(I) Chapter 3

While the world in this village seemed to be completely frozen in time, it was quite clear that the world did not share the same sentiment.

In the six and a half years since he was brought into this world, it had been peaceful. Yoriichi allowed himself to believe that he might be able to live a life of peace. The allure of a chance of living a life where there was no strife was something he allowed himself to let his guard down to.

Yet his world would change in a night.

Yoriichi had turned in early for the night, as his father would need help in the morning with more laborious task outside the home, yet midway through the night, he was awoken hastily.

"Yoriichi." His father managed to find the necessary strength to pick him up by the collar of his bedtime clothes. "There isn't much time to explain."

Yoriichi quickly adjusting to the abrupt awakening, began to register the world around him His enhanced hearing could make out the sounds of fires raging, the sounds of people screaming, and the sounds of animalistic beasts.

"Father…"

Father gave him no time to respond as he carried him. Walking to one of the three-mat rooms, he was put down, and his father began move boxes in the corner, which were filled with various scriptures and books.

Yoriichi helped by pushing boxes out of the way too, noticing for the first time that his father had the worn family sword on his hip.

The boxes out of the way now, his father knelt down beside him to be eye level with him.

"I need you to listen carefully. You need to hide here and don't come out until I come back." His father's eyes locked onto his. "This crawlspace will hide you away from danger. The village is in grave danger, and I need you to hide while I go protect them, do you understand?"'

"Is it the Grimm?" Yoriichi stated, to which his fathers gaze softened. "Are they in the village?"

"They are." His father did not try to lie. "People need my help."

"Let me come too." Yoriichi did not enter the hole. "I can help—"

"Out of the question." His father's tone was soft, but held an edge of authority to it. "You are a boy who has not been taught to fight."

"But—"

"This is not up for debate."

Yoriichi looked down, conflict brewing in his eyes. He knew his father wanted the best for him, yet Yoriichi could not sit idle while innocents were dangers.

"Please… just get into the spot."

Yoriichi could see the emotional turmoil he was causing to his weary father, the one man who has done nothing but provide love and care his whole life. Father had only the best intentions for him, and he did not need to use his extraordinary abilities to see that. He would oblige his father, until he was gone.

Moving to the hole, he looked at his father.

"Father…"

His father wrapped his good arm around the boy, and he could feel his warm embrace. Yoriichi allowed himself to hug his father back, before something felt odd in his body. His legs felt numb, and his arms as well, causing him to slowly slide down.

"I'm sorry Yoriichi, but I know you too well. You will try to help people, even if it costs you your life." His father caught him with his good arm, and put him into the crawl space. "You are so much like your mother."

"Father, please let me help!" Yoriichi's young voice plead with desperation. "I can defend myself! I know how to fight!"

For a moment, his father gave pause before shaking his head.

"My semblance only lasts a short bit it'll make sure you are hidden you'll be safe…" Father looked at him with a gaze that was too familiar, and he could sense the resolve that his father had. "Yoriichi… I love you."

The mat was put over the crawl space, and he was engulfed into darkness.

Yoriichi was unable to block out the sounds that assailed his ears, the sounds of people screaming for a savior, curses to the gods for allowing these tragedies to occur, the horrors of slaughter.

Whatever that power, that 'semblance' as his father had called it, kept him immobile underneath the mat. Just as his father had claimed, it only had a short duration, as feeling began to return to his arms and legs. In the crawlspace, he moved his arms and legs, and once satisfied with his ability to move, immediately pushed up on the mat.

A normal six-year old would face heavy resistance, and be completely unable to even move the box, however Yoriichi was not a normal six-year-old.

Yoriichi was born with a unique extraordinary power, and he knew that this power bestowed upon him was meant to safeguard life whenever he could.

The mat and whatever items were put atop it were easily flung up and pushed off to the side of the room.

As he managed to push the mat open, he could see a creature in the main room of his home.

The beast was lupine in nature, and at the same time it was not.

The beast was covered completely in black fur, and it had bone white plates and protrusions all over its body. There were red markings on the boney face plate, and its large claws dug into the mat as it walked through. It had red eyes and yellow pupils which were unnatural, and very reminiscent of… of the demon that wore the face of his brother.

So… this is a Grimm.

Opening his sense of sight to the world around him, he accessed the Transparent World, in hopes of ascertaining what this creature was, its weaknesses, its entire being.

What he saw, or rather the absence of what he saw surprised the veteran Demon Slayer.

This creature, this Grimm was completely void of what would be in any living being. There was no blood, no muscles, no skeleton, no organs. To the best of his knowledge, this creature should not be moving, this creature's anatomy should not be compatible with life.

It was clear to him that this soulless abomination was created with a singular purpose in mind: to destroy.

The way this creature moved, peaking its head into the larger rooms of the building, it appeared to be searching for something, scanning for any traces of life. It seemed to have not heard the falling of boxes, perhaps due to the amount of chaos and carnage occurring all around.

Slowly, he made his way out of the three-mat room, the creature currently halfway into the main bedroom, scanning for life. Creeping towards the front entrance, another big paw began to cross the threshold of the home, causing Yoriichi to back up.

Hiding behind a shelf, the Grimm entered the home and began to scan around, its red and yellow eyes trying to find life, a low growl emanating from its body.

Yoriichi knew that he needed a way to defend himself, and fast.

Knowing the layout of his home, the kitchen shared a wall with the three-mat room, but was not directly connected to it, needing to travel through the main room. In the kitchen, there should be a knife which he should be able to wield with a swordsman's skill. That meant that Yoriichi would need to act fast.

With an inhale, he had his plan, and now he needed to place it into motion.

With an exhale, he began to run out of the three-mat room. His footsteps were heard by the two Grimm, the one halfway in the room stopping, and the one entering the home turning to face the source of the sound.

Yoriichi heard a howl as one of the creatures began to charge his way.

Entering the kitchen, he rushed to the drawer which contained the knife he needed. Grabbing the knife, he turned to his foe. He charged as well, feeling the iron knife heat up from the might of his grip.

The first Grimm lunged at him; its movements were drastically slowed down as the power of the Demon Slayer Mark augmented his combat abilities.

A large paw attempted to punch down onto him, quick movement allowing him to dodge to the right, following up by running up the length of its arm.

With a breath imbued slash, the blade swiftly sliced through the fur and flesh of the creature, its head separating from its body.

The body began to disintegrate immediately, the Grimm fading away as he landed. The second creature managed to turn to Yoriichi, however it did not have an opportunity to strike as the superheated blade was flung straight into the boney mask on top its head.

Yoriichi stared at the creature as it collapsed, before turning to ash.

What remained of the knife fell to the ground, the once well-maintained blade now a mangled pile of slag.

Exiting his house, his eyes were met with the sight of destruction. The village was in disarray, buildings were on fire and the sounds of screaming and fighting could be heard in the distance. The acrid smell of blood and death was heavy in the air, causing him to clench his fists.

Yoriichi could only wonder why such tragedy must befall such tranquil lives.

From his elevated position, he could see the Grimm converging on a single location, the location being the temple in the center of the village.

… … …

Akari's life has been guided by the principle of duty.

Akari had a duty to which he was born into. His lineage was that of warriors, and while he was nowhere near as skilled as his father, it was his family's principal duty to protect those who could not protect themselves.

Akari had a duty to this village. His family had become protectors of this village since its founding. Through the efforts of his father, and his father's father they allowed for the people in this mountain abode to live tranquil lives, for as long as possible.

Akari had a duty to his family. Young Yoriichi was a sweet child, undeserving of any of the malice that had been unjustly thrusted onto him due to the circumstances of his birth. He needed to make sure that he survived, so that Yoriichi may have the chance to carve out his own life in this world.

Yet his ability to fulfill these duties were hampered greatly by his injuries. With one arm, one lung, and an old blade. True there were more and more people at this temple, there were not enough to hold this temple to enact their plan.

The plan being that once three is a lull in the fighting that they escape out the east entrance and make it to the forest into a more tight area where the Grimm will be at a disadvantage.

Yet he knew that if the Grimm continued to fight with such ferocity, there would be no survival for anyone.

The sounds of a volley from the Temple's Dustlocks echoed out, breaking him out of his thoughts.

"Akari," A miko appeared, breathing heavily. "Dachi said to ge—"

The sounds of fighting escalated in the distance, and Akari knew what that meant. His instincts told him to find the threat, and neutralize it as quickly as possible.

Reaching the west side, he could see the master of this temple lying trapped underneath rubble, and acolytes of it doing their best to fend off the Grimm. True they had their aura unlocked, but it would not be enough for the foe that was entering.

Towering above the main battle line was the threat. It was an Ursa Major holding back, with two Ursa Minors and a horde of fledgling Beowolves beginning to move forward.

Gripping the blade, he charged forth, using aura to augment his strength and speed. He weaved through the mayhem and carnage, dispatching the fledglings directly in his path. An Ursa Minor swung its massive paw at him, a swift dodge to the right avoiding the strike, and allowing him to cut deeply into its side.

Jumping back, he ran towards the Ursa Minor, dodging its next strike, the blade easily cutting through the Grimm's right arm, and giving him the opportunity to swing at its left leg, causing it to collapse.

Just as he was about to drive his blade into its skull, his instincts screamed for him to activate his aura, and he did.

A larger black paw struck him with the force of a freight train, and the Usra Minor, launching him through the wall and killing the Usra Minor he was engaged with.

Striking the third wall, he found himself struggling to catch his breath.

The aging Hunter knew that Alpha Grimm were dangerous. They boasted greater speed and greater might than their more 'standard' counterparts, yet if he was in his prime he would be able to fend off this threat.

However, he was nowhere near his prime, his fight with an Elder Griffon years ago gave him these injuries.

The Ursa Major gave him no respite as he forced himself to dodge a second strike, narrowly avoiding its lethal claws.

That thing's a lot faster than one would think it to be!

The older a Grimm got, the more battles they survived. The more battles survived, the more adapted the Grimm would be to slay Huntsman.

And it was clear that this Grimm has slain Huntsman before.

Lifting up the fine silver blade, he knew that he would not live to see the sun rise one more time.

…

Yoriichi found himself with a straight path to the Temple, as most of the residences he had passed by had already been evacuated or its inhabitants slain.

As he neared the temple, he could hear the sounds of a desperate last stand, the inner shrine most likely where the last defenders are making their last stand.

Just as he was about to scale the wall, he heard the sounds of steel clashing with bone.

Running around the corner, there is where he saw it.

There was a large bear with boney protrusions standing above his Father.

The creature attacked with ferocity, and all his father could do was use the blade to weakly parry the strikes, each attack knocking him closer and closer to the ground.

The last strike hit his father center mass, launching Father towards himself, a strange energy that had shielded his body from the blow shattering as he first struck a sign, before crashing to the ground with a thud, the worn katana clattering on the ground a short distance away.

Father began to hack up blood, and he struggled to get up. There were light cuts on his body, but nothing that appeared to be immediately fatal, yet he had yet to see him through the Transparent World. His father noticed him, and using his arm, reached out for him, a silent plead for him to run away.

What Yoriichi could see, he could not abide. Time seemed to slow down as he took in everything he could see.

His father broken on the ground, dead civilians and people who attempted to fight back. A worn katana not too far from himself. The large Grimm at the forefront, a smaller bear approaching from behind it, and many more Grimm in the distance.

To anyone else, this scene did not paint a pretty picture, a father witnessing his son, a boy not even six years old charging a dangerous creature of Grimm. A Grimm which would normally be able to obliterate any grown man.

Outwardly calm, Yoriichi felt a righteous rage well up within him as he began to run towards the Grimm.

Deftly scooping up the blade, it made itself right at home in its grip, and the moment his second hand wrapped itself around the grip, the blade began to change color. What was once rich silver began to change to a rich shade of obsidian across the length of the blade, beginning from the base of the blade. Tightening his grip, the blade then changed from obsidian to a bright red reminiscent of a blade having been heated up, the heat radiating off the blade steaming in the cool mountain air.

Inhaling, the high-pitched whistle of his breathe rang through the devastation and destruction.

Taking a high stance, he felt the breath in his lungs, in each vein and each crevice of his body. He felt it within his heart, within his mind, and within his soul.

Sun Breathing, Dragon Sun Halo Head Dance.

… … …

Akari's worst fears were before him.

Here he laid, battered and broken, unable to do anything as his son stood right in front the monsters of this world.

"Yoriichi…" Akari reached out for his son, coughing up blood as he attempted to move. "Run."

Yet Yoriichi could not hear him.

Yoriichi was an odd child from birth, and he knew that. Yoriichi was unnaturally calm and serene, even more so than his late wife. He showed no interest in doing things that he remembered being excited for as a child, and was quick to understand the responsibility he had as a son.

Yoriichi was a child that deserved so much more in this life. He deserved a chance to grow up, enjoy his youth, to fall in love, to get the chance to have his own family, to make his own fate.

Yet because Grimm existed in this world, Akari realized that these things would never come to pass.

Here he laid, broken and battered, powerless to stop what he was certain to be a slaughter.

I am a man of no worth.

That was when something completely unexpected occurred.

Yoriichi… changed.

No longer was there the serene look of the boy he raised all these years. The soft and gentle eyes had been quickly replaced by a warriors focus and a tactician's analyzing gaze. There were subtle shifts to his posture, one which was normally relaxed now tensed up like a spring about to launch.

And finally, was his breathing. He had known Yoriichi's breath pattern was odd, as if the air around him forced itself in and out in the most elegant way possible, but here, his breath was audible, as if being given a specific purpose.

Yoriichi launched forward, his speed having increased tenfold, easily clearing the distance between himself and the blade in an instant. With a seemingly unconscious movement of his right arm, he seamlessly picked up the blade, and a high stance.

Observing his son, he noticed that the blade that was in his hand seemed to simply be a part of his son. The awkward feeling of picking up a weapon was not present for him, as if he was a master of the blade already.

The blade, as if to acknowledge Yoriichi's touch, changed. The rich silver that the blade was soon overtaken by a rich obsidian that was reminiscent of a starless night, before the blade ignited, as if the universe itself was giving birth to a star.

In the blink of an eye, the boy closed the distance between where he stood and the Ursa Major, the beast that had no issue in matching and exceeding his abilities, had no time to adapt to the sudden change in the battlefield. The blade was aimed straight for the midsection of the Grimm, their ancestral blade slicing through the creature with such expertise as if was like a hot knife through butter, the Ursa Major not even realizing it was dead yet.

The Ursa Major began to disintegrate, the larger bones of the beast beginning to fall, yet Yoriichi's assault was not over. There were more Grimm farther ahead, which were not exempted from Yoriichi's counterattack.

Once he had eliminated his targets, the bone plating of the Ursa Major clattered to the ground. The fledglings followed quickly after, leaving only but motes of dust in the wind.

Akari knew that his child was unlike any other, despite it being a common sentiment among parents, but Yoriichi's speed, his skill….

These were not the signs of talent or of a prodigy no… they were nothing short of divine!

Yoruichi… our son was never cursed… our son has been blessed by the Brother of Light.

…

Once the immediate threat had been dealt with, Yoriichi gritted his teeth ever so slightly. He had forgotten that his youthful body was not as well trained as the one in his previous life, the stress of utilizing such an advanced technique causing his muscles to ache ever so slightly.

Still, the immediate soreness was not enough to stop him from rushing towards his father's side.

"Father!" As he reached his father, he let the blade fall to the ground. Looking over his father through the Transparent World, the world became much bleaker.

There were a number of fractures all along the older man's body, and a number of broken bones. The most concerning wound was internal, caused by ruptured organs from such forceful impacts. Even the segment of the spine which had struck the pole had been severed internally, meaning that he would never be able to walk again.

Yoriichi knew the severity of these wounds, and the likelihood of survival was… low.

"Yor… Yoriichi…" His father coughed up blood as he tried to speak. "I am glad… you're ok."

Each breath was labored, his father in great pain.

"Father, your wounds..." Yoriichi carefully sat him up, leaning up against the pole. "Save your strength."

"Yoriichi your eyes…" Weakly reaching up to his chin, his father looked at his eyes. "I know… that look."

His Father smiled through the pain.

"Yoriichi… don't worry." Dropping his hand, he rested his head back against the pole. "This was going to happen… someday…" There was a weak chuckle before more blood dribbled out of his mouth. "I wish… I could see… you grow older..."

Yoriichi held his father's hand in both of his own hands, the sadness pricking at the edges of his eyes.

His father swallowed as he prepared to speak.

"Remember our heritage, honor it… to slay Grimm only, and never end a persons life." Gritting his teeth, he pushed on despite the amount of pain he was in. "I can never guess… what goes on in… that mind of yours… but never forget this."

Pushing the clasped hand to Yoriichi's chest, his father smiled.

"Learn to laugh freely… to love fiercely… and most importantly… live with no regrets."

Yoriichi nodded, vision becoming blurry.

"Good… good…"

His chest was rising and falling slower, and Yoriichi could see his heartrate slow down.

"You are… like the… sun…" His voice was getting quieter with each breath. "Bring light… to the… dark. Bring hope… to the… hopeless…"

Tears began to well up in his father's eyes.

"I love you… my Summer Son."

"I love you too Father."

Father's vision focused at the entrance of the temple, and for a moment his eyes lit up as if what he was seeing was real.

"Yoruichi… let… us… go… home…"

Yoriichi felt the tears running down his cheeks as he saw the last embers of life fade from his Father's eyes.

Yoriichi gently placed his father's hand down into his lap, picking up the obsidian blade.

Turning around, he could see more creatures of Grimm amassing close to the temple. There were still sounds of resistance inside and he could only hope that there were still more lives to be saved elsewhere. Tightening his grip on the blade, it turned bright red once again.

Yoriichi knew that he could mourn the loss of his Father later, but right now there were demons that needed to be slain.

Third chapter completed.

I enjoyed writing this one, because it gave me a chance to write a scene with some emotion to it.

Tell me what you like, dislike, or what you found interesting and I'll see you in the next one!