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/Breathing Styles and Techniques
Italic Thoughts
Underline Whisper
Permanent Author's Note: I plan on doing Tanjiro X Kanao as the pairing for Tanjiro as I think it's a beautiful pairing and I've always liked it and I love fleshing in more Demon Slayer characters as I go, I have no plans to change Kirisuna, I'm sure I just upset someone, but hey the events I want to do for this story doesn't allow me to split up Kirisuna and now that I think about it, Neither do I want to, because I see nth wrong with that cannon ship, I will also add Sinon to Tanjiro X Kanao because she is SAO's best girl. The Official pairing as of now is Tanjiro X Kanao, Sinon, And Yuna, could change in the future if I add to it.
Chapter 8: Thunder's Fear.
Timeskip - 2 Weeks Later
We see players gathered up in a raid party meeting on the 56th Floor Pani, trying to figure out how there going to take out the floors Field Boss called the Geocrawler, the most notable players there being Klein and the Fuurinkazan, Agil, Kirito, Mito, The Holy Dragon Aliiance's men that they sent, and Asuna leading members of the Knights Of The Blood Oath. The room of players continue bickering amongst themselves until Asuna slams her hand down on the table containing a map of Floor 56. "Lure it to the village, that's how we get the boss!" Asuna says, shocking the crowd and widening Kirito's eyes in surprise before going to protest.
"Wait, you can't be serious, if we do the boss will go after the villagers!" Kirito says, trying to stop this plan immediately but to his dismay Asuna quickly counters back.
"Yes, that's the idea, and while the boss is busy killing NPCs, we can attack it, and kill it." Asuna says brutally.
"But they're not just objects, NPCs are different from rocks and trees, look there-" Kirito says before being interrupted.
"You think they're alive, really?" Asuna says annoyed while giving Kirito a stern look, causing the boy to reel back and sweat in surprise at her harsh words. "In this game they are just objects, and unlike us they can always respawn." Asuna says before three sets of footsteps can be heard, turning everyone's attention to them as the three people owning these footsteps make their way through the crowd.
"Is that so? So you think NPCs are just pawns you can sacrifice on the battlefield whenever you want, how you've fallen from the Asuna I once knew." Tanjiro says while emerging from the crowd with his two companions, one being a young man around the same height as Tanjiro with a pale complexion and a extremely well build for someone around his age being the age of 16, 1 year under Tanjiro, he wears a Boar headed mask with blue eyes and a pink snout and pink around the edges of the masks ears as well as a Demon Slayers uniformed pants with no shirt that has a slight blue tint to it as well as a brown deers fur adorned on it, at his hips are two wrapped up katanas, the other boy is much much more tamed then the Boar lad as he is a young man with similar height to Tanjiro as well as being the same age as the young Hashira around the age of 17 (remember I'm giving Tanjiro, Nezuko, Kano, Genya, Zenitsu, and Inosuke a 1 year age boost to actually put them together in the same age group with Kirito and his friends and in this timeline Zenitsu is younger than Tanjiro because I said so.) this boy has fair skin and downward sloped worry looking eyes that fade from a soft brown to gold and golden, he also has forked yellow eyebrows that fade into a warm orange, he has short yellow hair of varying lengths that cuts of squarely at the ends where it fades to a dark orange, falling in front of his face in uneven bangs, these two are named Zenitsu Agatsuma and Inosuke Hashibira, Tanjiro's two Tsuguko.
Asuna's eyes widen seeing Tanjiro for the first time in over a year, widening them further seeing the Haori around his shoulders, getting a flashback of Rengoku alongside Mito who stands in the crowd watching this encounter go on with wide eyes. "Tanjiro….." Mito says softly with surprised eyes, getting a flashback to the dead look he once bore at Rengoku's death.
"T-Tanjiro….!?" Asuna says, surprised at Tanjiro's unexpected arrival.
"So you think we should sacrifice NPCs to defeat the boss, sorry, but that plan doesn't work for me, neither me or any other member of the Demon Slayer Core will condone heinous actions that endanger the lives of others." Tanjiro says, confusing Asuna who looks at Tanjiro like he's crazy.
"Have you gone insane or something? If we lure it to the village nobody in the assault team will be injured, it's the safest way to make sure that we all get out of this fight alive!" Asuna yells, trying to get through to Tanjiro in anyway she can before the table in the center is destroyed, shattering into blue glass particles and making everyone except Zenitsu and Inosuke to jump back on guard at the sight of Tanjiro with his black Nichirin katana unsheathed and now in hand.
"Both in this world, and in the real one, there are those who lack any trace of a human heart, they kill innocent people without any hesitation and move on without any regret." Tanjiro says while looking Asuna dead in the eyes, the once high school girl having stood her ground, not moving an inch. "Is that really what you want to be? Do you really rely on such foul tactics that you'd give your own humanity up to win!?" Tanjiro yells at her, causing the room of players to go wide eyed and begin murmuring amongst themselves. "What happened to the Asuna that was kind to everyone, player or NPC. It didn't matter what they were, she would always care for their safety, she was never this kind of evil!" Tanjiro yells at her, the girl not wavering an inch, giving Tanjiro a stern look whilst the room continues to murmur.
"Why do you care so much about the NPCs, they aren't even alive, unlike you I've come to realize that, besides when they die they can respawn, but if you haven't noticed once were dead we're gone for good, and unlike us NPCs aren't real people, so saying I've lost my humanity for using them as bait is childish, I'm running this operation and what I say goes, you will follow my orders, like it or not." Asuna says coldly, causing some people in Asuna's party she brought with her to chuckle, making Tanjiro to clench his teeth and grip his sword with immense pressure, turning it red and surprising the crowd at seeing the blade change color.
"As long as I live, I won't allow it! Just because they respawn doesn't mean they'll be the same people, they're lives are just as precious as ours, they sleep, eat, and breathe all the same like us and like us those lost lives will never return, they can't just return to the way they were before! That's a luxury only Demons have, all of them, every single one of them are the same, they're all heartless!" Tanjiro yells at Asuna, making her eyes widen a bit before clenching her teeth whilst everyone in the crowd looks on in surprise, gaining a new weight on their self consciousnesses. "So what right do you have to kill them, why trample over the lives of the innocent!?" Tanjiro yells at Asuna as reality blips for Asuna before she widens her eyes in fear, feeling a pressure while looking at Tanjiro's ancestor, who stands in Tanjiro's place.
"Such disregard for human life, what's so amusing about this?" Yoriichi says as reality blips again, giving Asuna a closeup of the man, widening her eyes even further seeing the Hanafuda earrings he wears as well as his hair color, but most of all the mark on his forehead.
"Wh-who…..is this…..? Why does he look like…Tanjiro…? That hair color…..those earrings…and….that mark…they're identical to Tanjiro's….! This pressure…it feels like I'm going to die…!" Asuna thought in fear as the wind continues to flow in this blipped reality, the man's eyes being shadowed, looking as if they were pure white.
"So tell me then, what is the weight of a human life to you?" The man asks, anger and confusion etched in his voice as reality blips back into existence, Tanjiro now standing in his place one again as Asuna looks at Tanjiro with confusion clear on her face.
"Why can't you understand!?" Tanjiro yells at Asuna as reality for her blips back into Yoriichi.
"How could you ever forget?" Yoriichi asks Asuna as reality for her blips back into Tanjiro.
"You still consider yourself human, isn't that right!? Which means you shed tears and suffer like any other normal human would, so why do NPCs who feel and do the same things you do have to be sacrificed!?" Tanjiro yells at Asuna, causing the girl to ball her hands into fists before looking at Tanjiro.
"You think I have a choice!? It's either us or the NPCs and I'd much rather everyone here live than let anyone die!" Asuna yells back at Tanjiro who frowns at her answer.
"I see, that's enough, it's clear that we won't see eye to eye on this matter, so there's only one way to settle this…" Tanjiro says before opening his menu and sending Asuna a duel request, surprising everyone around them.
"Tanjiro…..are you sure about this?" Zenitsu finally asks, not wanting to interrupt Tanjiro based on the sounds coming off of him.
"Yeah, why waste your time on someone so weak." Inosuke says boredly, causing Zenitsu to reel back in annoyance before hitting Inosuke on the head. "Hey what was that for!?" Inosuke yells at Zenitsu who clenches his teeth.
"Because you don't talk about a girl that way you idiot!" Zenitsu yells at the boar masked lad, causing Inosuke to get a tick mark on his mask.
"Hey who are you callin an idiot ya idiot!?" Inosuke yells back at Zenitsu, making everyone in the room sweat drop at their bickering and only being silenced when Tanjiro puts an arm out.
"Step back you two, this fight is mine…." Tanjiro orders them, causing them to quiet instantly, Zenitsu from hearing the sounds coming from Tanjiro whilst Inosuke obeys from sensing the deadly aura coming off of Tanjiro.
Asuna hesitantly accepts the duel request, causing a timer to appear that counts down from 60, after all 60 seconds are up Asuna charges at Tanjiro with a battle cry, starting up a pink linear skill with her now unsheathed rapier. Tanjiro takes an igniting breath before putting both hands on his blade, blocking Asuna's attack with a flaming slash that creates a spiral of flames and parries Asuna's rapier up into the air, causing said girl to jump back a bit to recover before quickly going in again for an attack.
"Sun Breathing, Sixth Form, Burning Bones, Summer Sun…" Tanjiro says softly before blocking a green sword skill from Asuna who begins to let out a barrage of flurried green sword skill strikes, to her dismay Tanjiro blocks each strike with impressive speed, creating impactful flame sparks with each block, looking Asuna dead in the eyes with a unimpressed look as the barrage continues.
"He's not even breaking a sweat from any of my attacks, he isn't even phased in the slightest, it's almost like he knows where I'm going to attack next!" Asuna thought in a panic with wide eyes while continuing to attack Tanjiro with her barrage of strikes whilst the young Hashira continues to block every strike with efficiency.
"Damn….Tanjiro's blocking all of Asuna's attacks with no effort, and she's one of the fastest players here, this kid…..all this time I thought we were the ones getting stronger in here, but him…he's on a whole other level!" Agil thought aloud while sweating alongside everyone in the room.
Tanjiro looks on unimpressed at the barrage coming his way, watching as each attack moves toward him in slow motion. "There moving so slowly, I can easily block them with little effort needed, back then when I became first became a Hashira I thought I knew the power of the mark on my forehead and the enhanced abilities it granted, but the fight my ancestor showed me that I was wrong, that I could be stronger, I know that if he wanted to defeat me back then he could have easily did it with a single strike, just like how I can defeat Asuna just as easily, killing her won't solve anything, she's still human at heart, but if I can derive her off the path of becoming a demon I will, even if she ends up hating me…." Tanjiro thought before taking an igniting breath that emblazes his red blade with fire. "Sun Breathing, Third Form…." Tanjiro says softly as Asuna clenches her teeth.
"You can't keep defending forever, face me!" Asuna yells before going to pierce Tanjiro who paused to take this opportunity to block her black with a flaming slash before swinging again in the opposite direction to counter attack.
"Raging Sun." Tanjiro says, widening Asuna's eyes and causing her to block the strike with her Rapier before getting knocked away from the sheer force.
"Eighth Form, Solar Heat Haze…." Tanjiro says before charging at Asuna with great speed, his blade being covered in a steaming haze, hiding the blades true length from everyone's sight, widening Asuna's eyes seeing Tanjiro reach her in a fraction of a second, going for the right side of Asuna's neck with his sword.
"He's so fast…..I-I can't dodge in time…...I-...I gotta block it!" Asuna thought in a panic before widening her eyes when realizing her rapier was missing from her right hand. "Wha-what!? B-but h-how!? When did he!?" Asuna thought with wide eyes before getting a flashback to Tanjiro's counterattack. "H-he knocked my rapier out of my hands with just one attack, and without me noticing….i-is something like that even possible..!? Am I really going to die here….!?" Asuna thought, seeing Tanjiro's frowning face with intent as his blade emerges from the dark purple haze, revealing his flaming blade that inches toward the right side of her neck.
"I'm sorry, Asuna….but it's over…." Tanjiro says for everyone to hear, widening all their eyes in shock at watching Tanjiro attempt to behead Asuna, as his blade continues down it's path almost touching Asuna's neck, her rapier impales itself into the ground, having fell from a great height, causing the dual to end with Tanjiro gaining a winner icon as his blade slices through Asuna's neck, causing a gust of wind to kick up and engulf the room, causing everyone to brace themselves unless they wanted to be blown away before the gust clears up, revealing Asuna unharmed and her neck intact, the fear in her eyes as she falls back, her life flashing before her eyes as she lands at Tanjiro's feet, looking up at him slowly while being too terrified to even move.
"Do you remember now? This is what it's like every time you sacrifice an NPC for your own benefit, they may just be AI but there still as human as we players are, like us they also fear death, the same way you feel now, next time you sacrifice an NPC remember this feeling, a feeling like no other, the fear of very death itself." Tanjiro says before reality blips for Asuna again, her surroundings changing and the area getting foggy with Tanjiro's ancestor Yoriichi switching places with said boy as he looks down at her before holding his blade up in a menacing way, his eyes looking pure white from being shadowed as he loosens his grip, causing his blade to turn back from red to black before he sheathes it and turns while beginning to walk away as reality fades from Yoriichi and the foggy terrain, returning back to Tanjiro and the meeting room.
"Asuna!" Mito yells after regaining her senses again, running over to the terrified girl and checking up on her. "Are you okay….?" Mito asks in concern, getting no response out of Asuna who sits there in silence. "A-Asuna….?" Mito asks before widening her eyes hearing what Asuna says next.
"I….I thought I was going to die…I thought he was really going to kill me….but he didn't….if he wanted to kill me he could have at any moment during that duel…." Asuna thought while shaking, slowly letting tears fall from her eyes. "Why….even after what I said….even after what I tried to do…why did he let me live…." Asuna asks Mito while crying, causing Mito to hug Asuna and smile warmly.
"Sshh….it's ok….I don't know why he did….but I'm glad….no matter what the reason is….Tanjiro didn't kill you…..if I had to guess….I'd say he let you live because you're still human, no matter what mistake you made you are only human, we all make mistakes, so don't push yourself over it…..ok?" Mito asks Asuna, causing said girl to hug her back, smiling and wiping her tears away, trying to keep up with the status of second in command.
Tanjiro continues to walk, eventually walking past Zenitsu and Inosuke who follow behind him, looking at each other with hesitation before looking at Tanjiro's back, rengoku's haori emblazoned over his own. "The sounds I hear from Tanjiro….are so kind and gentle, it makes me want to cry….I don't think I've heard anything like it before, all living creatures, constantly give off vibrations, no matter if their real or virtual, the world is full of sounds ringing out, breathing, heart beats, the rhythm of blood circulating, by listening closely I'm able to tell what kind of thoughts are going through someone's head, even so, I've been deceived by others many times, that's because I've always stubbornly believed in whomever I wanted, Tanjiro, despite being a Hashira of the Demon Slayer Core, feels sorrow and sympathy for every Demon he kills, even after all the horrible things he's been through, I'm sure he has a good reason, whatever that reason may be, I'm sure I can put my faith behind it, when I see the way Tanjiro fights, the way he moves, it's like I'm watching a beautiful dance that could go on forever if he wanted to, I wish I could fight the way Tanjiro does….but I know I can't…..from what I've heard, nobody but Tanjiro and his ancestor could fight like that ever, even so….I'll do my best to get stronger, so that I can fight by his side! After all, he's like a big brother to me, I know I'm not the only one who thinks that, from the sounds coming off Inosuke, I can tell that he feels the same way about Tanjiro…." Zenitsu thought while getting a flashback of their first encounter 2 weeks ago.
Flashback - 2 Weeks Ago
We see Tanjiro walking down the road of floor 47 after leaving his encounter with Kirito and Silica, a warm smile on his face making a new friend as his crow lands on his shoulder. "Head South, South East! Parties have been going missing around that area, South, South East! Kaw!" Tanjiro's crow says commedically, making Tanjiro sweatdrop.
"The master has another assignment for me already!?" Tanjiro says, sweat dropping at how fast assignments come and go these days,
"Oh yes he does!" The crow says cheerfully while flapping a wing out in the direction of South East.
"Could you at least give me a minute!?" Tanjiro says while sweating a bit at the crow who starts shaking Tanjiro's shoulder while flapping its wings.
"No time, move it!" The crow demands while shaking Tanjiro's shoulder comedically.
"Come on, just give me a chance to-" Tanjiro says while sweating before being interrupted by his crow.
"Just shut up and get a move on!" His crow demands while violently shaking his shoulder.
"Hey, knock it off!" Tanjiro says, forcing his crow into the air and off his shoulder, making him sigh in defeat before he begins walking South East.
"South, South East! The next place you need to go is South, South East!" The crow yells at Tanjiro before squawking at him, flying above Tanjiro who sweat drops at his crows demanding nature.
"I heard you, you don't have to keep squawking it at me okay?" Tanjiro says while sweat dropping at his crow, waving his hands in front of his crow who flew down closer to his face to yell the message on repeat. "I'm begging you, I got the message so be quiet!" Tanjiro says before a gust of wind from a loud voice widens Tanjiro's eyes comedically, forcing his crow to shut up and land on his shoulder.
"Please!" The voice of Zenitsu Agatsuma yells in pleading, causing Tanjiro's crow to Kaw on his shoulder in curiosity as the two look in the direction of the boy's voice to see him on his knees begging a girl in a blue robe with a silver breastplate and pauldrons as well as a sword on her back. "Please please please, please marry me! You know I could die any day now, marry me so I don't die alone! Marry me, I'm begging you please!" Zenitsu yells while tears stream down his face, getting a real sweatdrop out of Tanjiro, who watches the boy in confusion alongside his crow.
"Wha-what is he doing, what on earth?" Tanjiro questions himself as a sparrow comes flying toward him in a panic, chirping in a plea as Tanjiro holds his hand out for it to land on, causing said bird to do so and chirp in worry. "Uh, yes? Huh!?" Tanjiro says, gaining a look of surprise before a serious look as the sparrow continues to chirp whilst the girl tries to separate herself from Zenitsu who holds onto her for dear life.
"Come on I'm begging you, there's no one else, you're the only hope I have left!" Zenitsu cries out, whilst Tanjiro nods at the sparrows' words before looking up at Zenitsu.
"So that's it then, ok I'll try to help!" Tanjiro says, gaining a look of awe from the sparrow as light shines off its joy.
"Please I'm asking you again, marry me, I beg you!" Zenitsu yells in plea before being yanked off the girl by a furious Tanjiro who has a twitch on the right side of his forehead, somehow showing comedically from under the bangs on the right side of his forehead.
"Why are you making such a scene in the middle of the road!? She's clearly not interested in you, also, you're stressing your sparrow out!" Tanjiro yells at Zenitsu who looks at said boy in confusion while still having tears plastered on his face.
"Wait, that uniform, you're a Demon Slayer too aren't you?" Zenitsu asks an angry Tanjiro.
"Don't go pretending like we know each other because we're in the same guild, cause we don't, kay!" Tanjiro yells at Zenitsu who looks at him in shock.
"Huh!? But we're in the same guild, you just admitted it, don't get angry at me when you're the one who's being a hypocrite!" Zenitsu yells at Tanjiro, who looks at Zenitsu for a second before letting go of the back of his haori before smiling and confronting the lady before him.
"Alright, you're all set to head back to town again, do you need help with anything else?" Tanjiro asks with a smile, getting one from the girl.
"No, thank you very much!" She says before bowing, getting a shocked look from Zenitsu.
"Hang on! Don't you interfere! That girl was madly in love with me, the two of us are gonna get married!-Agh!" Zenitsu says before getting slapped by the black haired woman, creating a red handprint on his face as he comedically falls in his knees in a spin with the girl continuously slapping him, widening Tanjiro's eyes before she reaches for her sword, making Tanjiro sweat and gain a look of surprise before holding her back.
"Hey, calm down!" Tanjiro yells, trying to hold the girl's rage back whilst Zenitsu screams in pain and fear, not even the pain nullifier can stop a woman's fury.
"When did I say anything that even resembled that I loved you!? All I did was come talk to you while you were crumpled up all disheveled on the side of the road!" The girl yells in fury with a red tick mark on her forehead.
"Huh!? No! So are you telling me the reason you did that wasn't because you were falling in love with me!?" Zenitsu asks in a panic, fearing the answer that came quickly, faster than a speeding bullet.
"Considering that I already have a fiance, that's exactly what I've been trying to tell you! Well, you seem to be perfectly fine now, so goodbye! Hmph!" The girl yells at Zenitsu before turning around and storming off in the direction of town.
"W-wait! Come back! Please….!" Zenitsu says, defeated by the woman's wrath, only able to watch her storm off into the distance.
"Would you give it a rest already?" Tanjiro asks the boy, tired of his nonsense, getting said yellow haired boy to look at him with a blaming look.
"Wh-why did you have to get in my way? This had nothing to do with you…!" Zenitsu accuses Tanjiro, getting an iconic pitiful and disgusted look from Tanjiro in return for his accusations. "Why are you looking at me like that!? Stop it! You're staring at me like I'm some sort of pitiful creature or something!" Zenitsu says, streaming comedic tears down his face once again before pointing at Tanjiro. "Now listen here, you! The reason I missed out on getting married is all your fault!" Zenitsu says accusingly toward Tanjiro, getting a dead silence as he gasps in cringe, his face getting even more cringed out and disgusted with his eyes losing their white pupil and becoming fully maroon red, signaling the level of cringe coming off of Zenitsu. "Say something wouldya!?" Zenitsu says, annoyed at Tanjiro's silence and the faces he's getting. "Look, during my next job, I'll likely die. The reason is…..I'm just a weakling! Do you understand!? You have to help protect me until I manage to get married, mister!" Zenitsu cries out to Tanjiro with said boy putting a hand over his heart.
"My name's Tanjiro, the Sun Hashira, and you are?" Tanjiro asks Zenitsu, widening his eyes in shock.
"Tanjiro, that's good to know, and wait, did you say Hashira!? As in the highest rank in the Demon Slayer Core!? But you're around the same age as me!" Zenitsu asks, getting a nod from Tanjiro as said boy crawls over and latches onto his Haori in a pleading manner. "I'm Zenitsu Agatsuma, if you're really a Hashira then please, make me one of your Tsuguko, please, you;ve gotta do what you can to save me!" Zenitsu pleads, getting a worried look from Tanjiro who puts his hands on Zenitsu's shoulders.
"Aren't you being a bit dramatic? Why did you even become a swordsman, or even leave the town of beginnings for that matter? You're acting utterly pathetic right now for a Demon Slayer." Tanjiro says to Zenitsu, who gets a hurt look on his face.
"That's a harsh way to put it! I got conned by a woman and racked up a lot of debt! The old geezer who took it over for me happened to be this tough as nails instructor! He made me train to the bone every day! It was so hellish I just wanted to die! Just when I thought I was having one good day of being free of that hell to have fun, I got trapped in this death game, and someone it's even worse than gramps's training! I was hoping I'd die earlier during final selection when I joined the Demon Slayer Core, but since I survived the trial mission they sent all of us on, this nightmare continues to haunt me!" Zenitsu yells while having a panic attack. "Agh! I'm so scared, terrified, frightened! I just know I'm gonna get killed by a monster soon! My brain is gonna get carved out through my ears while I'm still alive! Yaaah! No! Please save me!" Zenitsu yells in terror, giving Tanjiro a brief flashback to Sachi back when he saved her, and the message she and Keita sent him on christmas after giving Klein the revival item, causing him to gain a look of understanding as he kneels down at Zenitsu's left side.
"Hey, are you….ok?" Tanjiro asks him, causing the boy to look at him in disbelief.
"Am I ok!? How could I be ok right now, I'm going to die soon!" Zenitsu says while wailing around before looking at Tanjiro who stands up and gains a warm smile.
"Fine then, I'll just have to take you on as my Tsuguko, that way I can train you to be strong, then you won't have to worry about dying in here." Tanjiro says with a smile, gaining a surprised look from Zenitsu who looks at him in awe before latching onto him in a hug.
"Really!? You really mean it!? Thanks so much big bro!" Zenitsu says in genuine happiness, gaining a sad smile from Tanjiro who gets a brief flashback of his time with Rengoku and of the time when his family was still alive before one of Nezuko in her hospital bed.
"That's right, I have to clear this game, not only for the new friends I've made and cherish in here, but for Nezuko too, if I don't, she'll be all alone without me….." Tanjiro thought in sadness with a solemn smile.
Timeskip - 10 Minutes Later
We see Tanjiro walking down the road once more with a smile as well as his new companion and Tsuguko Zenitsu. "You better?" Tanjiro asks while they walk.
"A bit, but now I'm feeling really hungry…" Zenitsu says with a bit of sadness.
"Don't you have any food, or rations on you?" Tanjiro asks curiously as Zenitsu looks up at the sky.
"No…." He says with disappointment, causing Tanjiro to reach into his Haori and pull out an onigiri rice ball on napkin paper.
"Here, take one of these." Tanjiro says with a smile, handing Zenitsu the rice ball, confusing the boy greatly.
"Really..?" Zenitsu asks while taking the rice ball. "Thank you so much…" Zenitsu says, grateful for Tanjiro's kindness as said boy smiles.
"It's no problem, all of my previous masters took care of me when I were their students, it's only natural that I'd take care of my own." Tanjiro says with a smile, confusing Zenitsu who looks at him curiously.
"Aren't you gonna eat anything?" Zenitsu asks in concern before Tanjiro gives him a solemn smile.
"Mm, that was all I had." Tanjiro says, confusing Zenitsu who looks at the rice ball in confusion.
"B-but why…..why would you give me your only rations….." Zenitsu asks, wanting to know the answer, having only ever experienced such kindness in one other person in his life.
"Because you were hungry, and I just so happened to have food on me, that's all there is to it really." Tanjiro says, giving Zenitsu a warm smile, widening Zenitsu's eyes.
"Those sounds…..he's….telling the truth….but why…how can anyone ever be this kind…?" Zenitsu thought in wonder before looking at the rice ball and pulling it apart into halves and taking the half he didn't bite out of off before offering it to Tanjiro. "Hey uh, you take this half." Zenitsu says while offering Tanjiro the half of the rice ball, causing Tanjiro to smile while reaching a hand out to grab it.
"You sure about that? Thanks a lot." Tanjiro says with a smile while taking the half out of Zenitsu's hand before taking a bite, chewing it, and swallowing. "Tasty." Tanjiro says with a bright smile, opting Zenitsu to look at him curiously while chewing a bite of his own half. "Oh I'm sorry, I should probably explain why I said that, when I used to train under my master, the former Flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku, he would always say that you would never know when each meal would be your last and that you should enjoy it to the fullest, that's why he would always yell tasty after every bite, I may not yell it like he did, but I guess you could say it kinda became a habit I inherited from him." Tanjiro says before smiling with a small chuckle.
"Really? You sure he was really the Flame Hashira, and not just some random glutton?" Zenitsu says in disbelief, the tears in his eyes long gone with Tanjiro giving a sweatdropped smile and nodding. "He sounds like a strange one huh?" Zenitsu asks Tanjiro, now smiling at said boy with a better mood than a few minutes ago.
Tanjiro nods at Zenitsu and smiles brightly. "Mr. Rengoku may have been strange, but was kind, he knew how to live life without fear, not of this world, or the demons in it, he always lived with a good heart and I wish to do the same as him, he was strong too, really strong…..one of the strongest people I have ever met." Tanjiro says with a smile, causing Zenitsu to look at him curiously.
"So where is Mr. Rengoku, did he retire from the Demon Slayer Core or something?" Zenitsu asks, causing Tanjiro to frown sadly, making the sounds come off of him widen Zenitsu's eyes a little.
"He's gone…..he passed away 2 years ago on New Years Eve, but I know he's in a better place now…." Tanjiro says softly while giving Zenitsu a solemn smile.
"O-oh…I'm sorry….I didn't mean to-!" Zenitsu says, trying to apologize but stops from a hand Tanjiro holds out.
"It's fine, it still hurts, even to this day his death haunts me, but I know he wouldn't want me to keep grieving over him, if you look closely at my haori you can tell that mine is heavily designed off of his mixed with my original green checkered haori and to take it one step further I even wear his Haori over my own to honor him, that and it's comforting, it almost makes it feel like he's still here with me in a way, watching over me and keeping me safe, and just like all the people who have helped me in the past he guides my blade on the right path, this guard used to belong to him before he left it behind for me, I believe it was a way of him telling me that no matter what, I need to keep moving forward, not just for me, but for everyone that counts on me." Tanjiro says with a warm smile, grazing his fingers over Rengoku's flame guard on his nichirin sword.
Zenitsu looks at Tanjiro and smiles at the boy. "He's so pure, I've never met anyone like him before." Thought Zenitsu before glancing at the Flame cape-like Haori on Tanjiro's shoulders. "The sound coming off of that Haori…it's like that of the sound a human gives off…..maybe Tanjiro's right, maybe Mr. Rengoku is still here in a way…..judging from the sounds coming off of that Haori and from what Tanjiro said Mr. Rengoku was a little odd at times, but his heart was strong and kind…" Zenitsu thought before smiling, continuing the journey down the road with Tanjiro.
Flashback - End
"I've looked up to Tanjiro ever since that day, I mean it was the first time meeting someone like him ever, though the same goes for that stupid meatheaded boar!" Zenitsu thought in annoyance while looking at Inosuke, getting another flashback of meeting his fellow Tsuguko on the same day of meeting Tanjiro.
Flashback - Two Weeks Ago
"Hey, Tanjiro, maybe I should just hang back for now, even if I tag along with you I'm not gonna be able to do anything…!" Zenitsu whined while tiredly following Tanjiro toward their destination.
"The scent of demons is getting stronger, there's something up ahead…." Tanjiro thought while looking forward, giving a grunt in confusion at seeing a house in front of them. "A house..?" Tanjiro thought in confusion seeing a building in the middle of nowhere while continuing to walk forward, Zenitsu behind him with the same amount of confusion while panting, catching his breath as the two look up at the tall building.
"I can smell people vanishing and reappearing in there…..but it's strange…" Tanjiro says with a steeled gaze up at the house, concerned for the people inside.
"Wait, you can smell something here?" Zenitsu asks Tanjiro, confused at his observation.
"Yeah, but this is a whole new smell, I've never had a smell quite like this one before…." Tanjiro says to Zentisu, having never dealt with a demon that could make people disappear and reappear before.
"A smell? I can't say I'm getting that. What about that sound, you're able to hear that, right?" Zenitsu says while holding his hand up to his ear.
"Sound?" Tanjiro asks before looking at Zenitsu curiously, remembering Uzui having a keen sense of hearing. "Hey, Zenitsu, by any chance were you born with an amazing sense of hearing?" Tanjiro asks, causing to look at Tanjiro and nod.
"Yeah, I've always had a great sense of hearing ever since I was born, before I logged into Sword Art Online the nerve gear thingy checked off every one of my senses as great and my hearing as excellent, how did you know anyway?" Zenitsu says, causing Tanjiro to smile.
"Well that's easy, my third master, the Sound Hashira, Tengen Uzui was the one who trained me after Mr. Rengoku passed, like you he also has a keen sense of hearing." Tanjiro says, widening Zenitsu's eyes a bit.
"Seriously!? You've been trained by two Hashira!? Man you must be pretty strong Tanjiro…..does that mean you also have a good sense of hearing?" Zenitsu says, flabbergasted at Tanjiro's lineage of teachers.
"Well technically three if you count my first teacher who taught me swordsmanship, he's a former Water Hashira, Sakonji Urokodaki, he had a great sense of smell, like him I also have a really good nose." Tanjiro says with a smile on his face, gesturing to his nose and making Zenitsu do a comedic jaw drop.
"Th-Three….Three Hashira….." Zenitsu says weakly as his soul leaves his body through his mouth comedically before he snaps out of his stupor and looks at Tanjiro. "Wait a sec, is that what you meant by smell? It's because you have an amazing sense of smell that you could pick up on those scents?" Zenitsu asks, getting a nod from Tanjiro who smiles before the two get approached by 3 people, 2 15 year old females and a 16 year old male.
"Hey there, is there a reason you're out here by yourselves?" Tanjiro asks, gaining a frown seeing the terrified looks on their faces.
"Ple-please, you have to help us, our party member was kidnapped!" The male with black hair and yellow eyes wearing a blue robe under a chestplate and pauldrons as well as black pants with shin guards and boots said with fear etched in his voice, We were walking down the road to town and a group of players dressed in black cloaks appeared in front of us, they went straight for our friend and kidnapped him, they had this thing with them, it looked like a humanoid monster, but the scariest part is that it could talk and do everything we players can…..our friend tried to fight back, but no matter what he did he couldn't kill it, not even impaling him worked…." the guy says fearfully, terrified of the creature that had attacked them.
Tanjiro looks at the guy with a steeled gaze, remembering every demon he had faced with that same skill, gripping his fist remembering Akaza the most, said pink haired demon constantly boasting about his regeneration and how he could only be killed by decapitation and that Rengoku could also gain its power if he let go of his humanity and became a demon. "Did it take him into that house?" Tanjiro asks softly, getting a nod from the guy.
"Yeah, that's right, we followed it here in hopes that we could save him but the people who were sent here from the assault team went in there and haven't come back yet…." The guy says, causing Tanjiro to frown on the inside and smile on the outside.
"I see…..so that's why it was so urgent that we came here as quickly as possible. If this demon is giving people from the assault team a hard time then it is my duty to stop it myself." Tanjiro thought in anger while looking at them with a smile. "It'll be alright, we're gonna go defeat them, and save your brother!" Tanjiro says with a smile, widening the eyes of all three of them in surprise.
"Is that true!? You'll help him…!?" One of the identical girls who share the same yellow eyes and black hair says, differentiating from her twin sister by wearing her short hair in pigtails that fall behind her ears, being tied back by two red spheres on each side, this girl wears a pink robe under a breastplate and pauldrons as well as having fingerless black gloves on with metal plates on the back of the gloves hand.
"Yes, I promise." Tanjiro says with a smile, causing the girl in pink's twin sister to look at Tanjiro curiously who returns her look with a smile. "Is something wrong?" Tanjiro asks with a smile.
"How did you know we were related?" Said girl who looks Identical to the girl in pink but with her hair shoulder length black hair being free from any restraint and with said girl wearing red instead of pink.
Tanjiro smiles at the girl, confusing her as he begins to explain. "Well, it's kind of hard to explain this, but I have this technique that allows me to see the blood flow of anyone I look at with it activated, from what I can see in you three you all are siblings and that you and her are twin sisters, so I just took a guess that your brother was the one who got kidnapped." Tanjiro says with a smile, widening the eyes of the girls in awe as they look at Tanjiro's smile.
"Wow…..that's amazing, is it a skill from the system or something?" The guy asks, getting a head shake from Tanjiro who grazes his fingers across the marked left side of his forehead.
"It isn't a system skill at all, it's a special power that those who have marks like mine can learn to use this ability, it is truly special." Tanjiro says with a smile, getting looks of confusion from everyone around him except Zenitsu who continues to listen in on the house.
"Hey Tanjiro." Zenitsu calls out while holding his ear, getting Tanjiro's attention.
"Huh?" Tanjiro replies.
"What is that strange sound, it's really unnerving…..and never stops….it sounds like….a drum" Zenitsu says with a fearful face.
"A drum? Maybe it's the demon's technique development, a lot of demons who have gained the regeneration skill have also learned a derivative of Total Concentration Breathing called Technique Development. It was created by a Demon and can be used for supernatural abilities, even more supernatural than our own. What's even worse is that each demon has their own unique technique development." Tanjiro says, slightly widening Zenitsu's eyes a bit in disbelief until a drum can be heard for all to hear, causing Tanjiro to look on in anticipation as the beat of the drum speeds up while intensifying before beating one more time, resulting in a man in armor to fly out, impaled by a sword in his gut as well as having a terrified look of shock on his face as the sword impales into the ground,making him slowly slide down onto his back.
Seeing this causes the two girls to scream in fear, holding onto each other in terror as Tanjiro holds an arm out protectively toward them whilst Zenitsu stands their shaking in fear.
"Just cover your eyes!" Tanjiro yells to them before running over to the man in white armor. "Are you alright!?" Tanjiro shouts out to the man before kneeling down and pulling the sword out of him and holding him up to look him eye to eye. "Can you hear me..!? Just hang on!" Tanjiro yells at the terrified man, hoping for a way out of this situation. "This is bad….the wound is so deep that even if I heal him with a potion he'd just continue to lose health! I don't have any restoration crystals on me either…." Tanjiro thought in a panic for the man's life.
"Even though…we were on….the assault team…we couldn't even stop it…everything we tried….it'd just end up healing from it…I managed to e-escape from that horrible fate…and make it here…was it not enough…? Am I still….gonna die…?" The man asks weakly, in fear of the answer as he begins to glow, causing Tanjiro to widen his eyes and grit his teeth before holding the man close, his body shattering in Tanjiro's arms, turning him into blue glass particles that slowly fade away.
"He's….gone…." Thought Tanjiro sadly while looking down at the man's remains, the only thing remaining of the man was his sword, the very same sword that impaled him and caused his death. "I'm sorry you had to suffer like that….." Tanjiro thought while gritting his teeth. "We couldn't save him….if only we'd gotten here a little sooner….things would be different….." Tanjiro thought before standing up and putting his hands together in a praying manner. "I promise to bury what's left of you once I return, sadly the only thing left is the very same thing that killed you…..I'm sorry….even so I'll honor your sacrifice…..even if it means nothing…..so until then, please forgive me…." Tanjiro thought with sadness and mourning for the man before turning to Zenitsu with a steeled face. "Alright, Zenitsu, let's go!" Tanjiro says to the terrified boy who stands there shaking and stammering, shaking his head out of fear of the house and the demons inside. "Look I know what you mean when you say that you're terrified of demons, but the only people who can help them are you and me now." Tanjiro says to the whimpering Zenitsu with a look of understanding as the boy continues to whimper. "All right then, have it your way." Tanjiro says, getting an angry shadow over his eyes that makes Zenitsu shriek.
"Hey! Tanjiro, don't be so scary! Fine I give in you win, I'll come along with you ok!?" Zenitsu says in fear of Tanjiro's angry side, clinging onto Rengoku's Haori and being dragged on the ground.
"Don't let me force you." Tanjiro says darkly while continuing to move forward, comically dragging Zenitsu along with him.
"I said I'll go!" Zenitsu says, trailing off at the end and leaking tears of fear from his eyes.
Tanjiro walks over to the girl in the red robe and smiles before taking off Rengoku's Haori, placing it on said girl's shoulders and smiling at her. "In case you run into trouble, I'm leaving this Haori, if you need help, it'll protect you like it has for me, nothing will hurt you when you wear this Haori, I promise." Tanjiro says with a smile before standing up. "Ok, we'll be back." Tanjiro says before turning toward the building, walking toward it with a face full of resolve as well as a weeping Zenitsu behind him.
Tanjiro opens the house's front door and walks in, walking inside with a shaking Zenitsu. "So, Tanjiro, hey, before we continue, whatever's in this place with us, you'll be sure to protect me from it won't you…?" Zenitsu asks in fear while shaking, causing Tanjiro to frown and look at him.
"Zenitsu, I hate to have to tell you this, but, I don't know what's going to happen, I can't see the future, as my Tsuguko I will protect you with everything I have, but you need to learn how to deal with problems on your own, I won't always be there to save you, besides, I can smell that there is more than one demon here, 3 of them to be exact so who knows what'll happen." Tanjiro says with a frown, causing Zenitsu to widen his eyes.
"Wait, what!? There's more than one!? What do you think you're trying to do to me!? If a Hashira can't protect me then my fate has been sealed! I'm gonna d-d-d-die!" Zenitsu yells while holding his head, his eyes bulging out of his head with tears streaming out as he yells and wails. "This is awful, what am I gonna do!? I'm finished! It's all over for me!" Zenitsu yells before wailing like a baby in terror. "I can't believe that there's more than one, I'm a dead man now, completely and utterly dead!" yelled Zenitsu while wailing on the floor screaming I'm dead over and over again, causing Tanjiro to sweat drop at his pathetic behavior.
"Zenitsu, you've gotta calm down. You'll be alright." Tanjiro says, trying to reassure Zenitsu.
"Don't feed me your empty promises,!" Zenitsu yells while wailing around on the ground.
"No It's true, you're gonna be fine, because you're-" Tanjiro says before gasping while looking up, seeing the guy in blue and the girl in pink from earlier come inside the building. "Stay away!" Tanjiro yells, making Zenitsu shriek loudly in fear. "You two shouldn't be here!" Tanjiro yells, causing them to look at him with sorry looks.
"We're sorry, but we didn't feel right just letting you two go on alone, so we left Koshi behind just in case we didn't come back…." the guy in blue says, causing Tanjiro to sweat drop with a frown.
"Still, I really wish you hadn't left her behind, who knows what could happen to her, and that Haori is more precious to me than my own life." Tanjiro says as the building starts to shake, causing him to look around for the cause until Zenitsu bumps into Tanjiro and the girl in pink, widening his eyes as the door slams shut at the sound of a drum, widening Zenitsu's eyes.
"I'm gonna die! It's over! It's over! It's over! It's over! I just know it! I can't believe Tanjiro and I got separated!" Zenitsu says while weeping.
"Teruko, you here!? It's Shoichi!" The newly named Shoichi says before Zenitsu widens his eyes and grabs his sleeve.
"Hey, hey hey! You can't go around yelling like that! If the bad guy hears you and finds us it's not gonna be pretty! Let's just go wait outside!
"Huh, why would we do that? Are you trying to escape all by yourself!? All this constant whining about dying, aren't you a little ashamed?" Shoichi says, annoyed at Zenitsu's constant whining and wailing, causing said boy to flinch back in shock. "It's pathetic that you're clinging to the sleeve of someone who's supposed to be weaker than you." Shoichi says coldly, causing Zenitsu to flinch back further in shame. "Why does a coward like you have a sword on your hip in the first place? I thought Demon Slayers were supposed to be way stronger than your average player but apparently not when I look at a coward like you." Shoichi asks coldly to Zenitsu, who falls onto the ground with comedic stab wounds from Shoichi's words.
"Those words….they cut me right to my core…" Zenitsu says before gagging up air dramatically before he starts to drag Shoichi by his sleeve, his pain going away almost instantly. "Listen here, you! I'm…not gonna be useful here anyway, so I'm just gonna go find an adult who can help us, okay!?" Zenitsu yells, while dragging the boy comically who constantly tries to pull away from Zenitsu, failing because of the boy's abnormal strength from training. "This…isn't something us kids can resolve on our own!" Zenitsu says while terrified before opening the entrance door, only to find another room in place of the outside from before. "Uh? No way! You've gotta be kidding me! How's this not the front door!? Did I misremember? I was sure it was here!" Zenitsu says while looking around frantically. "This one! Maybe here! Or here!" Zenitsu says while opening doors until opening one that shows our favorite boar headed lad Inosuke Hashibira who turns around with a glare from the mask's eyes before letting out steam from its pink snout. Zenitsu seeing Inosuke for the first time gains a terrified face, his eyes bulging and looking bloodshot, mouth wide and ready to scream "It's a monster!" Zenitsu yells while screaming his throat out before Inosuke crutches down and jumps at Zenitsu who ducks while wailing in fear, too scared to do anything as Inosuke knocks the door off its hinges before bouncing off another wall and charging down a hall, leaving Zenitsu to slowly turn around and point at Shoichi in shock. "What the heck!? What's with that look!? S-stop it!" Zenitsu yells at the boy whilst tears fall from his eyes.
Timeskip - 10 minutes later.
We see Zenitsu walking down the hall, heavily breathing with Shoichi behind him having a downed expression, having to have to deal with the cowardice of Zenitsu. "Excuse me. Can we stop, Zenitsu?" Shoichi says while sweating, getting a loud shriek out of Zenitsu who turns around and attempts to look intimidating for any incoming threats, only to cling to Shoichi in a desperate hug, making said boy uncomfortable. "You gotta warn me first…..before you speak up! You can't go surprising me like that here! My heart nearly jumped out of my mouth just now!" Zenitsu says while shivering in fear.
"Sorry about that." Shoichi says sarcastically while sweating uncomfortably.
"If I had a heart attack you would have been directly responsible! You 'd be a murderer! Do you understand!?" Zenitsu says while shivering.
"Well, it's just that…..you've been sweating, gasping, and shivering really badly.." Shoichi says, causing Zenitsu to be worried.
"What about it!? I'm doing the best I can here, all right!?" Zenitsu says while freaking out.
"Um, forgive me for saying so, but you're making me really nervous too…" Shoichi says with a downed face, causing Zenitsu to cry comically.
"Oh no! I'm sorry! It's just….I feel…if we make too much noise here, that demon you saw, it might find us right? That's why…I think it would be best to be as quiet as possible! Don't you think!?" Zenitsu yells at the boy, contradicting himself accidentally from his panic as a chuckle can be heard behind them, a creepy laugh coming closer out of the shadows and revealing itself to Shoichi as a man in a black cloak.
Shoichi gasps and his face darkens in fear, causing Zenitsu to shudder and slowly turn to look at the man who laughs maniacally. "A couple of kids, I bet your pained screams will bring me so much fun!" The cloaked man says, causing Zenitsu to go wide eyed.
"What did I tell you!? It's just my luck we'd run into a demon!" Zenitsu yells, causing Shoichi to deadpan as the man goes wide eyed at Zenitsu's uniform and begins to laugh even more before charging Zenitsu who begins to run in the opposite direction with Shoichi.
"A demon slayer!? Oh this will be so much fun, I really want to kill you now!" The man yells with Zenitsu looking at him terrified.
"Stay! Stay away from us! I'm warning you!" Zenitsu yells at the cloaked demon while running away with Shoichi.
"And why would I do that, this is a chance opportunity for me! A Demon Slayer too afraid to fight a "Demon" oh this is hilarious, this is even better than that kid with the marechi durability skill, I wonder what kind of skills I can learn by killing and absorbing the two of you instead, but first I want to hear you scream!" The man yells while chasing Zenitsu and Shoichi down with a sword, trying to slash them but missing every single one.
"L-look we're just weaklings! You won't be able to learn anything from me! I'm serious! This guy's an even lower level than me, so he'd be a waste of your time!" Zenitsu yells at the demon while running away, getting a chuckle out of him.
"How will I know for sure until I've absorbed you two?" The demon asks before sheathing his sword pulling out a knife on a chain before throwing it at Zenitsu who turns around and shrieks in fear at the sight of the knife heading his way before narrowly dodging it.
"Are you kidding me!? That knife, it's like a bolt of lightning!" Zenitsu yells before the demon laughs and pulls it back before throwing it at Zenitsu again who barely dodges, pushing Shoichi out of the way while screaming. "This has to be a nightmare!" Zenitsu yells before both he and Shoichi burst through a door in the midst of their dodge, landing on the room's floor.
"Zenitsu, you gotta get up!" Shoichi yells at Zenitsu in a panic as said boy looks up at home while shaking.
"My knees! My fear is in my knees!" Zenitsu yells while shaking.
"This isn't the time to complain about that stuff!" Shoichi yells whilst the demon slowly walks up to the door.
"Just leave me behind okay? Make a run for it!" Zenitsu yells at said boy while skating.
"I can't do something like that!" Shoichi yells back while sweating, getting a shocked face from Zenitsu.
"What a sweet guy….as useless as I am, he's sticking by me! I gotta find a solution to this! If I don't protect him, I don't wanna think of what'll happen. Dying before he gets out of this game would be tragic, but I'm so horribly weak….I don't have the strength to protect him….but if I don't, then that would mean….." Zenitsu thought in worry before the cloaked demon walks up and enters the room with a mad mans grin while laughing.
"I'm going to relish killing you most of all Demon Slayer, I'm gonna use my Kunai to carve your brain out through your ears!" The demon yells, causing a snapping sound to click in Zenitsu's head, causing him to pass out and fall asleep, falling into Shoichi's arms.
"Zenitsu! Are you…?" Shoichi yells, before gasping internally at seeing Zenitsu asleep. "He's asleep." Shoichi thought, comically annoyed at the sight.
The Demon continues to laugh before walking forward, causing Shoichi to act fast and drag Zenitsu to the other side of the room. "What's up with him?" The demon asks while laughing, getting closer to the pair with each second, making Shoichi nervous until the demon throws his chained knife at him. "Die!" the demon yells at Shoichi who yells in fear.
"Please wake up! Zenitsu!" Shoichi yells.
Zenitsu's hand unconsciously twitches, causing the incoming blade to be severed from it's chain, destroying it completely and shattering it, widening the eyes of the demon.
"What!?" The demon says in confusion as Zenitsu's unconscious body stands up and puts a hand in front of Shoichi, causing the boy to look up at him and watch as he gets in a stance, his left hand on his katana's Saya and his right at the ready, hovering over it's grip, giving off a dashing kind of stance.
Zenitsu exhales a breath out, the air visible from the intense heat around his mouth, making it look like steam. "Wh-what is this sound!? This Demon Slayer, he's not the same as before, I thought he was just a coward!" The Demon thought in surprise, wide eyed as Shoichi looks on in awe.
"Zenitsu…..?" Shoichi says in surprise as Zenitsu puts his right hand closer to his katana's handle, putting his thumb over it's guard and pushing out a bit, making a satisfying click as the air kicks up a bit a bit.
"Thunder Breathing, First Form, Thunderclap And Flash" Zenitsu says with determination before dashing a burst of electricity, kicking up a huge amount of dust where he once stood, widening the demons eyes as he goes to unsheathe his sword, only to widen them further as his head gets sliced off by a Zenitsu's electricity infused strike, causing his head to go flying as Zenitsu reappears in a blur of electricity, making Shoichi gasp in surprise as Zentisu sheaths his katana in another satisfying click sound as the Demon's head body falls down before shattering into blue glass particles, the sound of the shattering causing Zenitsu to snap out of it and wake up, revealing he's been asleep the whole time.
Zenitsu turns around and looks at the particles for a second in surprise before shrieking and jumping up in the air in a panic. "It's dead!? When did that happen!? What the hell!? This is weird!" Zenitsu yells while shaking, causing Shoichi to sweat drop and look at Zenitsu like he's insane. "What is this!? Yuck!" Zenitsu says before looking at Shoichi across the room on his knees, making Zenitsu gasp in surprise. "Shoichi, did–did you just…..?" Zenitsu askes before jumping at the boy and hugging him. "You saved me! Thank you so much! I'll never forget that you did this! Why didn't you just tell me from the start that you were so powerful!?" Zenitsu yells before sobbing, confusing the blue clad boy greatly.
"Huh, what are you talking about?" Shoichi asks Zenitsu, who looks up at him with comical tears in his eyes.
"You say something?" Zenitsu asks.
"Huh, No, uh, mm-mmm, it's nothing. We should go now" Shoichi says dismissively, standing up and getting a nod from Zenitsu who does the same.
Flashback - End
"That demon was so terrifying, just thinking about it scares the crap out of me, but that's not the point, that stupid boar embarrassed me in front of my savior Shoichi for no reason! I'll never forgive him for that!" Zenitsu yells, getting a confused look from Inosuke who turns to look at him before getting a tick mark on his head.
"Hey, why are you looking at me like that!?" Inosuke asks, getting a stern look from Zenitsu.
To be continued…because I'm running out of space…