Spinning her body vertically, Tanjirou spun her blade to strike the demon in front of her in the chest, whilst the dagger she had on her foot extended and struck the other replica right in the posterior top of the head.

"ARGH!" The demons yelled out in pain, which successfully caused them to back away from Nezuko.

As Nezuko fought the two copies of the Swamp Demon, Tanjirou only had one copy.

And Tanjirou knew this demon was a pain.

Water Breathing Seventh Form: Drop Ripple Thrust, Curve

Tanjirou quickly struck the demon, pinning him to the wall.

The Swamp Demon replica cursed, "Damnit, the girl is messing with my swamp connections, and I cannot go further than a second in the dimension before I'm kicked out." The swamp demon mumbled.

"Oi, demon." The voice of Tanjirou caused the demon to turn his head to Tanjirou.

But what he saw absolutely terrified him.

"I think that's enough." Tanjirou calmly spoke, his eyes at normal size, his mouth completely neutral, and his head tilted slightly. "Why do you find greed in eating those girls and hurting the lives of those around them?"

"I already told you! It's because they are delicious!" The swamp demon exclaimed as if trying to justify his actions.

"What a sick and twisted mind you have," Tanjirou responded, embedding his shichishito deeper into the demon.

The swamp demon seemed to have recognized the strange blade and felt himself shake.

"It really disgusts me how there are bad people out there like you. Things that are true scum, showing no remorse for their actions. You are one of those things." Tanjirou added.

"Why should I care? I'm a demon! That's what we do!" The swamp demon yelled back.

"Don't lump in any demons who at least try and show regret as they fight. You have no redeemability. You deserve to die a painful death, for all the deaths and sins you've committed." Tanjirou responded, his tone not changing, but with a bit more force in it.

The swamp demon was terrified. In one strike, Tanjirou had gotten him stuck on the wall, and Nezuko was causing enough havoc to prevent him from entering the swamp dimension.

And so, he did the only selfish thing he could do.

"P-Please… Spare me…" The swamp demon begged.

He begged as his life depended on it.

Tanjirou was disgusted. His mouth turned into an uncharacteristic, maniacal grin as if he was going to enjoy what he would do next.

"Spare you?" Tanjirou responded before he let out a huff. "How about you spare me your insincere words? How about you tell some meaningful thing with that disgusting mouth of yours, such as the whereabouts of Kibutsuji Muzan."

"I-I can't!" The demon mumbled, as a memory of him, in his conscious, being warned and bribed the Muzan himself never to speak about him.

The swamp demon's look of terror spoke volumes of what Tanjirou was thinking.

"I don't care. Either you tell me." Tanjirou pulled his shichishito out of the demon, before slashing him in the chest. "Or I'll kill you in the most painful way possible."

"Just let me live… I cannot tell you anything about him if that's why you're here!" The demon begged.

"Let you live? After what you did to those other girls? Don't you think they would be begging for the same thing? How do you think Kazumi feels?" Tanjirou asked, as Kazumi was teared up, the semblance and hints of him tearing up, "Yeah sure, let you live, hehe…" Tanjirou chuckled in a deprecating way.

"Enough." Tanjirou said at last, "You ask for the very thing you denied others, and so, you will suffer unless you tell me more about Muzan."

The demon gulped, as his clones were busy dealing with Nezuko. "Damnit! Why did I choose to actually go out of the swamp?! I should've let one of my clones do this!"

"I will kill you in the most painful ways possible." Tanjirou thought, before his mind lit up, "Oh! I know, how about 240 cuts?" Tanjirou asked, "What an amazing way to die."

This demon was a scum, and Tanjirou hoped Nezuko was faring well why coercing the demon to reveal anything.

"Why 240?!" The demon asked.

Tanjirou answered, "It's simple. Each cut represents the number of years for each victim you ate for your desires. You killed 15 young girls, no older than 16 years old. Simple multiplication. Now, unless you cannot tell me anything about Muzan, this is your punishment."

The demon trembled…

"What's wrong? Scared of a bit of torture?" Tanjirou asked, in a sarcastic tone.

"W-What?! I'm a demon, of course, I can!" The swamp demon exclaimed.

"Is that so? Let's find out." Was all Tanjirou responded with before he went to strike at the Swamp Demon.


A.N / Whew! A bit of a different chapter. Expect to see more about Giyu in the coming chapters, as well as Kanae. Some of the most interesting changes I had was decided to have Zenitsu and Tengen interact more. I find it very intriguing the idea that Tengen wants to challenge himself, as I think it is within his character to accept Zenitsu for this reason. Of course, it may be a bit weird, but Zenitsu will probably be similar in strength to his cannon appearance, except maybe a bit less dramatic. Whether he is able to learn other forms of Thunder Breathing, I'm not so certain, but for now, most of the characters, with the exception of Genya remain the same.

As for the fights and battles, it won't be much because I honestly found the buildup to Natagumo Mountain somewhat boring and or straightforward, with the exception of meeting Inosuke and Zenitsu. Therefore, the buildup to Natagumo will be a bit more interesting with some additions we'll see later. We'll continue the fight with the swamp demon, but this is where stuff diverges quite a bit, for it's setting the basis of what will happen later in the story.

Not much else to say here, other than I hope to see you next chapter. Goodbye!


Character Profile:


Swamp Demon: Male, unknown age

Status: Alive, Demon

Height: 5'9" (176cm)

Weight: 135Ibs

Zenitsu Agatsuma: Male, 15 years old

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 5'4" (163cm)

Weight: 130Ibs

Genya Shinazugawa: Male, 15 years old

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 5'6" (167cm)

Weight: 152Ibs

Inosuke Hashibira: Male, 14 years old

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 5'4" (162cm)

Weight: 134Ibs

Aoi Kanzaki: Female, 15 years old

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 5'4" (162cm)

Weight: 132Ibs

Kanao Tsuyuri: Female, 15 years old

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 5'2" (157cm)

Weight: 108Ibs

Tengen Uzui: Male, 22 years old

Status: Alive, Human

Height: 6'6" (198cm)

Weight: 210Ibs


Abilities:


Swamp Demon

Swamp Domain: The swamp demon becomes to encompass and enter a swamp dimension that he can navigate at his own free will. The swamp manifests as a puddle in the ground, allowing him to infiltrate and faze through buildings and kidnap others when needed. The swamp demon's own swimming abilities allow him to outmaneuver his enemies.

Self-Replication: The swamp demon can split himself into three clones. All three demons can act as their own separate individual beings, but are connected to the original body, meaning if the real body is killed, so does the remaining replicas.

Tengen Uzui:

Sound Breathing

Obanai Iguro:

Serpent Breathing

Sanemi Shinazugawa:

Wind Breathing

Zenitsu Agatsuma:

Thunder Breathing

Kanao Tsuyuri:

Flower Breathing

Aoi Kanzaki:

Water Breathing (Formerly)

Genya Shinazugawa:

Wind Breathing: More affluent under a demonic form.

Mist Breathing: More affluent under a demonic form.