Sword Art Online: The Hinokami Chronicles

by Gold3nWrld

Tanjiro Kamado is Born into the word of Sword Art Online, his life was normal, until a tragedy hit his family, all of them being slaughtered except one, his sister Nezuko who was left in a comatose like state from the incident, Tanjiro is taken in by a man named Sakonji Urokodaki who trains him to protect himself and his sister from the world, now he's trapped in SAO, will he live?

1. The Tragedy

I DO NOT OWN ANY DEMON SLAYER, OR SWORD ART ONLINE CHARACTERS, ALL RIGHTS GO TO THEIR COPYRIGHT OWNERS,THIS IS PURELY FOR FAN SERVICE AND I ONLY OWN THE OC'S I CREATE AND THERE IS NO PROFIT INVOLVED WHATSOEVER THIS IS A HOBBY AND THE ONLY THING I GAIN IS A BAD SLEEP SCHEDULE FOR FREE, THANK YOU FOR UNDERSTANDING!

Bold = Important Text
Italic Thoughts
Underline Whisper

Chapter 1: The Tragedy.

We see a classroom filled with teenage girls just now arriving at their homeroom class in the early morning just after looking at their midterm scores that were posted on the walls for the students to see. There are two distinct girls in the classroom that stand out the most, one of them being a long chestnut color haired girl with hazel eyes wearing the female junior high school uniform which consists of a beige colored vest with a white long sleeved button up undershirt with a red bowtie as well as a light black skirt that reaches just above the knees this young ladies name is Asuna Yuuki and she and as of now she is 15 years old, the other being a long purple haired girl with blue eyes she also wears the female junior high school uniform but instead of a beige vest she wears a beige long sleeved shirt this girls name is Misami Tozawa the student who got the number one spot on the midterm scores.

The school they attend is an all female school that has been nothing but girls for years until a certain exception was made for one student in particular.

The door to the classroom remains open from when Misami walked in as a young man with short black to red spikey ruffled hair with the right side of his forehead being covered by bangs while the left is exposed (look at the Cover Image and you will know what the hairstyle looks like) showing the flame like mark on the left side of his forehead that stretches down toward just a little below his left eye and the bottom edge of his left eyebrow while the top of the mark expands it's flame like pattern over the top of his left eyebrow (It's Yoriichi's Slayer Mark), this boy has white pupiled dark red eyes and a unreadable look on his face, the boy has an average height around 5'9 and fair skin with an athletic but slender physique fit for someone of hard work, this boy wears the traditional black school uniform button up and black pants but with special accessories as he wears a green checkered Haori over the black uniform as well as Sun-like Hanafuda earrings on both of his ears, this boy grabs the attention of all the females, making them blush as he walks by with Asuna's friend group blushing as well, the group having stood at her desk talking with her, this boy is a 15 year old named Tanjiro Kamado the one male student of the school filled with all girls, he was accepted into the school because of his perfect scores on his transfer exam as well as his living situation.

Tanjiro continues to walk until he reaches his desk, the seat next to Misami, causing her to give him a side glance before going back to looking out the window.

"Oh Tanjiro is so handsome!" the reddish haired friend of Asuna said with excitement while trying to keep her voice down.

"I know, he's got brains and looks, did you know he placed third just under you Asuna!?" The short green haired friend of Asuna said with awe in her voice, confusing Asuna who looked at her surprised.

"Really? I had no idea he was that smart, I mean I've never seen him talk to anyone before or really even pay attention to the lessons in class" Asuna said with a hint of recognition and surprise as Tanjiro only ever really looked zoned out while deep in thought with his unreadable face.

"Well the same goes for Misami, she's always looking out of the window yet she is always getting good grades." The girl with brown hair tied in small twin ponytails on the side of her head said with amazement.

Asuna ignores the squeals and idolizing of Misami and turns toward the lonely looking Tanjiro who just has a hand on the left side of his face looking down at his desk with the same unreadable expression as before "Why does he always look so lonely..?" Asuna thought with a sad tone with a slight hint of concern for her only male classmate.

The school day goes by with Tanjiro continuing his stand alone nature, having to skip out on gym activities besides exercises and watch from the side as the girls play Volleyball as well as sitting outside for lunch eating a onigiri rice ball in the shade, before he knew it the day had gone by so fast that everyone was already heading home, opting him to get ready and do the same before watching Misami Tozawa walk up Asuna Yuuki, opting his interest as he watches them exit the classroom and go up to the roof, peaking his curiosity as he watches them do what appears to be playing games with Asuna complaining about losing again.

"I wish I could move my fingers as fast as you" Asuna said with a bit of envy as she watches Misami play against a bot, destroying it with ease.

"You could if you play all the time like me." Misami said with nonchalance

"All the time? Like at home too!?" Asuna said with a bit of surprise.

"Yeah and at the arcade" Misami said with a smile at Asuna before noticing Tanjiro walk over, surprising her as she hasn't spoken to him outside of things like group projects.

"Gaming can be fun, but it's important to know when to balance it out with your real life ya know" Tanjiro said toward the surprised Misami and Asuna as he flashes a warm smile that widens their eyes before pointing at him in unison.

"Eh!?" Both Asuna and Misami said at the same time with the same surprised tone as they haven't seen Tanjiro show off any kind of emotion other than the blank face he always has.

"What, is there something on my face?" Tanjiro said with surprised confusion as he felt around his face, searching for something that was not even there before stopping at Asuna waving her arms around in a no gesture.

"No no no, it's just I've never seen you talk to anyone let alone smile!" Asuna said with confusion.

"Yeah you're always alone with this unreadable face!" Misami said with confused nonchalance.

"Oh! Well uh…see the thing is I don't really know anyone here and I'm the only guy in school so you can probably guess why I don't really want to bother anyone heh heh…" Tanjiro said with a nervous chuckle as he rubs the back of his head with embarrassment, leaving the two girls speechless.

"Well sorry to barge in on your conversation I saw you guys come up here and I got curious, but I guess I'll leave you two alone now, bye now!" Tanjiro said before turning around and beginning to walk off.

Asuna, not wanting to ruin this chance at finally socializing with the loner Tanjiro, gets up and calls out to him, stopping him in his tracks "Wait! You can stay and hang out with us if you want! I mean if you want to that is.

Tanjiro looks back with surprise on his face as he points toward himself "You want me to hang out with you guys?

Asuna looks at Tanjiro with a warm smile before looking back at Misami "Yeah I think it'd be fun! You can hang out with us as much as you'd like, as long as that's ok with Misami." Asuna said while giving Misami a pleading smile making the girl sweat drop.

"Yeah sure, that's fine with me, you wanna play a round with me?" Misami said while holding up the gaming console in her hand, making Tanjiro smile and nod as the two began to play an intense match that resulted in Tanjiro barely winning.

"Woah I didn't know you were so into gaming Tanjiro!" Asuna said looking at Tanjiro with surprise at the fact that he was able to keep up with Misami's finger speed.

"Oh no I'm not all that into it, I play it here and there but I never put too much time into it." Tanjiro said while waving his hands back and forth denying the statement.

Misami looks at Tanjiro with a questioning gaze before smiling at finally finding someone who can keep up with her as much as she loves Asuna she doesn't have the best attacks "Are you sure about that dude, because I play games all the time and you managed to beat me"

"No no really I didn't do all that much all I did was follow what the combo list told me to do and that's all really!" Tanjiro said with a humble tone.

"Anyway Misami, if you like games so much, why don't you talk about it to anyone other than Asuna. I'm sure there's tons of other people who would love to play against you and could give you a challenge." Tanjiro said with a smile before looking at the sky.

Misami looks at Tanjiro with a smile of her own before brushing off the comment "No thanks, people would see it as weird if the top student was super into gaming, besides the only opponent I've ever needed was Asuna."

Tanjiro looks at Misami with a warm smile as he looks back at her "I don't think it's weird, if you are friends with someone they should like being around you no matter what you like it's something friends do, they look out for each other and have fun with each other, no matter what, if someone judges you just because you like games then they aren't a true friend."

Misami and Asuna look at Tanjiro dumb founded as Asuna smiles at him while pushing her hair to the side. "So this is who Tanjiro Kamado truly is….how could anyone be so kind yet look so alone…"

"Does your hair bother you? If you want I can fix that for you," Tanjiro said while getting up and moving to stand behind Asuna who agreed with no real reason to decline.

Tanjiro begins to braid some of Asuna's hair and smiles while getting flashbacks of doing the same thing with his younger sister Nezuko. "I used to do this all the time for my little sister….so I know a thing or two about how to do this."

Asuna gains a curious face hearing that Tanjiro had a sister, not knowing anything about Tanjiro's home life. "You have a sister? What's her name?"

Tanjiro gains a sad smile as he continues to braid Asuna's hair "Nezuko….Nezuko Kamado was her name…..she was a beauty, the most beautiful girl back in my home town…sadly she's been in a coma for over a year now..….

Asuna widens her eyes hearing this before frowning while looking at the ground in sympathy for Tanjiro.

"And done! There you go, your hair is as good as new!" Tanjiro proclaimed with a smile as Asuna does looks at it in her phones mirror before smiling at the sight of part of her hair being braided and tied back into a small ponytail in the back, overall making a new cute look for Asuna, making her smile in the process and thank the boy before Tanjiro looks at the time.

"Oh it's getting late I better get going, see you guys later!" Tanjiro say's before heading in the direction of the roof exit and surprising Asuna and Misami with his amazing speed in a comedic fashion by already being down at the school exit.

Tanjiro smiles as he turns around and waves at them "Bye Asuna, Misami, have a safe trip back!" Tanjiro yelled while smiling in joy, making Asuna and Misami do the same.

"Tanjiro Kamado huh? Cool guy if you ask me" Misami said while thinking one thought, "He's so gentle…."

"Yeah, he's so kind and gentle, it's like he almost felt like another big brother to me in a way..…." Asuna said with a smile on her face, looking forward to their future encounters, not knowing it would be under different circumstances.

Tanjiro stops and turns around looking at the roof before beginning to wave, making the two girls smile as they watch Tanjiro disappear off into the city in the distance.

Timeskip - The Next Day

Tanjiro wakes up from his bed and goes through his morning routine before hearing his doorbell ring "Hm who could that be, it's still pretty early in the morning, and I wasn't expecting anyone.

Tanjiro walks up to his apartment door and peeks through the peephole seeing nobody there, confusing him as he opens the door and to his surprise finds a package addressed to him "A package? But I didn't order anything. Maybe they got the wrong address."

Tanjiro's curiosity peaks as he takes the package inside and opens it to find a strange looking helmet with the words nerve gear on it as well as a game copy that he recognizes "Wait a second, I've seen this game before…Sword Art..Online?"

Tanjiro sets the Nerve gear and the SAO copy to the side as he looks back in the box and sees a note inside ""Dear Tanjiro Kamado, you have been selected through a random giveaway to be the luckiest player of Sword Art Online, we hope you enjoy your experience as you play through the world of Aincrad" From Aki..hiko..Kayaba? That's odd, I don't remember entering a giveaway, oh well I guess I might as well try the game out as a way to say thank you, who knows maybe it'll be fun!" Tanjiro says with a hint of excitement, having always seen advertisements for the Nerve Gear and the upcoming game and its release.

"Okay let's see, so I just plug this into my computer, put it on, and then say link start? That seems simple enough." Tanjiro said as he went into his room, plugging the cord into his PC used for browsing the web out of boredom before putting the Nerve Gear on his head and laying down.

"Okay here goes nothing, Link Start!" Tanjiro yells out the command as colors go flashing on the screen as well as all the 5 senses of his body being registered with his Touch, Sight, Hearing, and Taste saying "Ok", whilst his sense of Smell goes off the charts and says "Amazing"

"Welcome to Sword Art Online, to start, please enter your username!" The game announcer says to Tanjiro who looks at the screen with a smile.

"Well I shouldn't use my real name so I guess my last name will do just fine." Tanjiro says to himself as he puts in Kamado for the Username and makes up an easy to remember password.

"Next create your avatar, select your gender, hairstyle, skin tone, and physical build from the options provided, you can customize it to the smallest detail!" The announcer says with the same excited AI tone whilst the screen goes into a Character Creation screen that makes Tanjiro sweat a little at all the options.

"Oh my, there's so many options, it's impossible to choose, maybe I should just go with myself instead..?" Tanjiro says with a hint of nervousness as he clicks an option that builds the avatar to look Identical to Tanjiro, unknownst to him the system recognizes him and also places Hanafuda Earrings and a Green Checkered Haori over his white starter armor and black pants.

"You will now be taken to the game's start point, the town of beginnings, we hope you enjoy your adventures in Aincrad, the castle in the sky! The AI Announcer says as Tanjiro's screen gets engulfed with a blue light, blinding him momentarily until he opens his eyes to see a plaza filled with people in it.

"Woah, there are so many people here!" Tanjiro says to himself in excitement with a smile as he looks around with a bright smile never experiencing anything like this before being greeted by a person wearing a dress as well as a Yellow crystal-like cursor above their head.

"Welcome Swordsman, may I help you with anything? This place is the town of beginnings central place plaza, weapons and gear are found in the shopping district, which is that way!" The NPC said as she points toward the market place.

"Weapon? What kind of weapons are there to choose from?" Tanjiro said in curiosity.

"Weapon classes can range from a normal sword to an Ax and many more, is there anything you're looking for in particular? The NPC said while looking at Tanjiro with the same unmoving smile.

Tanjiro looks up deep in thought, getting flashbacks to the kendo dojo he goes to and his training with his teacher Sakonji Urokodaki "Are there any Katana classed weapons Mam?

The woman smiles as she gestures to Tanjiro to follow her "Right this way Swordsman."

Tanjiro nods as he follows the lady to a weapon shop in the marketplace with Katanas, buying one and equipping himself with it, the Katana isn't anything special, it's your standard steel blade with a silver circular cut edged guard and a black grip with red diamonds on it, Tanjiro exits the shop and waves goodbye to the NPC as he runs out to the fields in excitement.

Timeskip - 10 minutes later

"This'll be my first time using a real sword in battle, this is the perfect time to use what I've learned from Mr. Urokodaki's Training!" Tanjiro says as he looks down at all the boars in the field "Well here goes nothing" He thought to himself as he charges a boar with a battle cry, ready to kill it as the boar notices him and charges back at him, Tanjiro takes dodges to to left at the last second, leaving the boar open to an attack as Tanjiro focuses and smells the air seeing the opening thread.

Tanjiro's sword glows red as he slices straight down at the boar until it narrowly gets saved by another boar that hit Tanjiro's side, lowering his health a little and breaking the opening thread in the process, "Remember your training!" Tanjiro thought as he takes a deep breath whilst his sword glows red again "Total concentration breathing…." Tanjiro continues to breathe in total concentration as he smells a scent with the opening thread appearing and latching onto both Boars heads "I smell the thread!" Tanjiro thought as he rushed the boars with new found speed and slashed one before dashing at and slashing the other, cleaving both boars in half and shattering them into blue glass particles as Tanjiro gets a result pop up causing him to smile and grip his hand in satisfaction while leaking a few tears from his eyes. "I did it….I'm getting stronger! So my training wasn't for nothing, I did master it!" Tanjiro thought to himself as he thinks back to when it all started long ago.

Flashback - 1 year ago.

We see a Younger 14 year Tanjiro Kamado wearing a blue scarf and a white Kimono and black pants as well as snow boots, Tanjiro lifts up a basket filled with Charcoal in it and puts it onto his back as prepares to go off into town to sell it.

"Tanjiro." A Young yet mature womans voice calls out to Tanjiro, causing him to turn and look over at his mother, Kie Kamado, a fairly pale young woman with dark purple to light purple eyes with the same white pupil Tanjiro has as well as black hair tied back into a messy bun with a few strands coming down her forehead, her hair is mostly covered by the Tenugui cloth she wears around her head, she also wears a purple and cream colored Kimono under a white long sleeved Kappogi .

"Your face is all covered in stut, let me clean you up." Tanjiro's mother kneels down and takes a white rage and begins to wipe off Tanjiro's face with a worried look on her face.

"Ya know you really don't have to go, all this snow could be dangerous." Tanjiro's mother proclaims in worry for her son.

"I want us to have a good new years celebration, where everyone can eat as much as they want, so I'll sell all the charcoal I can. Said Tanjiro with an unreadable face.

"How thoughtful" Tanjiro's mother smiles at Tanjiro while saying this, feeling happiness at her son's pure hearted soul and gentle nature.

"Hey bro!" A little boy with buzzed black hair and the same Dark Red white pupil eyes calls out to Tanjiro causing him to look over with his mother and see that his younger brother Shigeru and his youngest sister Hanako are running toward him excitedly, Shigeru wears a Yellowish haori over a black and yellow checkered Kimono while Hanako has shoulder length black hair with bangs that frame her forehead, Hanako has the same Dark red white pupil eyes as Shigeru and Tanjiro but instead she wears a pink haori over a yellow kimono.

"Are you going into town again today!" Shigeru asks excitedly whilst Hanako looks at Tanjiro with a pleading look "I'm coming with you" Said Hanako right as Tanjiro's eldest Younger brother Takeo who also has black hair spikey ruffled hair like Tanjiro but instead of having bangs frame the right side of his forehead his hair is fully slicked back exposing his forehead entirely, Takeo wears a blueish green Haori over a white Kimono but as well as a blue checkered scarf around his neck, he carries a wood chopping ax with him to chop firewood for the winter for when it gets cold.

"No you're not, you know you can't walk as fast as Tanjiro sweetie." said Tanjiro's mother who walks over to Shigeru and Hanako. "Aw come on mom!" argued Shigeru.

"No way, he's not going to be able to use the cart today, which means he can't give you a ride when you get tired." Said Tanjiro's mother, causing Shigeru to give an annoyed look with Hanako giving a pleading one.

"Tanjiro!" Shigeru complains while rushing over and hugging Tanjiro. "I want to come with you, I promise I'll help out.." pleaded Hanko.

"That's very generous of you Hanako." Hearing Tanjiro say this gives Hanako a smile in hope "But no, you're staying home today" Hanako frowns in disappointment as Tanjiro pats her on the head before kneeling down and looking at a growing Shigeru.

"Sorry Shigeru, you are too, but I'll bring back goodies okay?" Said Tanjiro, causing Shigeru to smile brightly. "Promise!?" Said Shigeru who giggles when Tanjiro agrees before looking at Hanako and putting a hand on her head. "And Hanako I'll read for you when I get home later" Hearing this from Tanjiro makes Hanako smile brightly "Kay!" Said Hanako "Good Girl" Said Tanjiro with a smile.

"Thank you for doing this Tanjiro…" Said Tanjiro's mother, making Tanjiro stand back up fully and look at her with a smile. "Course! Time for me to head out. Hey Takeo, do me a favor while I'm gone okay, chop as much wood as you can." Said Tanjiro as he looks at Takeo with a smile, annoying the boy as he looks to the side.

"Yeah I was already gonna do that anyway, but I was kinda hoping we could do that together this time, Hmph." Takeo puffs his cheeks annoyed at Tanjiro who just walks up to him and pats his head.

"There there now" Said Tanjiro as Takeo attempts to smack Tanjiro's hand away ultimately missing in the end "Knock it off would ya!" Takeo looks at Tanjiro annoyed at him doing this as Shigeru points at Takeo.

"Heh heh you're blushing Take!" Said Shigeru, annoying Takeo "Shut up you brat!" Said the annoyed Takeo as Shiegeru puts his hands behind his head whilst Tanjiro pets his head again.

"There there now" Said Tanjiro. "I told you to cut it out, Ugh!" said Takeo as the whole family laughs at Takeo's embarrassment whilst Tanjiro smiles and laughs before leaving toward the town, his family waving goodbye as he walks off into the distance.

Tanjiro stops as he notices a black haired girl with Light Pink eyes with the same whited pupil as his, coming towards him with a short black haired boy, this girl is Nezuko and she wears a flowery Kimono under the blanket she's using to carry the little boy Rokuta, Tanjiro's youngest brother.

"Hi Tanjiro." Said Nezuko with a smile at seeing Tanjiro come forward to speak to her.

"Hey Nezuko." Said Tanjro as he returns the smile with a bright one of his own.

"I had to put Rokuta down for a nap now. Otherwise he would throw a fit. Ever since dad passed he's been glued to your side." Said Nezuko with a warm smile as Tanjiro gently pets his youngest brother's head.

"In fact everyone seems to follow you wherever you go." Tanjiro smiles warmly at Nezuko's words before nodding and beginning to walk off again, only turning to wave goodbye at her as she smiles. "I'll see you when you get back!" Said Nezuko as she watches Tanjiro go off down his journey downtown.

Timeskip - 30 Minutes Later

We see Tanjiro walking in the middle of town as a lady who was sweeping the floors of her front porch spots him "Tanjiro, you came down the mountain on a day like today, don't you ever stop working!? You could catch a cold."

"It's not as bad as you think, you need a refill on charcoal by any chance?" Said Tanjiro with a smile while walking up the lady until a man yells out from his doorstep "Hey, Tanjiro! I'll take some more!" "I'm good but thanks for fixing my sliding doors the other day." said a man from his window balcony. "I need some charcoal too!" Said a lady in a purple kimono across the street.

Something people don't know about Tanjiro is that he used to be really popular in his hometown, always working and helping out others with their everyday lives.

As the day went on Tanjiro found himself walking past an alleyway while getting ready to head back home until stopping at hearing a girl screaming, causing him to run in that direction as fast as possible.

"What's going on here!" Tanjiro said as he walks in said alley and sees a girl with black hair tied in two black ribbons in the front and short in the back as well as the girl having black eyes, she wears a school uniform under a beige/tan long sleeved jacket as well as a black scarf, the girl also wears oval shaped glasses but as of now they are the ground where she can be seen holding herself like a scared child whilst three other girls stand near her.

The main girl is a girl with long brown hair and hazel pink eyes, this girl has an evil smirk on her face while she and her side character friends bully the girl on the ground.

"Huh? Who the hell are you, and what's with that weird mark on your head." said the Brown haired girl with disgust.

"My name is Tanjiro Kamado, and what you're doing to this poor innocent girl is unforgivable, can't you see she's had enough!" Said Tanjiro with an angry expression on his face while looking at the girl.

"Had enough? Pfft are you crazy, she's a murderer get it? There is not enough for scum like her. You said your name is Tanjiro huh? Well then riddle me this, how is she Innocent when she killed a man a while back, huh?" Said the brown haired girl as she giggles a bit from enjoying the poor girls suffering.

"I'm sure she had a good reason for doing that, she wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't, now leave her alone!" Said Tanjiro who walks in front of the girl, spreading his arms out in a protective manner."

"Hmph, fine I'll let this slide, but only because you're pretty cute, but don't think I'm done with you or her, you'll both get what's coming to you." Said the brown haired girl as she and her friends walk off annoyed, leaving Tanjiro with the girl who looks up at him terrified.

Tanjiro turns to the girl and kneels down to meet her eye to eye "Are you ok miss, did they hurt you?" Tanjiro says with a concerned look on his face as the girl calms down slightly and shakes her head.

"No…I-I'm fine…" Said the girl nervously as she looks at Tanjiro who gives her a warm smile, making the girl blush as he stands up and offers a hand to her.

"That's good then, my name's Tanjiro Kamado, what's yours?" Said Tanjiro as the girl hesitantly takes his hand before Tanjiro pulls her up onto her feet.

"Sh-Shino, Shino Asada…." Sad the newly named Shino with a shy tone as Tanjiro smiles at her, making her blush a little as he kneels down and picks her glasses up off the ground

"That's a lovely name, oh and here I believe these belong to you." Said Tanjiro as he hands Asada her glasses, confusing her as he begins to walk off. "Well I'll see you around."

"Wait..!" Asada calls out while reaching an arm out before hesitating right as Tanjiro turns to look at her. "Is there something else I can help you with Miss Asada?" Tanjiro says with his signature warm smile, hardening Asada's resolve as she looks at him with a confused face.

"Why did you help me….." Said Asada as Tanjiro looks at her with a confused look. "Because you needed help, why else?" Said Tanjiro, confusing Asada even more as she looks at him with tears in her eyes. "No it's not that…aren't you afraid of me….I-I killed someone…" Said Asada as Tanjiro smiles at her in sympathy. "Just because you killed someone in the past doesn't mean it defines who you are now, besides I can tell just from your scent how much it bothers you, so there's no need for me to be afraid." Said Tanjiro as he smiles at her, widening her eyes as he gives her a wave.

"I'll be heading home now, it's getting late so you should too, guess I'll see you around!" Tanjiro says as he turns to leave before stopping. "If you ever want someone to talk to, I live up on the mountain with my family, you can stop by anytime." Tanjiro says before leaving a stunned Asada who just stares at Tanjiro's retreating back before he's out of sight. "Tanjiro Kamado….huh" thought Asada as she smiles with a blush before putting her glasses on and picking her bag up off of the ground and walking home seeing that it's getting dark outside.

Timeskip - 10 Minutes Later

"How'd it get so late? Oh well at least I sold out, and I managed to make a new friend while I was at it!" Said Tanjiro as he smiles while continuing on his path up the mountain until stopping at hearing a man's voice.

"Hang on, Tanjiro! You're not going back up the mountain now, it's simply too dangerous!" said a man with short black hair and gold eyes wearing a green Haori over a white Kimono" This man's name is Sabaro an Old man that lives just below the mountain, Tanjiro smiles at Old man Sabaro and brushes off his comment "Oh I'll be fine, I've got a good nose." Said Tanjiro trying to assure the old man. "You can stay here for the night, come on, get inside." Said Sabaro with all seriousness from knowing the dangers of the world. "No I'm…-" "Don't argue just get in here, before anyone unwanted shows up" Argued Sabaro, interrupting Tanjiro in the process who just frowns and looks at Sabaro who has a grim face.

Timeskip - 10 minutes later

We see Tanjiro finishing food prepared for him by Old man Sabaro as he puts down the bowl and his chopsticks. "Thanks for dinner" Said Tanjiro in a thankful manner as he takes a sip of his green tea that's left before looking at it in wonder. "Hey uh….Mr. Sabaro, what did you mean by anyone unwanted?" Said a curious Tanjiro as he looks up at Sabaro who grabs a spare Futon from his closet, preparing it for Tanjiro to sleep in. "There are all kinds of people in the world Tanjiro, everyone you meet will be a completely different person from the last. That's why It's not safe to go outside at night alone in a place like this. Time for bed, you can set off for home at first light" Said Sabaro who just sits down cross legged on his bed, picking up a smoking pipe and lighting it up.

Tanjiro looks up at the ceiling with a wandering gaze as he stays warm under the Futon. "Not all people are dangerous though, right?". "Yes, some people you meet will be good, but some will also be bad, they could do unspeakable things to you if they wanted to, even murder." Said Sabaro before taking a hit of his pipe and blowing out the smoke as Tanjiro looks up and gets a flashback of saving that girl earlier. "But then wouldn't the bad people just murder everyone without a second thought?" replied Tanjiro whilst turning to look at Sabaro's back. "The police help protect us by imprisoning bad people, they always have, but one day you'll find yourself in danger they can't protect you from in time. Said Sabaro as he put his pipe out in an ash jar. "Now go to sleep, it's lights out." Said Sabaro as he turns the lights off, causing Tanjiro to return to looking at the ceiling before closing his eyes. "Old man Sabaro, he's been on his own since he lost his family, he must be lonely. I'll bring my brothers and sisters by, you don't have to be scared, nobody will hurt you, you're safe…..although now that I think of it, my grandma used to say the same thing before she passed…." thought Tanjiro as he drifts off into sleep.

Timeskip - The Next Day

"You be careful now" Said Sabero as he waves Tanjiro goodbye. "Thank you!" Said Tanjiro as he begins his path up the mountain as he continues to walk in silence with the birds cawing in the sky and the sounds of his footsteps in the snow before he stops and frowns before sniffing the air and gaining a shocked expression. "The smell of blood!" Said a surprised Tanjiro as he rushes up the mountain as fast as possible before reaching his house, sweating and breathing hard as he sees Nezuko laying over Rokuta, laying in a pool of blood while being covered in said blood, widening Tanjiro's eyes he runs over to Nezuko in terror, completely ditching his basket in the process.

"Nezuko! What happened!? What's going on here!? What happened to you!?" Tanjiro screams out in terror and fear as he looks over to his home's door where blood trails off into it from Nezuko as Tanjiro hesitantly walks over and looks inside.

"Mom…?" Tanjiro calls out as he gasps and slides down onto his knees, eyes widened with tears in them at the sight of his mother, sister, and two brothers murdered with dead expressions on their faces as Tanjiro begins to break down. "Mom…Hanako…Takeo…Shigeru….Nezuko…Rokuta….

Tanjiro feels each and every one of their temperatures, his heart dropping as tears leak from his face until gaining some kind of hope from Nezuko still having a warm temperature, causing Tanjiro to look around, taking the Hatchet off the wall and picking her up whilst putting a blanket over her to warm her up as he begins carrying her with haste, running down the mountain with heavy breathing.

"Nezuko is the only one who's still warm! If I can get her to a doctor, she might live!" thought Tanjiro, normally one would call an ambulance but the Kamado family couldn't afford cell phones, they could only afford what they could manage, as Tanjiro continues to carry Nezuko down the mountain, struggling to breath with tears in his eyes. "I can't breathe, the airs I see, my lungs hurt! Just keep moving! Move those legs of yours faster!" Thought Tanjiro in panic as his tired body begins to slow down. "You've still got a long way to go to get to town, hurry! I won't let you die! No matter what it takes, your big brother will save you!" Thought Tanjiro before in the corner of his eye seeing a fist coming his way, causing him to panic and slip on the snow, falling off the mountain with Nezuko in tow. Just barely being saved by the snow, Tanjiro takes a deep breath in. "The snow saved me….but the snow is the only reason I fell…." Thought Tanjiro.

"Nezuko!" Tanjiro gets up and sees Nezuko laying on the ground next to him, causing him to rush to her side until suddenly getting hit away by a kick to the stomach, widening his eyes and taking his breath away as he grabs Nezuko right before the kick launches him, holding her close and taking the full brute force of the impact as he hits a tree.

"What…the….heck…!" Tanjiro looks up and sees a man who looks out of his mind stares at him, knife in hand at the ready. "So you're the guy my friend's sister has been telling me about huh?" Said the man as he inches closer towards Tanjiro step by step.

"Wh-Who are you….Why are you doing this to us!?" Tanjiro yells out terrified as the man laughs. "Who I am is not important, who you hurt is the fact and you're gonna get what's coming to ya ,ya son of a bitch! I'm gonna murder you just like how I did to your family." The man says as he waves the knife in front of his face, widening Tanjiro's eyes as he sprints at Tanjiro and kicks him in the face, knocking him in a daze and leaving him vulnerable as he takes Nezuko hostage.

"Th-this can't be happening….can it…!? While I was sleeping like a baby at Sabaro's, you were all being brutally murdered by this Monster! It must have hurt….you suffered didn't you! I'm sorry I wasn't there to help…..I have to at least save Nezuko though!" Thought Tanjiro as he begins to tear up.

"Aw what's wrong, are you gonna cry like a baby? Where was all that Bravado you showed her!" The man yells as Tanjiro stands up and begins to move forward "Nezuko!" "Take one step and I'll get her right and here now, and then you'll be next!" Said the man as mist flows by for a second before clearing. "No wait! Nezuko hasn't hurt anyone, whatever I did, please take it out on me, just please don't hurt her!" Tanjiro pleads as he widens his eyes, seeing the man about to stab Nezuko with a mad man's grin. "Please, just let her go! Please don't do this!" Tanjiro screams in pleading before bowing down at the man with images of his lost family popping up in his head.

"I'm begging you….please…don't kill my little sister….please don't do it…I'm begging you…!" Sobbed Tanjiro while bowing in the snow as the man laughs maniacally before a gunshot can be heard as the knife drops to the ground along with the man who now has widened eyes at feeling blood coming down his forehead where a hole can be seen, along with the man falling, another blue eyed man with no pupils and long spiky back hair tied into a ponytail wearing a policeman's uniform catches the wounded Nezuko as Tanjiro blacks out from all the trauma and mental strain.

Timeskip - Many Hours later

We see Tanjiro wake up in a hospital room chair as he looks up and sees Nezuko laying down in a Hospital bed with machines attached to her vitals. "Nezuko!" Tanjiro rushes over with worry etched into his voice before beginning to leak tears as the door opens and closes with the same man that saved Nezuko from before walks in. "Oh, so you're finally awake huh? Said the blue eyed man with a frown on his face as Tanjiro turns to look at him and widens his eyes before slamming his head on the floor bowing while sobbing. "Thank you…! Thank you so much…! It's because of you that my little sister didn't die! My family was murdered by that monster and I'm so glad that Nezuko is alright…." Tanjiro said while sobbing his heart out, making the man clench his fist in anger

"Don't grovel like that and give your enemies the chance to kill you! Yelled the man at Tanjiro, surprising the boy as he looks up at the man. "All you're doing is making yourself vulnerable, if it were even a little bit effective, your family would still be alive right now!" continued the yelling man as Tanjiro widens his eyes while looking at him. "How can a weakling like you, have any hope of protecting his sister, or even himself! Don't be ridiculous! The weak have no rights, they don't get to make choices! All they can do is be relentlessly crushed by the strong! Now maybe next time a murderer won't kill your sister, maybe! But don't think for a moment that any one of them is going to respect your wishes! Just like I have no respect for you! That's reality! And why the hell did you throw yourself over her like that back there!? Was that your way of protecting her!? Why didn't you swing that Hatchet!? And why would you ever turn your back to him!? Those mistakes are what led to her capture and her ending up in a coma! He could have easily skewered the both of you and been done with it!" The man yells at Tanjiro while pointing at the boy, who says nothing as tears leak from his even more widened eyes hearing his sister has been put into a coma.

"Don't cry, don't succumb to sorrow, this isn't the time to despair. I know you're devastated right now. Your family massacred, your sister in a coma, I know it hurts, I know you wanna scream, I understand, if only I had gotten here half a day sooner when we got a call that that murderer was spotted around this area….maybe then your family would still be alive…however there's no way to turn back time, so feel it, feel the pure rage of being unable to forgive, let it be what gives you the strength to take action and move forward in your life. With that fragile resolve of yours you will never be able to protect your sister or never be able to get over the grief at the loss of your family!"

"Tell me, what is your name, kid." Asked the blue eyed man who has now calmed down. "T-Tanjiro…..Tanjiro Kamado" Said Tanjiro as he stands up hesitantly. "Very well then Kamado, your an orphan now with no one to look after you, which is why I've sent a letter to a family friend, an old man named Sakonji Urokodaki will come by here to pick you up, when he finds you, tell him you are the kid Giyu Tomioka told him about, you will live with him from now on until you get older and he will train you to get stronger. Like I said your sister is in a coma, so work hard to protect her and let's hope that one day she may wake." The now named Giyu says before turning and opening the door, causing Tanjiro to call out to him as the man stops in his tracks to listen. "I promise I'll get stronger! And one day, I'll pay you back for all your help!" Tanjiro cries out, tears streaming down the boy's face as he smiles at the man who looks back and gains a surprised expression. "Long ago someone said the same thing, only to let the same best friend that saved them die in their arms. A terrified person will run away from anything even if it means leaving their family and friends behind, their instincts tell them to live, I've seen it more times than I can count. This boy has been badly traumatized and exhausted, he's using up a lot of his energy just to stand, and surely all that snow wasn't helping him, so there's no question, he's on his last leg right now, but he still wants to protect her….and is giving all this energy out just for her sake, I wonder if….just maybe….he's different." Thought Giyu as he nods and walks out of the room shutting the door, leaving an exhausted Tanjiro to stumble and sit down exhausted.

Flashback - End

We see Tanjiro sitting down on the grass looking at the sunset with a smile as behind him is a cleared field with no boars in sight, all of them having been killed and cleared out by Tanjiro. "I wonder if this is what old man Sabaro felt when he was alone." Tanjiro wondered aloud as he smiles. "I should log out now, I wouldn't want to worry Mr. Urokodaki." Tanjiro says as he swipes his right arm down and goes to click the logout button only to notice it's missing. "That's odd, where did it go?" Tanjiro asks himself until suddenly a bell can be heard from the town square to the area all over the Town of Beginnings.

"A bell?" Tanjiro says until widening his eyes a bit at glowing blue and teleporting away from where he was and suddenly reappearing in the plaza as he looks around to see more people teleporting in and talking amongst themselves. "Look up there!" Someone from the giant crowd points out, causing Tanjiro to look up and see a red shape with the words "Warning, System announcement?" Tanjiro said aloud in wonder as the shape expands and more of them start to cover the central plaza as red liquid starts to pour out from the very top while crackling in electricity until forming into a giant cloaked man with a crimson mist for a face. "What is that thing!?" Tanjiro thought to himself as he widens his eyes while looking at it.

As the other plays look at this cloaked figure they talk among themselves and say stuff like "Is that the game master? Why doesn't he have a face? Is this an event?" and of that sort as the figure raises his arms, alerting all the players. "Attention players, welcome to my world. My name is Akihiko Kayaba. And as of this moment, I am in control of this world. I'm sure most of you have already noticed an item missing from your main menu's, the logout button. Let me assure you that this is not a defect in the game, I repeat, this is not a defect, this is how Sword Art Online was designed to be, you can not log yourselves out of SAO anymore and no one from the outside will be able to shut down, or remove the nerve gear from your head if anyone attempts to do so, a transmitter inside the nerve gear will discharge a microwave signal into your skull, destroying your brain and ending your life." Said the newly named Gamemaster Akihiko Kayaba. Hearing all of this from Kayaba widens Tanjiro's eyes as he clenches his fists and continues to listen in. "Despite my warning, some of the families and friends of your fellow friends have attempted removing the nerve gear anyway, an unfortunate and tragic decision to say the least, as a result, the game now has 213 less players than when it began, they've been deleted from both Aincrad and the real world." Said Kayaba with the same nonchalance as before. "213 lives gone just like that!? How many families have you destroyed because of it! This is unforgivable! I won't stand for it!" Thought an angry Tanjiro as he stares at Kayaba with an intense glare. "As you can see the news has already spread around the globe on international media, reporting on the situation including the deaths so far. At this point, it's safe to assume the likelihood of another nerve gear being removed is minimal at best. I hope this brings you some little comfort as you try to clear the game. It's important to remember the following, there is no long anyway to revive someone within the game, if your HP drops to 0, your avatar will be deleted from the system, forever, and the nerve gear will simultaneously destroy your brain." Tanjiro gets flashbacks of his family's murder and grits his teeth as he closes his eyes silently blaming himself.

"There is only one way for a player to escape now and that is to clear the game. Right now you are gathered on floor one, the lowest level of Aincrad, you must find the dungeon and if you defeat the boss and you may advance to the next floor, do that for each floor and if you defeat the boss on floor 100 and you will clear the game." Kayaba said with nonchalance as everyone in the plaza starts to argue, with one person's argument standing out the most. "No way, all 100 floors!? That's freaking impossible! Even the beta testers never made it that high!" Said the red haired player's argument.

"All 100 floors….." Tanjiro thought as he gets flashbacks to his training and the hospital. "Nezuko…..Mr. Urokodaki….I won't lose to this game! I'll get back to the real world, no matter what it takes!" Thought Tanjiro as he steels his resolve and looks up ready for what comes at him next.

"And last, but not least, I've placed a little present in the item storage of every player, please, have a look." Kayabe says as everyone in the plaza starts to open their menus and go to their item storages, all of them pulling out a mirror as Tanjiro does the same. The plaza gets covered in a blue light, once the light clears up everyone starts asking who is who as their faces have been changed, whilst Tanjiro on the other hand looks around confused because he looks the same as he did before the light. "Uh, what's going on, why does everyone have a different face all of a sudden? I feel a little out of the loop here, heh heh." Tanjiro chuckles to himself a little until putting all of his attention back on Kayaba, giving him a face that is full of nothing but a serious nature.

"Right now you're probably wondering, why? Why would I, Akihiko Kayaba, the developer of Sword Art Online and the Nerve Gear, do something like this?
Ultimately my goal was a simple one. The reason I created Sword Art Online was to control a world of my design. As you can see I have achieved my goal. This marks the end of the tutorial and the official launch of Sword Art Online. Take note, this may be a game, but it's not one you Play. I wish all of you the best of luck." Kayaba said with the emphasis on the word play as he starts to deform back into the red liquidy substance he was before as it retreats into the red ceiling that quickly vanishes with him, leaving all the players in the lobby in silence until a girl drops her mirror, causing it to break and shatter into blue glass particles right as she screams and bumps into someone and falls onto her knees in fear, causing utter chaos to break out as Tanjiro looks around and tries to calm everyone around him down before noticing some players leaving and coming to a realization and starts to follow one.

"They must be ex beta testers, which means if I want to see Nezuko again, I'll have to follow them!" Tanjiro thought as he continues to follow them onto a path with Dire Wolves spawning as one of them attacks the beta tester as they use a scythe to slash through it, killing it until the other one tries to bite her, causing her to block it and turn, aggroing it towards there companion as it rushes towards them and attacks them, the person being too afraid to do anything as they helplessly watch their health go down to red, Tanjiro widens his eyes and unsheathes his sword while running before jumping in the air and taking a breath inward.

"Total Concentration!" Tanjiro's sword glows reddish orange as he descends towards the wolf and slices it in half, saving the person it was attacking as he stands up and looks back at them widening his eyes at who he sees.

"A-Asuna!?" Tanjiro says in surprise as Asuna looks up at Tanjiro with teary eyes, causing him to kneel down and meet her at eye level. "T-Tanjiro..!?" Asuna says as she pulls him into a hug and starts to cry, causing him to smile softly. "Are you ok, Asuna?" Tanjiro says in a soft voice. "N-no I'm not, nothings ok! This is totally insane! Who does this to people!? I have exams coming up! Why is this happening to me….!" Asuna says as she sobs into Tanjiro's chest.

"Ya know I said the same thing when my family was brutally murdered…." Tanjiro says to the sobbing Asuna, who widens her eyes at hearing this, along with the beta tester she was with. "I was sad, angry, mad, confused, and most of all, guilty because I was the one who got to live…." Said Tanjiro as he uses the same soft tone as before.

"My sister was the only one still left of my family left alive….but she was left in a coma…." Tanjiro continued on as Asuna continued to listen. "My Mom…. my sister Hanako….my brothers, Takeo….Shigeru…and Rokuta…..all of them gone in one night, the only one I have left is Nezuko and she's not even conscious…." Said Tanjiro as he gains a sad smile and parts from Asuna's hug and puts his hands on her shoulders. "I know you're scared right now, I am too, but I'm gonna fight this game, to get back to the real world so I can be with my sister Nezuko again. You aren't alone in the game, right Misami?" Tanjiro says as he stands up and turns to Misami Tozawa, the beta tester Asuna was with as the girl smiles at him and nods.

"We all start weak Asuna, I've gotten this far because of others, so trust Misami ok? Said Tanjiro as he looks over to Misami who smiles.

"It's Mito in her Tanjiro, remember that." the newly proclaimed Mito says as Tanjiro smiles and nods. "It's nice to meet you Mito, I'm Tanjiro Kamado." Tanjiro says as he smiles brightly, making Mito sweat drop at this. "You're using your real name too!? Where do you guys get the guts to do that!?" Mito says surprised as Tanjiro laughs at this. "Oh It's not guts really I just didn't know what else to call myself." Tanjiro says with a laugh, causing Asuna to start giggling, completely getting rid of her despair earlier as Tanjiro smiles. "Well I'm glad you're feeling better, so until we meet again, bye for now!" Tanjiro says as he sheathes his Katana, confusing Asuna. "You're not gonna stay with us…?" Tanjiro just shakes his head at this. "Mm mm, I need to do this next part on my own, otherwise I'll never be able to truly get stronger." Tanjiro says making Asuna look down in sadness. "But hey, no matter what we'll always be together in our hearts." Tanjiro says with Asuna looking up at him before standing up and smiling.

"Well I better get going now, goodbye for now, stay safe!" Tanjiro says as he runs begins to run along the path waving goodbye to Asuna and Mito whilst picking up another Beta Testers scent. "That's right, if I don't do this on my own then I won't be able to protect my sister!" Tanjiro thought as he keeps running along the path with new found resolve.

To be continued….
I had a stupendously fun time putting this chapter together I can't wait to make the next one I'm sure you can all guess what that chapter will hold in it but as for Tanjiro YES BREATHING STYLES EXIST IN THIS WORLD they just haven't been introduced yet I plan to introduce them next chapter so please calm down, the only thing that will change about Tanjiro is him being born with Yoriichi's Slayer mark which will be explained in later chapters as I actually plan to do what Demon Slayer failed to do and that is have Tanjiro be the Descendant of Yoriichi Tsugikuni, I know, it doesn't really make sense but just roll with it for now and it will make sense later and the other different thing his haircut, which is the cover of this fanfiction, I personally like it, it's just Tanjiro's hair but with some of it down, another one of the only changes to Tanjiro will be that he does not have water breathing he will only have Sun Breathing or Hinokami Kagura, whatever you prefer to call it, anyway enough rambling I seriously hope you enjoyed this chapter, leave a review, tell me what you think of this chapter and story so far, and happy reading!