After a long walk, the three of them arrived at the maintenance facility. Kyojuro told James, "James, take out your rifle and set up a position on one of the catwalks. Susamaru, come with me. Goro, observe from above."

"Got it," James and Goro both replied as they ran off to take positions in the building.

"So," Susamaru said. "This is the Infinity Train?"

"Correct," Kyojuro replied to her. "I can sense a demon's presence here, even though it's faint." Correcting himself upon realizing Susamaru was with him, he told her, "It's not you, don't worry."

"Hey there!" The shift manager of the facility then approached the two of them, wondering why they were there. "This site is off-limits!"

"My apologies," Kyojuro replied to him. "I should have introduced myself. We're here to deliver bento. We were sent by the Ministry of Railways."

"Oh… My bad, then." The manager then turned to the rest of his workers and told them, "Hey, we got bento! Come on out and eat!"

As the other workers emerged and looked around, Susamaru told them, "We got plenty for everyone, don't worry."

Kyojuro then turned to Susamaru and nodded, to which she did the same. "We're in," he quietly said to her.

A few minutes later, as the crew ate their bento boxes, James was still aiming around the catwalk with his rifle, using only the iron sights instead of a scope. Goro asked him quietly, "See anything?"

"No," James replied equally as quietly. "They're all just eatin'." He then noticed someone walking near the office of the facility that he did not recognize as a worker. "Wait a minute… Who the fuck is that guy?"

Suddenly, a loud scream was heard from the office, and James saw Kyojuro and Susamaru run for it with several other workers. One of them shouted, "Tetsu! Tetsu!"

"Shit," James told Goro. "It's a demon!"

"Demon!" Goro then flew down to meet up with Kyojuro. "We have a demon! There's a demon! Demon!"

As Kyojuro and Susamaru both drew their swords, James kept his rifle aimed at the demon, who bore blue markings and bright blue eyes. "This guy gives me the creeps… Is this that slasher guy those people in town mentioned?"

On the ground, the Slasher sniffed the air and said to the group, "Ugh, I hate terrible smells… It must be that human food!" He then stepped on a bento box, smashing it to pieces before kicking it to Kyojuro. "Ever since I've become a demon, I can't fucking stand human food!"

"Come on," Susamaru yelled back. "That was fresh food!"

"You are truly revolting," Kyojuro told the Slasher.

"Why do you care, traitor?! Demons can't eat human food!"

"Pfft, yeah, sure." Susamaru then bent down and grabbed a small piece of meat from the smashed box, gulping it down before giving the Slasher a grin. "How's that?"

"You truly are a traitor, aren't you! My master told me about you!"

"Muzan can go fuck himself," Susamaru taunted him back. "There, I said it. Being a free demon has its perks, and being able to insult Kibutsuji whenever you want is one of them."

"Well you'll never be able to catch me!" The Slasher then rapidly ran around both of them with Tetsu still in his arms. "Just try to do it without killing my hostage!"

James, up on the catwalk, said to himself, "Fuckin' Hell, I can't see 'em!"

Once the Slasher stopped, he told Tetsu, "You know, your blood is pretty awful smelling, too… Even so, I can still slash you like I did the rest…"

Susamaru yelled at him, "You don't even kill for sustenance?! Are you insane?! Being a serial killer is how you get caught by us!"

"I love killing," the Slasher told them. "It gives me a thrill! I don't care if I don't eat them or drink their blood at all!"

"Fuck this," James then said to himself once he got a clear shot at the Slasher's head. "I'm takin' the shot!" He then took a deep breath and pulled the trigger once.

Immediately, the Slasher was struck in the top of the head by the bullet, causing him to lose his grip on Tetsu before Kyojuro also slashed his hands off of his arms to keep him from grabbing his hostage again. Susamaru caught Tetsu and helped him up as he said to her, "Thank you! I thought I was gonna die!"

"You're safe now," Susamaru replied to him before turning to Kyojuro. "Rengoku-san, he's getting away!"

"Not on my watch," Kyojuro replied as he chased after him, closely followed by Susamaru and then James once he climbed down from the catwalk.

One of the workers noticed James and demanded of him, "Hey, who are you and why do you have a gun?!"

"I'm the one who saved your friend's life, that's what!" James then ran out of the maintenance facility and towards Susamaru and Kyojuro as all three gave chase to the Slasher.

The Slasher, using his incredibly fast running speed, made it to the train station where the bento sellers had been in record time. As he sniffed the air around him and noticed nobody else was on the platforms, he said to himself, "Perfect. Those bento sellers will be my next target."

As he walked towards the front of the station, he saw Fuku and her grandmother setting up shop inside. Fuku was the first to notice him, turning around and asking him, "Hello, do you want to buy some bento, sir?"

Her grandmother, however, recognized the Slasher to be a demon. "Fuku, no! That's a demon!"

"Your bento smells like shit," the Slasher told them both. "Nothing personal, kid. You just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time." Fuku's grandmother then threw two bento boxes at the Slasher's head, causing him to gag and nearly throw up in disgust. "Agh, what the fuck?! That's fucking disgusting, you old bitch!"

Her grandmother then yelled, "Run for it, Fuku!"

As Fuku ran for the platforms of the station, the Slasher yelled at her grandmother, "You nasty old cunt! This shit is revolting!"

As Fuku made it to the train tracks, she stopped to catch her breath, asking herself as she tried to calm herself down from her fear, "Who… What was that thing?"

"Not so fast!" The Slasher then suddenly appears behind her and grabbed a hold of her neck as she pinned her to the ground. "Now I got you!"

"Let go of me!" Fuku tried to struggle against the Slashed, but to no avail. "Let go!"

"No way!" The Slasher thought to himself as he stared directly at Fuku's eyes, "Now you're mine!"

Suddenly, however, the Slasher was hit by a fast-moving object which also picked Fuku up from the ground at speeds that rivaled even the Slasher himself. The Slasher was blown onto the platform with a cut to one of his feet as this shape stopped and revealed itself to be Kyojuro Rengoku. He picked Fuku up and placed her on her feet, asking her, "Are you okay?"

"You're that demon slayer, right?"

"Yes," he affirmed.

"Wait a minute," Fuku then realized. "That guy is gone! My grandma's in danger!"

"I'll protect her," Kyojuro assured her as he dashed off to find the Slasher.

As he did, James and Susamaru arrived at the train station, both tired from running. "Hah… Ah shit," James said to himself. "Where did Rengoku go, kid?"

"That way," Fuku pointed. "I think the Slasher went after my grandma!"

"Got it," Susamaru replied as the two ran to catch up with Kyojuro.

In the station, Kyojuro found a terrifying sight right next to the bento shop: The Slasher was now holding Fuku's grandmother hostage in his arms, and with an ever-tightening grip, he refused to let go under any circumstances. "You won't get me this time, demon slayer. I got you right where I want you, you bastard."

Fuku's grandmother begged of Kyojuro, "Please… Help me…" Fear filled her eyes as the Slasher's claws dug into her clothes and skin, drawing a little bit of blood.

Kyojuro asked him as he thought of a way to attack him, "Are you sure about that?"

"How about this? Let's have a race to see who dies first: Me or this old bitch?" The Slasher chuckled. "Sounds like a fair fight, right?"

"That race is already a foregone conclusion," Kyojuro confidently replied. "And I'm the winner!" In an instant, Kyojuro dashed forward and quickly slashed the Slasher's head off at blazing speed with impeccable precision. "First Form: Unknowing Fire!"

As Fuku's grandmother was freed from the Slasher's grasp, she turned around and noticed something about Kyojuro that felt like deja vu. "Wait…" She then thought to herself, "That coat… I recognize that coat! That young man's father wore that same coat when he saved me!"

Kyojuro turned around and asked Fuku's grandmother as the Slasher's body dissipated into the air, "Are you okay, ma'am?"

"Yeah," she replied. "You… Your father saved my life a long time ago when I was your age. Without you, my daughter and granddaughter wouldn't exist."

Kyojuro smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. I'll be sure to tell my father about you." He thought to himself, "… If he cares at all… Maybe hearing about the kind of impact he's had on people's lives will snap him out of it."

Fuku then ran over and hugged her grandmother as James and Susamaru also ran over to see what had happened. "Grandma, you're okay! What happened to that Slasher guy?"

"It was a demon," her grandmother explained to her. "That man with the bright hair killed him. We're safe now."

"My family has hunted demons for many generations," Kyojuro told both of them. "And these two that join me are my Tsuguko, my students. Both of them will help carry on the legacy of our family, even if they may not be related to me by blood. My name is Rengoku Kyojuro."

"James Colby," James introduced himself as he gave a bow to both of them.

"Susamaru," Susamaru did as well in turn.

"You three are very brave," the grandmother told all of them. "Thank you for your service to us. If at any time you three want to come back to this town, we will be more than happy to welcome you."

"Thank you," Kyojuro nodded. "We'll be sure to do that."

September 20, 1913

James stumbled into the train station by himself after running along the tracks, startling several passengers who had been stranded at the station due to the wreck of the Infinity Train up ahead. A well-dressed passenger asked him as he nearly collapsed from exhaustion, "Sir, are you okay?" Not helping was the fact that James wore Kyojuro's dirty and blood-stained haori, causing deep concern among observers.

"I'm fine," James insisted as he stumbled back up onto his feet and walked in, moving past a throng of people and getting into the station building itself.

A ticket attendant noticed him and tried to hail him down by pushing him. "Sir, you need a ticket! Where did you come fro-?!"

"Get outta my fuckin' way," James said as he pushed him to the side. "I just got off the train!"

Fuku, who was selling bento, noticed the commotion and pointed it out to her grandmother. "Hey, grandma, look, it's one of Rengoku-san's students! It's that foreigner one!"

"Huh?" She then looked up and noticed him without his hat. "It is… He's missing his hat. Where's Rengoku-san?"

James then walked up to them from the crowd, the ticket attendants all avoiding him due to how tired and distressed he looked. "Hey… Um… Uh…"

Fuku asked him, "Are you okay? Where's Rengoku-san?"

Those words stung him, having just witnessed Kyojuro's untimely death before his eyes. "I…" James then got down on a knee and took a deep breath as he prepared himself mentally to tell them the news, doubting if he himself was even ready to do so. "I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"

Fuku's grandmother ran out to meet him and asked with a worried tone, "Where is he?! Is he alright?!"

James sighed and wiped his eyes. "He passed away this morning. We had a battle on the Infinity Train, and… He was killed. I'm terribly sorry."

Fuku's grandmother dropped a bento box she was holding in shock as Fuku began to cry. "Wait, no… He can't be… We saw him… He was so fast…"

"It's a risk we take, Fuku," James told her. "And Rengoku knew that very well. People sometimes die in our line of work."

Fuku's grandmother yelled out loudly, "Noooooo!"

James embraced both of them as he shed tears, joining them in their grief. "It's okay, let it out, guys."

Mitsuhiro also ran into the station, finding the three of them as he looked at them with tears running down his face. "Tell me it isn't true, Colby-san!" He then grabbed James and spun him around before hoisting him up by his collar. "Tell me it isn't fucking true, damn it!"

James did not even bother to resist Mitsuhiro, simply telling him, "It is, Toki-san. I'm sorry. It was an Upper Moon. He… He almost won. We almost had him."

Mitsuhiro then dropped him onto the floor and tried to hold in his grief by letting out his rage and sadness through screaming. "No… No… NO, GOD DAMN IT! NO! NO!"