Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Time.

Among the siblings, Kamado Nezuko had always had the messiest relationship with time. And it was because of sleep.

She often had to fight back sleep at random times throughout the day, disrupting her chores. She always fell asleep when resting, even if she simply wanted to sit still and appreciate the world around her. 

And that was the least of her worries when it came to sleep. 

She slept the longest in the family and was the hardest to wake up, no matter how many hours of rest she may have gotten. She had always lamented that last trait since it brought the most trouble to her family. 

And her older brother’s ability to wake up immediately at the time he wanted made her feel slightly worse about it.

Nezuko had managed to get herself to like the sensation of falling and staying asleep. She convinced herself it was good to the point that she didn’t have to lie when she proclaimed how much she loved it. 

It was simply the time lost she hated and had left unsaid over the years.

This quirk influenced her life as a demon, manifesting as the ability to gain energy from sleeping instead of eating. That was the first time she had truly appreciated her strange propensity for sleep.

But it still came with a downside. Nezuko, as a demon, didn’t realize how much she was sleeping until she regained all her memories when she was turning back into a human.

She had lost two entire years to a coma and the majority of the following year sleeping in between missions. As she thought back to all the people she had met as a demon but would never get the chance to as a human, she regretted having spent so little time with them.

Nezuko knew as much as any other sensible person that she shouldn’t dwell so much on the past. And she has been trying her best not to. She knew that she shouldn’t be fantasizing so much either, but she couldn’t help but live vicariously through the rare dreams she got during her spontaneous sleeping sessions.

Back when everything was simpler, her dreams were more abstract. They were confusing but also filled with wonder and whimsy that would stay, not in her mind, but in her heart when she awoke.

But after she had become a demon, her dreams had almost exclusively been of her memories. It allowed her to revisit both the good and the bad. She clung on tightly to the good, desperately wishing the past wasn’t just the past.

This change in her dreamscape followed her into her regained humanity. Often, she dreamt of the encounters she had with people who were no longer around. It made her happy initially, but it made waking up harder and harder each time.

Thankfully, Nezuko still had her older brother and their friends. She wasn’t completely alone. She could tell they also had their own regrets and pain to sort through after such a big war. But they made one another happy and got each other through each demon-free day. 

So she never stayed down for so long. It was uncharacteristic of a Kamado to stay despondent for an extended period of time anyway, so she was quickly able to put a smile on her face and energetically move through the tasks of the day until the sleepiness hit her as it always did.

Everyone, including her, was having a difficult time adjusting to the massive change in their lives brought by the final battle, but each day was easier than the last until they almost didn’t notice how many months had passed if not for the calendar that was gifted to them.

She often hoped that these peaceful days would stretch on until they had passed on to meet their loved ones in the afterlife.

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A year after the defeat of the Demon King, Nezuko was dreaming yet again.

Once more, it was when she regained all her lost memories as she rushed to save Tanjiro. Her dreams didn’t usually coincide with the anniversaries of the memories they would show her, but she supposed it was only right that she would remember her return to being a human exactly a year after the event.

Once more, she saw the dead. She saw her family, she saw their last moments, she saw how Muzan expressed his disappointment at his own work, she saw her brother’s tear-streaked face, she saw the snowy confrontation with Tomioka Giyuu, the meeting with Urokodaki Sakonji, and so much more. 

But she focused on the people she could no longer make more memories with. She saw herself hugging Tamayo, she saw Kocho Shinobu watching over her as she watched her goldfish, she saw Rengoku Kyojurou giving her an approving look as he passed by her in the flesh-infested train, she saw Kanroji Mitsuri beaming as they played, she saw Tokito Muichiro bonding with his crow, and she saw Shinazugawa Genya congratulating her again on conquering the sun after his recovery.

Deep down, she felt some guilt for not having met the others who had perished. 

No matter how much she didn’t like the idea of Iguro Obanai crushing on Mitsuri, she respected him for his efforts in the fight against Muzan and his cooperation with her older brother. She wondered if her opinion of him could’ve changed even further, like it did with Shinazugawa Sanemi, if she could only have interacted with him after the Hashira meeting that tested her will.

Her opinion of Himejima Gyomei certainly has changed from word of mouth alone. She remembered seeing him briefly and being quite intimidated by the large, crying man. 

But then Tanjiro had told her about his love for cats, about how he had cared for orphans, and she came to learn from Tsuyuri Kanao and Kanzaki Aoi that he had temporarily been the caretaker of the Kocho sisters. She couldn’t help but admire the Stone Hashira for having a heart of gentleness despite the body he has built for violence.

Nezuko’s pondering was disrupted as she started hearing more and more voices in the dream. It was when she had arrived at the battlefield with the morning sun shining light on all of the destruction and bloodshed. She tore herself away from her past self that was surrounded by Kakushi and barreling through the ruins to get to Giyuu and Tanjiro in the distance. 

The ensuing scene had stayed in her conscience enough to have it burned into her eyelids. She didn’t need a reminder.

She opted instead to look around at everyone else. She noted how Sanemi lay completely wrapped in bandages. Some of the Kakushi were still trying to calm down from the high of victory, while others were tending to the wounds of other slayers. 

Far off, she could spot Kanao being tended to by one of the Kakushi. To the side, she heard Agatsuma Zenitsu sniveling as he imparted what he thought would be his last words. 

And just as she glanced elsewhere to look for a certain slayer with a boar’s head, she suddenly felt the familiar sensation of waking up from a particularly long and deep nap…

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“...-suke!”

Nezuko groaned as she slowly came to. She was lying on her side while also somehow in motion. Was she riding on something? Given that she had just heard someone call out the wild boy’s name, she assumed she had been riding on his back on the way to the Butterfly Mansion again. 

The voice sounded like her brother. Maybe Tanjiro realized they left something behind and caught up to them.

But something felt off about the situation she thought herself to be in. And there were strange noises that she never expected to hear from her friend. He sounded like he was made of …wood? That can’t be it. Hashibira Inosuke never made sounds like that. 

Sure, he had made noises everyone thought humanly impossible, but never so much like an actual object. And she never fell asleep on Inosuke during such trips. She wouldn’t let herself out of guilt. That, and it was hard to fall asleep while sitting up with nothing to lean on.

“-not lettin’ ya!” She heard the boar-head-wearing boy yell, strangely not right under her. This perplexed Nezuko even more. Where was she then if not on his back?

She finally opened her eyes and sat up, slowly rousing herself from her drowsiness. 

She turned out to be on a moving cart, which explained the wooden sounds that had confused her when she was still half-asleep. She sat up and removed her head from where it was placed on a sleeping Zenitsu’s lap, rubbing her eyes as she looked at where the argument was occurring.

“Inosuke, please! You’ve had your turn for over seven hours now!” Tanjiro pleaded in an exasperated tone. She spotted him walking out front beside the cart, with his right hand on the handle as he pleaded with the boar-headed boy pushing them. 

Apart from herself and Zenitsu, the cart also contained their belongings, a generous amount of packed food, some gifts, and various offerings. The offerings were so numerous that they were the heaviest of the cart’s contents. 

It made sense that Tanjiro was worried. Pushing a cart around for seven hours was already a daunting task, to do so with people and so much luggage on it was even worse. Among the survivors of the final battle, Inosuke was the one who had stayed the closest to his peak, and he was quite proud of that fact. But that didn’t mean he was invincible and tireless.

“Shaddup, Kotaro! I’m the strongest of us all, so as the Lord of the Mountain, I will pull this thing the longest!” Inosuke huffed and puffed, both in stubbornness and from the exhaustion he should have been feeling by then if Tanjiro’s words were to be taken seriously. “We’re close to that celery place now anyway!”

“It’s called a ‘cemetery’...” Mumbled Zenitsu, who was responding even if he was still asleep. 

Nezuko had already learned that her sleepfighting partner had enhanced hearing, which led to quite the interesting and entertaining interactions in their odd little family while he was unconscious.

“HAH? What’s that, Monitsu?!” Inosuke yelled as if he had been challenged to a fight. 

The blond only whined lowly and moved to cover his ears in response, his lower body now free from the burden of Nezuko sleeping on him.

“Let’s not fight, okay?” Nezuko tried to mediate as she put a hand in Zenitsu’s hair. She then pouted in the direction of the noisiest person in the group. 

“Also, Inosuke, a big, strong boss like you should rest too! What’s the use of having minions if they don’t get to work for you?”

“Exactly! Let me have this so you can rest up!” Tanjiro interjected. The boy with the boar head seemed to contemplate this for a little while, but eventually refused again.

Nezuko frowned, on purpose, and tried to sound as pouty as she could. 

“Fine, then we won’t let you join the race to give the most offerings.” She huffed while crossing her arms, hoping she had pressed the right buttons.

“WHAT?! Nooooo! Okay, fine! You take it, Santaro.” The cart stopped moving as the exchange finally happened. Tanjiro had long stopped bothering to correct Inosuke and simply sighed in relief at finally being listened to. Her older brother shuffled a bit to adjust his left arm to maintain some balance before he resumed the journey.

Inosuke begrudgingly hopped onto the cart and slumped down on the empty seat in front of Nezuko, oozing with grumpiness despite his face being concealed. The former demon smiled and patted him on the head before asking if he was too sore somewhere. He didn’t answer, but she decided to massage his legs and feet.

He ended up relaxing and then giving her that look he always gave when he was about to follow her around like a duckling. It was quite entertaining how easy it was to read Inosuke’s mood despite the boar head covering his expressions.

“Onii-chan, how far along are we?” Nezuko asked as she turned her head to address her brother properly. Tanjiro responded with a thoughtful hum as he tilted his head up.

“Hmmm, I think we’re less than two hours away.” He answered almost absent-mindedly, obviously unsure since he had never taken the route they were on before.

“You made me stop when I can still go for three hours?!” Inosuke quickly yelled. 

“Inosuke, your legs are already so sore. If you kept walking and pulling us for that long, they’d start to swell.” Nezuko promptly squeezed one of his feet a tad harder, and the boy let out a tiny yelp before lowering his head in what seemed like shame. 

“O-okay…”

“Anyways, did we receive any news on who else might be there?” The girl asked after a beat of silence. She did not miss the way her older brother’s face lit up at the question.

“Oh! Kanzaburou dropped by and told me that Giyuu-san was able to find time to visit and say hello!”

“That’s great news! I haven’t seen him in such a long time.” Nezuko smiled wistfully as she tried to recall when she had last met the blue-eyed man.

“But Ol’ Scarface isn’t coming.” Inosuke let out an indignant huff as he lay back. 

At this, Nezuko’s eyes widened. “Awww… Did he say why not?”

“Kiriya-kun told me via crow that he had already visited a few days ago. It would be too much to trouble him to come over again so soon just so we can meet.” Tanjiro explained with some dejection mixed into his tone.

She could understand why the older Kamado felt that way. Seeing Shinazugawa Sanemi had become a rare but welcome occurrence for the Kamado family - most of them anyway, Zenitsu openly glared at him every time - so most of their interactions were limited to one-sided letters and equally one-sided gifts.

It was through the Ubuyashikis that they learned that the former Wind Hashira had taken to travelling around Japan since the disbanding of the Corps, starting with the areas he had been defending, but never truly learned to appreciate.

Nezuko was glad that he was trying to make the most of the few years he had left in that manner, but a selfish part of her wanted to see him around more. But as much as she wanted him to be outright with the gift-giving, she could understand why he chose to be sneaky.

From what she’s learned so far, Sanemi was even more averse to showing vulnerability than some of the other Hashira. She supposed that he wasn’t content to be fully soft even after wartime, not after everything he had gone through.

And she had a hunch that his early visit to the Corps’ cemetery was a way for him to intentionally avoid having others around as he spent time with his comrades and loved ones’ graves. It made all too much sense that he would want privacy at such a solemn place around such a contentious date.

Her heart had begun to grow heavy from the contemplation when Tanjiro’s voice snapped her out of her thinking, which she was grateful for. It would do her no good to feel sorry for so long, so she would try to go back to living in the moment as Kamados were prone to doing.

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At one point during the ride, Nezuko hopped off the cart to walk alongside her brother and assist him a little. She had started to become ansty from her own lack of motion, and she couldn’t bear to sit a second longer as her weakened sibling hauled all of their weight. Inosuke snored away while a now-awake Zenitsu tried to keep a conversation going between them.

Tanjiro had protested a bit, but she eventually managed to convince him to just let her help, and he relented. 

She really didn’t know what to do with him sometimes. Always so willing to help. Always so selfless. The red-haired boy never knew how to think for himself enough to keep her assured that he wouldn’t get overworked if left on his own.

“I can hear them! They’re near!” Zenitsu suddenly exclaimed, causing Inosuke to stir slightly as Tanjiro and Nezuko snapped to attention.

“Oh! He’s right. I can smell them now!” Added Tanjiro, a big grin on his face.

All three of them looked eagerly in the direction of the location they were approaching, knowing who they would find once they got there. Somehow, both Kamados gained a pep in their steps despite their shared exhaustion from pushing the heavy cart. 

Zenitsu got to work, and by work, it meant waking Inosuke up from his fatigue-fuelled nap. Nezuko could already tell it was going to get noisy very soon.

As they rounded the corner and came upon an area where visitors commonly held picnics, they spotted several people already there. The Butterfly Girls immediately bounced with energy upon their arrival, while the Ubuyashiki triplets simply smiled excitedly at them.

“Welcome, Kamado household!” Kiriya, Kuina, and Kanata all exclaimed in sync, which drew a shivering noise from Zenitsu. There was a beat of silence before the Ubuyashikis burst into giggles.

She was glad to see the triplets having fun and acting more their age. It’s only what they deserved and more for being burdened with that dreaded curse and the pressure of leading the Corps from such a young age. Seeing them ease up even after the loss of their own parents and sisters was a relief.

“I’m so glad to see you all again!” Tanjiro easily replied while Nezuko waved at them. Sumi, Kiyo, and Naho were quick to swarm the group while Aoi stayed a bit away to watch the chaos unfold with barely any care.

“You got here earlier than we thought you would.” Kanao then approached them as the youngest Butterfly Girls started working on waking the boar boy up.

“Ah, well, Inosuke over there had been lugging us for almost half a day in total. He almost never let us trade places…” It almost seemed as if Tanjiro was hoping for a doctor’s opinion to prove his worries correct. 

Kanao gasped lightly. “He shouldn’t be pushing himself that hard!”

“How about you go and tell him that, Kanao-nee?” Nezuko butted in, watching happily as the girl she was referring to got flustered.

“I-I told you not to call me that!” She squeaked out while trying to avoid a certain someone’s clueless gaze. That certain someone tilted his head with a confused expression.

“Well, you are older than Nezuko is, Kanao. Besides, she’s a great younger sister, and I bet you’d be a great older sister to her!”

“!!!!” Kanao covered her face and had slowly started turning red. Nezuko truly could not believe that Tanjiro could get her and Zenitsu together, yet was too oblivious to Kanao’s feelings towards him. At least he was aware of his own feelings now, but had yet to act on them.

“Okay, that’s enough. We need our resident doctor to check on Inosuke’s legs.” Aoi suddenly stepped in and steered the shy girl away from the Kamados.

Nezuko had to stifle a grin as she saw Kiriya stare at her brother, dumbfounded by his denseness. He glanced at her as if to ask, ‘This was the guy with insane battle intuition?’, and it took all she could not to burst out laughing on the spot.

Thankfully, Kuina was there to give them all a look that conveyed a threat to slap them if they got on her nerves.

She sheepishly gave an apologetic look before all of their attention was drawn to loud yelling from the cart. Inosuke had finally woken from his nap and he was both energetic AND sore all over, a very bad combo for anyone who didn’t want to hear his voice. 

Zenitsu trudged over to them with his hands over his ears.

“I wish my ears were what got weaker, not my legs…!” The yellow-haired boy whined.

“But I think it’s great that you all still get to have your enhanced senses.” Nezuko comforted him, to which he snapped his head in her direction as if he had been given an epiphany.

“You’re so right, Nezuko-chan! You think my hearing is cool, right? Right?!” And once again, he had her hands clasped in his just like when he had proposed to her just recently. 

“Yes, yes. You’re very cool, Zenitsu-kun.” She answered sweetly.

Tanjiro watched this with an expression that looked like a mixture of pride, amusement, and bittersweet reflection. He then sniffed the air before turning around just to catch a certain former Hashira quietly show up behind them.

“Giyuu-san!” Hearing this, Nezuko tore her eyes away from the Thunder Breathing user in front of her to look towards her older brother and her older brother figure.

“Hello.” Giyuu smiled softly and waved. “How have you all been?”

Nezuko rushed to give the black-haired man a hug, which he gladly returned and even widened to accompany Tanjiro. 

“We’ve been great, Giyuu-san.” She answered, ignoring the Ubuyashiki triplets jokingly greeting him in sync as they would have back then and Zenitsu’s grumpy muttering in the background. “And you?”

“Slowly getting a hang of teaching non-demon slayers.” He chuckled while ruffling their hair.

Nezuko hummed as her brother went on to ask questions about all the students he had heard about from their letters to each other. 

She remembered their shared surprise when they had found out through those same letters that Tomioka Giyuu had set up a dojo, where he took on willing students and trained them for free.

Their training would be nowhere near as strenuous as the one demon slayers had to go through to prepare their bodies to fight the supernatural, but they struggled all the same.

At one point, he had to turn to his old master for advice on how to teach youths that were new to the concept of fighting with swords. She remembered how smug Urokodaki was whenever he would bring up embarrassing stories about Giyuu when he was younger and much weaker.

“May we drop by the dojo and say hello sometime?” Tanjiro asked excitedly, red eyes sparkling at the idea.

“Yes, you may. Just let me know beforehand so I can prepare to host you all.” Giyuu himself seemed excited as well, though his energy was more subdued in comparison.

“HEY! Lemme fight your students and show them how powerful Lord Inosuke is!” The boar head-wearer cut in as a frustrated Aoi followed close by.

“It would be a good learning moment for them to spar with a former demon slayer, I suppose.” Gyuu mumbled, only for Aoi to rapidly shake her head.

“Tomioka-sama! Among the slayers, Inosuke was the one whose current state is closest to what it was before the final battle. I don’t think letting him fight innocent civilians is a good idea! Especially when he wants to prove how strong he is.” She pleaded while trying to hold Inosuke back from saying anything else.

“Is that so?” Giyuu hummed thoughtfully. “He’ll spar with me, then. Would that be better?”

Aoi shared a glance with Kanao off to the side for a moment before nodding and then letting go of the wild former slayer. “That would be more ideal, yes.”

“WOOHOO! I can finally spar with Tamio!!” Inosuke pumped his fists into the air and cheered.

“To-mi-o-ka.” Nezuko gently corrected him, which he genuinely considered for a second before rambling on about how strong he was that he had to be put up against a former Hashira instead of some ‘weaklings’.

“Of course they wouldn’t be that strong, you idiot! They don’t need to be because all the bad demons are gone!” Zenitsu started arguing with Inosuke on some of the points he was making, much to Aoi’s chagrin and the amusement of most of the people there.

Nezuko and Tanjiro looked at each other amidst the chaos and shared a laugh before they finally decided to help set the food out for everyone to enjoy as they spent time with each other.

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The gathering was lively and chaotic, but most of all fun. It was some of the most fun many of them had in a while. 

The first to make any move to leave was Tomioka Giyuu, who excused himself as he stood up.

“It’s getting late.” He uttered as he stared up at the reddening sky. “I should start visiting the graves right now if I want to make it back on time…”

“What about you all? Do you want to visit them tonight as well? Or would you rather get to it tomorrow like you’ve planned?” Giyuu then asked.

“Ah, we’re still going tomorrow, to allow ourselves more time to rest from the journey, especially Inosuke…” Tanjiro answered somewhat sullenly, seeming like he was one word away from changing said plans if it meant making it so the former Water Hashira wasn’t lonely as he paid respects to his fallen comrades.

Kiriya appeared to have caught onto the elder Kamado’s consideration as he smoothly inserted himself into the conversation.

“It was a pleasure having you with us today, Tomioka-sama. I wish you luck and safety on your journey back after the visit. Please do write to us when you arrive at your estate.”

Giyuu looked like he had gotten shy from the respectfulness of the former Oyakata. Nezuko could relate; it was strange having someone who used to have so much power lower themselves to below your status. 

The blue-eyed man seemed to have fallen back on old habits because of this, and he mutely nodded his head before quickly turning away and walking to the numerous graves in the cemetery.

Most of the others shouted their farewells at the retreating man before falling into contemplative silence with some idle chatter from those who weren’t paying that much attention.

“...Do you think he wanted someone to go with him?” Kanao then asked softly, drawing a look of sympathy from Tanjiro and Aoi. “It just felt like he was trying to be subtle about it.”

“I’m sure he would have said so if that was the case. Giyuu-san has opened up so much now, after all.” Nezuko reassured her.

“He’s awkward sometimes, but he’s a grown man who teaches a bunch of people in a dojo. If he wanted us to go with him so much, he could have scheduled better. He knew we were going tomorrow anyway.” Zenitsu tried to come off as huffy, but she knew he was just trying to give the others more reasons not to feel bad for Giyuu.

“You could have been nicer about it, Zen-kun. But you’re right. I got the sense he would rather be here with us than there with or without us.” She added. 

And now the yellow-haired boy looked comically conflicted between being sad that he was scolded slightly and proud that she agreed with him.

“Maybe he wanted some privacy when it came to visiting those who passed on? Like Shinazugawa-san.” Tanjiro then suggested, mood lightening up a bit as he considered the possibility.

Kanao appeared to be quite reassured by that possibility as well. Giyuu had yet to let himself be emotionally vulnerable around her and the other Butterfly Girls. It was likely a side of himself he had only shown to Tanjiro and the Ubuyashikis.

“If Shinobu-sama were here, she would have teased him on and on about daring to want privacy when he has closed himself off from other people for so long.” Aoi remarked. This drew out some laughs from the group, though there was still some lingering bittersweetness.

Around a year has passed, and yet the wounds still stung, no matter how much better their lives have been since the eradication of man-eating demons. Those who gave their lives for their cause were sorely missed, and Kocho Shinobu was the furthest from being an exception. 

She had taken in and cared for so many of them. It was hard not to wish to see her purple-tinted hair and beautiful smile again, even after all this time.

“Well, we can tell her all about it tomorrow!” Nezuko tried breaking the slight tension by being the optimistic one. 

“We should probably go rest up for the night. The sooner we set out, the more time we can spend telling stories of all the shenanigans we got into this past year!”

Tanjiro gave her a slightly strange look before agreeing and then getting into cleaning up after themselves so that they could retire to their temporary residences and sleep the night away. 

She knew what that look meant. It only came out when they knew a secret that they couldn’t tell the people they were with, and he wasn’t actively lying about it. And this time, the secret was the existence of ghosts.

Nezuko remembered the shocked looks they gave each other when their family welcomed them home. It resulted in them eventually having a heated storytelling session about all of the odd experiences they had with the supernatural that they thought had been hallucinations or imagination. 

She narrated the many times their family woke her up to save her brother at crucial moments. 

And Tanjiro then dropped the story of Sabito and Makomo, the older students of Urokodaki who never got to be demon slayers because of the Hand Demon.

Upon asking Zenitsu and Inosuke about their own experiences, they could only recall hazy dreams filled with emotions when they were close to death. Kanao reported that she had imagined her older sisters telling her she did well. Kiriya then told them that his father had instructed him from the afterlife to let Nezuko run to the battlefield.

They weren’t sure what to feel about ghosts existing. It was comforting to know that their loved ones had stayed with them so long. But it was also saddening to know that they must have watched them at their lowest, when they were so close to giving up.

So Tanjiro and Nezuko promised each other that this would be their little secret that they could only reveal if asked to by the very ghosts they were hiding from the rest of their living loved ones. Not that any ghosts had contacted them since the days of peace began.

She couldn’t help but wonder if the ghosts were happy that they were visiting. Did any of them mind the noise? Did they like the offerings that were given last time? Would they have wanted them to visit more often? She wished she could ask. But she had already tried, and no one answered. So she kept those questions to herself.

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The following day, they all set out early to the part of the cemetery where most of their former comrades lay. Even if they had the decency of giving offerings and prayers to those who passed much earlier in the history of the Demon Slayer Corps, they still wanted to spend the most time they could with those they knew personally.

It was at the graves of the Rengoku family line and the Flame Hashiras they produced that the Uzuis and the remaining Rengokus were spotted when the group of kids made their way over.

“You didn’t tell us you were coming.” Kuina said. It almost sounded like an accusation coming from the spunkiest of the Ubuyashiki kids.

“We didn’t know if we could make it…”

“We wanted to surprise you all!”

Rengoku Shinjurou and Uzui Tengen answered over each other. Tanjiro tilted his head with concern at the Rengokus.

“Why would you have been unable to make it?” He asked, worry and care dripping through his every word. This piqued Nezuko’s interest as well. She figured he must have picked up some scent from the fiery-haired pair of father and son.

“Ah, well, we were just not sure….if we could handle visiting Aniue with you guys..” Senjurou sheepishly answered. And she felt bad for almost forgetting how much closer they were to Rengoku Kyojurou than anyone else. They were his family, after all.

“Hey, get your spirits up! It won’t be flashy to get all gloomy when you’re in front of him right now!” Tengen squeezed in and ruffled Senjurou’s hair.

Uzui Hinatsuru shared a look with Nezuko, and she immediately knew they were thinking the same thing: The former Sound Hashira himself also felt down but was once again falling back into old tactics to come across as both unbothered and reassuring to others. It was a very elder sibling trait that seemed to be protecting him as much as whoever he was using it on.

“I…you’re right, Uzui-san. I bet if he had a ghost, he would be standing right here, happy that we came to visit!” Senjurou cheered up quickly, much to the relief of Tanjiro and Tengen in particular.

“Oh, that was so touching! Waaaaaaaaaahhhhh!!!” Uzui Suma suddenly burst out crying, only for her fellow wife Uzui Makio to smack and yell at her for being so loud and disrespectful to the dead.

But Nezuko was sure that if she could see Kyojurou’s ghost, she’d find that he wouldn’t have minded. In fact, she believed he would have been throwing his head back laughing at the scene with his hands on his hips. She glanced at her older brother, and he seemed to have gotten the same idea before they started a chain of laughter and giggles across the group.

As they finished up giving their respects to Kyojurou, his mother Rengoku Ruka, and all of the other Rengokus who have died in the history of the Corps, Shinjurou sought out both Nezuko and Tanjiro. A question was obviously weighing heavily on his mind.

“If you could go back in time, at any point before anyone you were thinking of had perished, would you try to prevent them from dying the way they did when you first went through those events?” He asked solemnly.

This was the type of question she had overheard once or twice over the past year. And she could tell that this was a line of thought that had been haunting the retired Flame Hashira, possibly even more so than the ghosts of his wife and son.

“I…I would. If I could do anything to help with the knowledge I had from the future, I would do what I can to make an even better future than before.” Tanjiro answered honestly. Nezuko agreed with him and nodded as much to Shinjurou.

“But Blood Demon Arts are gone now, and Yushiro-san isn’t capable of such a thing. So I think it would be better to think of what we should be doing now, instead of back then. I’m sure they would have wanted you to keep on living.” She added, and it was her older brother’s turn to agree with her fervently.

“Thank you..” The older man seemed to have gotten the answer he needed, and perhaps even wanted. He then went back to his remaining son’s side, completely uncaring of the gazes of Tengen and Zenitsu, who have most likely overheard the conversation with their superior hearing.

Nezuko couldn’t imagine the guilt that was threatening to swallow him up. He must have believed he would have been able to protect his beloved son from his grisly fate if he had just gotten himself together sooner and been a better father to him.

She and Tanjiro had been trying to help him out of that mindset over letters for the past year, but the thoughts probably resurfaced at the sight of Kyojurou’s grave.

Nezuko tried to not let the question bother her as it had bothered Shinjurou, but the possibility stuck in her mind as they moved on to the other graves. Perhaps she was taken off guard by the location and the occasion, and it was the first time someone had asked such a question to her directly.

Should she, of all people, entertain that thought? If she went back in time somehow, would her demon self still not be in the same mindless state she forced herself to be in to prioritize conquering the sun? Would she have been able to choose any differently than she already had?

She stared at the graves of Kocho Kanae and Kocho Shinobu as she knelt with the others in respect.

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Would she have helped Shinobu, Tamayo, and Yushiro in their research if she had been fully conscious while she was a demon? 

Would they have developed more cures and cured more demons than just her and her brother? 

Would the drug used against Muzan have been made more potent? 

Could they have lost fewer people against him? 

Would they have been able to create similar drugs to subdue the Upper Moons as well? 

Could she have developed her strength so they wouldn’t need to hide her away when she conquered the sun?

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She felt the flick of Kaburamaru’s tongue against her cheek and snapped out of her pondering to look at his current owner. Kanao was glancing at her with worry. 

Nezuko flashed her a reassuring smile before looking to the other side, only to find that Tanjiro and Zenitsu had been staring at her with concern as well. They must have smelled and heard her.

She tried to reassure them as well, wanting to hide behind a rock from the embarrassment of worrying them while they were supposed to be paying respects to the dead.

Zenitsu then craned his neck to glare daggers into Shinjurou, probably blaming Nezuko’s strange mood on the conversation they had a while ago.

Tengen gently placed a large hand on Zenitsu and Tanjiro’s heads, one at a time, as if to wordlessly tell them to leave the matter be for now. 

It was that motion that snapped Inosuke out of his own thoughts about one of his lost mother figures and finally drew his attention to all of them. And it naturally descended into chaos from that point on, as was typical when Inosuke was involved.

Nezuko watched with a small smile as Tengen tried fruitlessly to resolve things peacefully with the wild boy for a little while, slowly feeling some of her heavier thoughts and emotions get filed away for later as she focused on enjoying the here and now. 

After a moment of watching, she finally decided to help get things back to being relatively quiet so that they could move on with what they set out to do.

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The sun was setting by the time they were finishing up their task of paying respects to the fallen. The Rengokus have long left by then. Shinjurou blamed himself for ruining the day and offered to escort the Ubuyashiki kids back home. The Uzuis were just about to head out when Tengen suddenly called for them to come closer.

“What is it, Uzui-san?” Tanjiro asked with Zenitsu behind him, trying to make sure Inosuke doesn’t kick up another fuss.

“We have a guest right over there hiding from the sun. I’m assuming you know him?” Tengen lowered his volume and jerked a thumb in the direction of this supposed guest. Nezuko had no idea who he could have been talking about, but Tanjiro was the opposite.

“Oh!” Her brother’s eyes lit up as they always did whenever he met up again with a friend he hadn’t seen in a bit. He then moved a little closer to and lowered his voice in tandem.

“Yes, that was Yushiro-san. The demon with the talismans who helped us in the final battle. I’ve been picking up his scent nearby for almost an hour now!” And now it was Nezuko’s turn to have her eyes light up when presented with the opportunity to see a friend again.

”He’s here?” She whisper-yelled excitedly.

“Oh? Well, don’t let any of us hold you back from greeting the only demon left in the world. It wouldn’t be flashy at all.” The tall man chuckled and gave Tanjiro a couple of rough pats on the back as if to push him in the direction of the subject of their conversation.

Tengen and his wives finally said their goodbyes and turned around to leave the place for real, with the Kamado siblings in particular returning the farewells enthusiastically before the group went to where the last demon was hiding.

“Took you long enough.” It wasn’t unexpected of Yushiro to say such things to them upon reuniting.

“Sorry! I just thought it would be awkward to come over and start a conversation when the sun was still so far up.” Tanjiro grinned sheepishly.

“It’s nice to see you again, too, Yushiro-san!” Nezuko then added in.

The mint-haired boy looked like he was about to combust from having to handle two excited Kamados at once, but he managed to school his expression before crossing his arms and looking to the side.

“How…have you all been?” He asked slowly, almost as if he was being threatened to do so. But she knew it was just him being hesitant to be all friendly with them.

“We’ve been doing good!’ Tanjiro chirped as Inosuke quite obviously sized the demon up, likely to gauge whether or not he was worthy of being asked for a spar.

“Ah, Yushiro-san, are you perhaps here to…” Kanao asked with uncertainty in her tone, which got Nezuko curious.

“Yeah.” Was his curt reply. 

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Zenitsu started grumbling after a moment of confused silence.

“What are you guys being so cryptic for, huh?!” He spat out. “What’s going on here? I don’t like it!”

“Kanao and Yushiro-sama are planning to collaborate directly for some time.” Aoi explained while giving a pointed look at Zenitsu that told him to shut up.

“That sounds like good news!” Tanjiro cheered as Nezuko beamed. “We’ll be able to see you much more often, then!”

“Wait, what’s this corroborating? Why is it good?” Inosuke asked.

“It means they’ll be working together.” Nezuko answered patiently.

“This seems so sudden. What brought this on?” Tanjiro then inquired, and now she couldn’t help but wonder the same as well.

“We plan to investigate the marked people together.” Yushiro answered, staring directly at the eldest Kamado and glancing at the part of his forehead that housed his Demon Slayer Mark.

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Huh?

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All of the residents of the Kamado household stared at Yushiro in disbelief. Even Inosuke knew about the mark’s curse and cared deeply about what it meant for one of his closest friends.

“It’s been a year now, but I’ve yet to find any conclusive evidence about the fates of those who have unlocked their marks.” Kanao explained. “We were hoping that the ‘curse’ wasn’t exactly a curse on the same level as the Ubuyashiki disease.”

“We figured that simply exchanging letters isn’t enough if we want an answer faster.” The demon boy then added.

“We wanted to be sure so that we’ll know for certain if you’ll be gone in such a short time or if there is still the chance you get to live longer.” The girl who now owned Kaburamaru finished.

“You guys…!” Tanjiro was obviously touched by their motive. 

Their little makeshift family had by now come to terms with the certainty that they would lose the eldest Kamado by the time he was 25. Nezuko could tell that he had already been preparing himself and everyone around him for his early departure. So it came as a surprise that their best doctors were still holding out hope that they had a shot at a longer life.

“...But didn’t the records say that there was no exception?” Zenitsu hesitantly brought up. “Muzan himself told Tanjiro he would still die early even if parts of his body healed when he became a demon.”

“That sniveling little baby could have just been lying to him to convince him to stay a demon.” Yushiro spat, face scrunched tightly at the thought of the dead Demon King.

“And we can never be too sure since it wasn’t documented properly.” Kanao added. “The records were incomplete. There was always the possibility that those who should have been able to live past 25 had died from other means.”

“The Stone Hashira lived a while after unlocking his mark. He was 27.” Aoi then said. 

“I think...if he hadn’t been too badly hurt by the fighting, if he hadn’t been hit by Muzan’s poison, and if he hadn’t refused treatment, he might have survived..” Yushiro said softly. Nezuko had almost forgotten that he was there with Chachamaru on the battlefield, treating those they could.

“Yushiro-san and I will return to the Butterfly Estate and thoroughly look at all of the results of the checkups we have done so far. So there’s no need for you to be examined today, Tanjiro. Just come next month as you always have.”

“For now, examining the conditions of the former Water Hashira and former Wind Hashira is our priority. After all, they have less than three years remaining, so if their bodies are deteriorating the closer they get to 25, we’ll know.”

“Thank you so much!” Tanjiro beamed at them. Though some of that relief was for himself, Nezuko could tell that most of it was for their friends. It had brought him some guilt, knowing that he had a significant amount of time left to live a peaceful life without demons and prepare for his upcoming demise, compared to Giyuu and Sanemi.

“It’s the least we could do for you three for all you’ve done.” Kanao said sincerely.

“Thank you..!” Nezuko couldn’t keep herself from tearing up as she jumped forward and engulfed both Kanao and Yushiro in a tight hug. Tanjiro pulled everyone else in so that they were all hugging each other, much to Yushiro’s discomfort.

“H-hey!” The demon yelled as he tried pulling away from the mass of bodies. “It’s not like we actually found anything yet, stop acting so relieved!”

“But you’re already trying so much! Of course, we would be grateful to you guys!” Nezuko answered, wiping her eyes.

“You may be a demon, and I don’t know you that much, but you’re alright in my book.” Zenitsu said. No doubt it could be taken literally as well, Nezuko wouldn’t be surprised if her brother ended up mentioning that Zenitsu had added a character based on Yushiro into his book and painted him in a positive light. She decided to keep quiet about how he had once called her ugly.

They eventually broke off the group hug, especially when Yushiro started getting really uncomfortable, and they all started walking towards the cart that was brought by the Kamados. The sun had set by then, its golden rays no longer present to threaten the life of the last remaining demon in the world.

“Hey, if you’re a demon, how didya get here while the sun was still up?” Inosuke stared at Yushiro intently.

“I was covering myself with a cloak, a hat, and an umbrella for good measure.” He answered without even bothering to glance back at the boar head wearer.

“Can’t you just use Nezuko or Tanjiro’s blood or something to conquer the sun?” Zenitsu inquired.

“I can, but I don’t like the idea of being immortal. I’m not Muzan.” The demon huffed. Having the option to die by stepping into the sun whenever he wanted had worried Tanjiro and Nezuko before, but they were glad to see that Tanjiro’s words had gotten through to him and encouraged him to keep on living. Now came the question of whether he was still only doing it for Tamayo or if he had started to live for himself.

“Will you be going back now?” Aoi asked just as they arrived at the picnic spot from yesterday.

“Yes! We’d like to get back and start working immediately. The new year’s approaching and I have to get myself ready to perform the Hinokami Kagura.” Tanjiro answered.

“Will we be seeing any of you then?” Nezuko asked the Butterfly Girls. “Urokodaki-san and the swordsmiths were there the last time Onii-chan performed.”

Tanjiro had insisted on doing the dance as soon as he could upon resettling into their old home, even if it was months late, even if he hadn't done the ceremony itself for years. The swordsmiths were very interested in seeing the Dance of the Fire, no, Sun God that was based off of the swordsman that inspired the Yoriichi Type-Zero.

Kanao and Aoi exchanged looks for a bit before nodding, which resulted in Naho, Sumi, and Kiyo cheering in delight.

“We’d love to.” Kanao replied. “We’ll let you know if we’ll be able to go by that time. Surprises can happen, after all.”

“I’m looking forward to that letter!” Nezuko beamed before pulling both Aoi and Kanao into a hug and then patting the youngest Butterfly Girls on the head. Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Inosuke each gave their own goodbyes.

“You guys get home safely, okay?” Tanjiro called out as he helped load up the cart.

“You too!” Kanao called back.

“They have a demon with them, you guys should focus more on yourselves.” Yushiro cut in snarkily.

“Alright, alright.” Nezuko giggled as she sat in the cart with Zenitsu and Inosuke. The wild boy agreed to rest for a little while longer on the condition that he would be allowed to push the significantly lighter cart as long as he wanted the moment it was his turn.

Tanjiro heaved as he pushed the cart onward and started their journey home.

Nezuko looked back at the retreating image of the graveyard filled with monuments to the departed, both old and young. Shinjurou’s question about changing the past resurfaced in the back of her mind as she stared. But then she saw the shrinking figures of the Butterfly Girls and Yushiro. 

She shook the heavy thoughts away as she chose again to try to live in the present than dwell on the past.

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Unsurprisingly, Nezuko had once again drifted off into a deep sleep during the ride.

But surprisingly, she was having a dream, or rather a nightmare, of the night of the Kamado massacre. She dreamt of this incident many times, it was hard not to. But she had only had this nightmare a few nights ago. It should not have invaded her sleep so soon.

She didn’t find it strange when she felt the chill of the winter night on top of Mt. Kumotori. She has experienced it many times over, and could have easily imagined the sensation.

She didn’t wonder how real her family’s voices sounded as she interacted with them in their final moments once more. Their ghosts had followed her enough for her to not have forgotten them even the slightest bit in the four years or so since they perished.

She wasn’t truly alarmed when she felt the pressure of Muzan’s presence as he appeared in their doorway. Her fear and anger never faded even after one year of him being dead himself.

But she’s never had a nightmare that let her experience the pain that came with Kibutsuji Muzan’s appendage striking her down again.

Nezuko could now vividly feel the chilling sensation of his blood entering her own system. How Rokuta felt lighter and heavier in her arms at the same time.

It felt exactly as it did when it truly happened to her. She has never felt this way in any of her dreams before.

But before she could question any of it…

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…everything faded to black.

Chapter Text

Hungry…

That one word echoed throughout her entire being, clouding her mind and twisting her insides. It was enough to wake her up despite the sleepiness she had yet to shake off.

Hurts!

The up and down motions of whatever she was riding on jostled her body too much. The pain from her wound was only amplified by the movement. 

Growling, she tried to wrench free from what was bothering her so, anger starting to boil over from the frustration and discomfort of it all. The movement caused her and whatever she was riding on to topple over, throwing them both to the side.

She felt the cold wind rushing by as she fell longer than expected, but she didn’t feel the bite of the low temperature of her surroundings as she slowly moved to stand up. White stuff crunched under her feet, and something fell off her shoulder, but she didn’t focus on that.

Hungry…

Any pain from any injury was quickly forgotten when a new ache replaced it. The ache of hunger. Of a craving for something. She wasn’t sure what she craved, but at that moment, she couldn't care less about her cluelessness.

Hungry..

“Ne…uk..!” A noise rang out from somewhere in front of her. It sounded muddy, as if it was being engulfed by waves of…something. Whatever had waves. The ache was getting worse.

Hungry.

What the noise meant, she couldn’t tell. However, it felt…familiar. But what did familiarity matter to her? She didn’t know. So she did not react.

HUNGRY

“..ez…o! A… ..ou ..lri..t?” The noise was getting closer to her now, but it still sounded so far away.

Whatever the source of the noise was, it smelled delicious. When it stopped in front of her, the scent tantalized her and made everything feel worse. She knew then that this was what she was craving. 

M E A T

Immediately, she lunged for the ‘meat’, hoping to tear into it in one go. But her mouth clamped on something hard and unpleasant and very much NOT meat.

She could see the ‘meat’ just there below her, and she tried to push down to reach it, but she was being pushed back by what she was biting down on. 

EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT! EAT!

She wanted to eat so badly, and didn’t know how to stop what she was being pushed by. So she resolved to push down even harder. Her body grew in size to match her wishes. It made the ache inside her even more intense, but it wouldn’t matter once she finally got to satisfy her want, no NEED; she just knew it.

“Ne…ko!” The noise started again. But something about it felt strange. Now, it was slightly less familiar, and that bothered her. 

Why was it not as familiar anymore?

“...an.. i.. …re, Ne…ko!” There was now clear liquid coming out of the meat, and for some reason, it stung at her heart. She was getting so confused, but she must still satiate herself.

“Don’t ..ive i…!” Somehow, she recognized one of those distinct sounds.

“You g…..ta …ng in there!” The noises, no, words were getting clearer now.

“Don.. turn ..to a demon!” There came a word she was barely familiar with, “demon”. But she had no time to find answers, she must eat the meat!

“You gotta stay strong!” 

Now she knew why the noise wasn’t as familiar anymore. It sounded…desperate. She must have never heard the meat so desperate before. 

But something wasn’t right.

“HANG IN THERE!” And it was as if those words blew away the last bit of blurriness as she took a look at the ‘meat’ she was pinning down.

Her older brother was lying there in the snow.

This felt wrong.

He was crying; that was what the clear liquid was. He was sad. She never liked seeing him sad.

I feel wrong.

Once again, she was hit by the pangs of severe starvation and the woody feeling of a handle in her mouth. It tasted awful. She felt horrible.

Onii-chan… I don’t like this!

She stopped pushing down as she stayed in the same position, sobbing. She still remembered little, but she knew that this….brother of hers was someone people could cry to.

So, cry she did, not knowing what else to do.

It was then that she sensed imminent danger. To herself, or her brother, she wasn’t sure. She turned to see where it was coming from, but she was swiftly spun away.

Hurt!

That was the first thing that registered in her mind when she came to. Something just tried to hurt her. She couldn’t let that be. She has to protect herself!

She was being held captive yet again, wrapped tightly in some sort of embrace, so she tried to pull herself free.

Then her body jolted violently, hair whipping against the wind as one moment, she was wrapped, and then suddenly she was far from where she initially was, pulled by her hands behind her back into a standing position.

Don’t like this!

This agitated her even further. She ignored all of the noises of yelling in favor of trying to wiggle away from the strong grip, kicking at the snow as she tried to get better leverage.

And then she was jerked sideways, so quickly she couldn’t even react before-

HURT

All of a sudden, pain bloomed in her shoulder as a sharp object stabbed her. She started squirming even more, wanting nothing else but to fight back against this danger. Or at the very least, get away from it.

She was vaguely aware of some scuffle happening near her, but she wasn’t paying much attention to it; she had bigger fish to fry. But then she heard a loud thud and a grunt of pain that alarmed her.

She finally spared a glance to the side to look at the source of such an uncomfortable sound.

Her older brother was lying there in the snow.

This feels wrong.

He wasn’t moving or making noise. But that sound came from him. He was hurt . A sense of panic rose up in her chest, threatening to swallow her whole, completely overshadowing her hunger pangs and the lingering pain from the healing stab wound.

I feel wrong.

But her brother wasn’t there to comfort her. He wasn’t there for her to cry to. Something, someone, hurt her brother. She couldn’t let that slide.

She saw feet right in front of his head, and realized that the danger that had her captive was also the danger that hurt her brother.

As she felt the grip on her hands loosen slightly enough, she wrenched her limbs free and kicked the danger away as hard as she could at the moment. It didn’t fly as far as she expected it to. This danger seemed to have been able to resist the blow.

But that didn’t matter; what mattered right now was her brother. So she placed herself protectively in front of him, facing the danger head-on and growling at it to try to intimidate it.

It seemed shaken, but it did not turn tail, which wasn’t safe enough. So she dashed forward and tried to kill the danger. Or at least, hurt it enough to get it to stop being able to hurt either of them.

It dodged all of her blows and scratches, making the frustration build up even more along with the hunger. But she didn’t care about eating, as long as the danger was still around. And as long as her brother was still hurt.

Lunging off the side of a tree to attack, she noticed that the danger moved backwards instead of to the side.

Finally!

But as she seemed to have finally made a good move, she suddenly felt a strike to her neck.

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And everything went black…

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“...!” Nezuko awoke with a strangled gasp, reeling from the surrealness of the dream she had just had.

What was that? She’s never experienced such a realistic dream before. Especially not one about what she thought when she had first woken up as a demon. Not even when she was getting all of her memories back as she turned back into a human did those thoughts run through her mind so earnestly once again.

It was terrifying, thinking like that. The way barely anything was recognizable to her. She thought back on the part where she had attacked her brother and saw him only as ‘the meat’. It was revolting. She never wanted to be reduced to such a state ever again. She never wanted to dehumanize others in her mind, especially her closest friends and family, ever again.

“Ah, Nezuko! Are you alright?” Tanjiro’s voice rang out from below her. Relief should have flooded her at the sound of her reliable older brother’s voice, but something felt off.

Firstly, his voice sounded just the tiniest bit higher-pitched. Secondly, he seemed to have been carrying her. But he was supposed to be either pushing the cart or riding on it with her at that point, right? He was quite out of breath, as well. Even when the slayers’ physiques degraded somewhat due to the injuries they sustained during the final battle, they were still able to maintain great breath control. Tanjiro was no exception. He would not have sounded so winded from carrying her around in the snow.

Cold air blew across her face, and she noticed more things that were strange. She had gasped when she woke up, but she got the sense that she didn’t need to. Her breathing almost felt forced, unnecessary. Something she did because she was used to it, not because she was required to. It was much colder now than it was supposed to be at that time of the year, even up on their mountain. Another thing, the coldness of their surroundings should have started stinging sensations on her skin, but it didn’t. 

And lastly, her body felt different and familiar altogether. An unnatural hollowness in her stomach, a barely felt heartbeat, an awareness of how her blood was coursing through her body, a sensitivity to light and the sounds around them, and strangely enough, she saw the mental image of a severed string in the back of her mind.

This feels exactly like when- It was just then that she registered the uncomfortable feeling of her teeth scraping against a smooth, round, wooden surface that was pushing her mouth open. This was her bamboo!

“!!!” With her mouth muzzled, all she could do was make a small noise of surprise. Had she turned into a demon again?! From the shock of it all, she instinctively pulled back and shook both herself and her brother, who stopped walking to regain balance.

“W-woah! Nezuko, please! I don’t want us to fall again!” Tanjiro cried out.

Nezuko stilled at this and tried to calm down. She then looked over to her brother, hoping he would catch the question in her gaze. But she saw his rounded, but smaller face, and the exact hairstyle he sported when he was younger, just with the longer bits of hair cut off. The burn mark she had grown to know for almost a decade was decorating his forehead once again. Was she dreaming again? Was the dream earlier even over? Because what she was seeing was a 13-year-old Tanjiro.

“Ah, I think Tomioka-san put that on you to help you deal with the instincts. I’m sorry if it bothers you.” He remarked, completely oblivious to the inner turmoil his younger sister was dealing with. Was she even younger than he was at this point?

She gave him a tap on the shoulder and grunted lightly, trying to communicate that she wanted down from his back. Thankfully, Tanjiro understood and complied with a tired smile.

Nezuko slowly stepped down and tried to thoroughly examine the feeling of the snow under her feet. She stumbled slightly but righted herself immediately, not missing the grimace her brother tried to hide when he saw the blood on her clothes where her wounds were.

It feels too real. Is this still a dream? She asked herself. Wait!

She thought back to the descriptions of the dream-related Blood Demon Art that Lower 1 had used on her friends. Tanjiro had explained to her that the demon was sent to kill him and trapped all of them in sweet dreams that would make them not want to leave, while it sent human minions to finish the job undetected.

Was this what was happening to her? But how? Demons were long gone (except for Yushiro and Chachamaru), and Lower 1 specifically was gone even longer. Neither of the remaining demons was capable of something like this.

And dream traps were supposed to be pleasant. This was anything but.

But there was no other explanation for what this all was. So she tried to ignore her brother’s voice, even though he was increasingly becoming concerned about her lack of response as she tried to remember how he had dealt with the fake dream. 

He killed his dream self. How would that work for her dream self, who was a demon? Was any form of fatal self-harm acceptable enough, or did she have to resort to methods that actually killed demons? She had no idea. But there was no better time to try than now! The others could be in danger!

“NEZUKO!!!” Her brother screamed in horror as she used her claws to slash her own head off. Her vision spun along with her own head as it thumped on the snow below. It stung, but she didn’t have the same nervousness one would feel from trying to hurt oneself. 

She supposed it was because a demon’s instincts were different from a human’s. They didn’t need to be scared of their own attacks when they could willingly tear their limbs off to gain an advantage.

She waited for the sensation of waking up, but all she got was the pain in her neck and the feeling of Tanjiro fumbling as he shakily tried to get her head back on her limp shoulders.

It didn’t work? Did she have to try to walk into the sun? Being killed by a nichirin blade or wisteria poison was out of the question. She had no idea where any demon slayers were, and she doubted any of them were nearby after the Water Pillar had just left.

Willing her body to heal faster and ignoring the growing hunger in her being, she quickly dashed towards a tree and climbed it, hoping that the altitude would give her more exposure to sunlight despite the cover of the clouds.

Perched on the highest of treetops, she waited with bated breath. It seemed hopeless. The cloud cover was thick and dark. There had just been a snowstorm recently, after all. It originally allowed her and her brother to travel around safely during the day for a little while. But now, it was working against her.

Her eyes widened in anticipation as she saw an empty patch slowly appear between the clouds, letting some of the sun peek through.

Blocking out her brother’s yelling for her to come back, she jumped from treetop to treetop, heading for the ray of sun that would get her out of this fake dream.

A dread formed in the bottom of her stomach and grew the closer she got, but she pushed it aside, thinking that it was just the dreamweaver’s attempt at scaring her off from waking.

But when her finger grazed the sun beam and started burning, she realized immediately that this was all real. 

Her mind and body were screaming for her to stop, the dread came full force, and she now knew it was truly her instincts at play. It was then that she saw the ghosts of her mother, Kie, and her father, Tanjuro, reaching out to pull her hand back.

Their faces were filled with worry and sadness as she yanked her hand away from the sun and turned to face them.

“This is all real, Nezuko.” Their voices echoed in her consciousness.

If this were all real, then why? How was this possible? Yushiro would have never done this, and Chachamaru had never developed a Blood Demon Art. Was it the work of the gods? Were they taking Shinjurou up on his question? But why did they send HER back? What should she do? Should she just go along with everything? Can she go back to her present?

Nezuko’s head began to ache from the whirlwind of questions coursing through her mind about everything, combined with the exhaustion she was feeling from all of the harm she had brought onto herself and healed. 

Her eyes drooped, heavy with fatigue, and she fell backwards off the treetop, plummeting towards the snowy ground below.

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.

.

.

“...uko!” Her brother’s hoarse voice faded into her senses as Nezuko awoke once again. She almost hoped that she would wake up where she was supposed to be, in that cart with her brother and their friends, but the voices of her parents resounded through her mind and reminded her, she couldn’t just go back.

She slowly opened her eyes and found Tanjiro’s tear-streaked face looking down at her, his eyes widening as he watched her wake up.

“Aaaagghhh, you woke up!!!” He cried out in relief as he quickly pulled her into a hug, clinging tightly onto her as if she were one moment away from vanishing into a wisp of air.

“Nii-chan thought you were gone for good!” He sobbed, and she immediately felt bad for subjecting her older brother to all that. If she had known from the start that this wasn’t just a dream, she would have done her best to avoid traumatizing him even more than he already had been.

Tears pricked at her eyes from the guilt of hurting her brother’s heart as she moved to return the hug, rubbing comforting motions into his back as he bawled openly.

She couldn’t blame him. She would have also been immensely worried if anyone she loved suddenly started to try to kill themselves with reckless abandon.

They sat like that for a while before he finally pulled back, sniffling as he wiped at his face.

“Was the bamboo too uncomfy? Is that it?” He asked, his voice cracking. It would have made her laugh that that was his first guess. He should’ve known that the girl who could display more patience than he could wouldn’t try to end her life over a bothersome muzzle.

Nezuko shook her head instead, not wanting to think too much about the hilarity of the suggestion because of the subject matter. Tanjiro tried to think of more reasons, his face scrunching up in thought. Then his head snapped up and his eyes widened. It seemed like he had an epiphany.

“Then, is it because you’re a demon? Do you hate it that much? That you would rather die?” His voice was becoming more and more tinged with despair. His eyes were tearing up once again, and she knew that he was already blaming himself for the entire incident.

Nezuko couldn’t have that. She shook her head rapidly and struggled to wordlessly give him an explanation that would make him feel less bad about himself.

Her mind drew up a blank. She never practiced how to convey what she wanted while effectively mute as a human, after all. And though she and her brother were able to communicate a lot of things simply through looks and gestures, those weren’t enough to explain something like this in such a situation. They weren’t telepathically linked.

…

Huffing in frustration, she pulled her bamboo muzzle down until it was hanging around her neck. Tanjiro panicked momentarily, but quickly calmed down when he saw that she didn’t start lashing out at the absence of something to ground her.

“I…” Her voice came out gravelly as she looked down, avoiding his gaze. “I had a horrible dream. I hurt you in it, Onii-chan. And I wasn’t thinking after I woke up…” She softly lied. One big difference between her and her brother was that she was capable of lying without giving such an obvious tell, though it did still hurt her deeply to do so.

Tanjiro was surprised to see her conscious and smart enough to pull her muzzle down to talk, but his gaze softened as he listened to her speak. No doubt if he smelled her guilt, he would think it was because of this supposed dream she had, instead of the guilt she was feeling for lying to him.

“I see.. Well, even if you DO end up hurting me, promise me you won’t do something like that again for just any reason, okay? Okaa-san will be really mad at you. You don’t want her headbutting you in the afterlife, now do you?”

A teary-eyed Nezuko couldn’t help laughing at his attempt to lighten the mood before nodding. 

“I promise, Onii-chan.”

Tanjiro let out a puff of air when he was satisfied by her promise and moved to stand up, taking her hand and helping her up after himself.

“Let’s go, Nezuko. The cloud cover could be gone any moment.” He steeled his expression when he remembered where they were headed.

“Alright…” She replied, having been reminded as well. She hesitantly put the muzzle back on before they continued on their journey back home.

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Tanjiro’s steps became heavier and slower as they neared the clearing that housed their home. And Nezuko knew why.

The humble Kamado abode currently contained a tragedy.

Not so fresh, but better than nothing.

The hunger that had long stayed dormant in her stomach came back with a vengeance as she caught a whiff of the blood of her own family. She had to clench her unoccupied hand to avoid squeezing her brother’s hand and alerting him. She didn’t want to bother him any more than she already had.

With great reluctance in every step, they inched nearer to the quiet house, Tanjiro shutting his eyes tight and willing tears away.

Nezuko also tried to keep herself composed, opting to focus on the disgust she was feeling towards herself for finding the smell of her family’s blood so tempting.

They soon stood in front of the doorway, right on top of the blood trail left by her,  right where Tanjiro had collapsed when he first found the carnage waiting for him back home.

Inside, she saw Rokuta’s tiny body laid carefully near the entrance, likely Tanjiro not wanting to leave him out in the open even as he looked for a doctor for her.

That was when the dam broke.

Nezuko tried to jump forward to their corpses, but Tanjiro was quick to react and held her back.

“Nezuko!!” His voice came out in an uncertain plea.

She yelled through her muzzle as she squirmed, heaving for breaths that she didn’t need as she tried to get to her family.

It was when he noticed the tears falling from her eyes, and smelled the anguish rolling off of her person in waves did Tanjiro finally let her go.

Nezuko scrambled on her hands and feet to the toddler’s corpse in front of her. She clutched Rokuta’s cold, lifeless body and let out strangled sobs, feeling once again the deep sadness of losing her family in one day.

“Oh, Nezuko…” Tanjiro sighed sadly. “It wasn’t your fault. You did your best to protect him.”

It wasn’t yours either, Onii-chan. She had wanted to reply, but she found herself speechless. Even the absence of the bamboo muzzle wouldn’t help her articulate anything through the tightness of her chest and the closing up of her throat.

While still carrying the youngest, she inched towards Hanako, Shigeru, and Takeo, her heart shattering as she saw their blank gazes devoid of life.

Kie’s bigger body was still sitting in front of Hanako’s like a shield. They were the first to go, and yet the older woman was able to react so quickly.

Takeo was no longer hunched over Shigeru’s figure, the impact of the attack must have caused him to fall backward. His head tilted up, staring into nothing, was nothing like the boy that yelled at her to make a run for it instead of seeking protection for himself.

Nezuko gently handled and set each of her younger siblings up against the wall and closed their eyes with her free hand, careful not to scratch any of them with her claws. 

Takeo’s mole remained untouched by his blood, and she choked up a single sob as she gently pressed a thumb on it while cupping his face with her hand. This was her favorite gesture of affection for him. He used to lean into her hand whenever she did it when they were much younger. 

She remembered how he had been developing this attitude of wanting to be taken more seriously recently. He would have pulled away, mumbling with reddened cheeks about how he wasn’t a kid anymore if he were still alive. She had even tried teasing him with it shortly after their last dinner together.

Hanako’s hairdo had come undone. On their last day together, Nezuko caught her trying and failing to put her shorter hair up the same way Nezuko usually did. She remembered laughing at the disaster of an attempt before kindly offering to help and teach the younger girl. Her touch light as a feather, she brushed Hanako’s hair away from her blood-stained face.

Oh, how she beamed when she saw her reflection in the mirror after the familiar updo was done. Hanako always looked up to Nezuko more than their mother for some reason, and even deliberately chose to wear her colors because of it. She tried so much to act like an older sister that she even scolded the older Takeo from time to time.

Shigeru still wasn’t at the age where he tried to act more mature because it seemed cooler, so he was the biggest troublemaker in their family for some time now. He liked beating people to things. He constantly tried to initiate races between himself and any of his brothers. He always tried to sneakily take some food off others’ plates even when he wasn’t that hungry. He even pulled that stunt off at the dinner they had just last night.

Nezuko had scolded him lightly, telling him she was willing to share some more with him if he just asked. He had pouted so cutely then, and she couldn’t help but pinch his cheeks affectionately and let go when he started giggling uncontrollably. She carded her clawed fingers through and over his short hair that had already been starting to grow from its last cut. It would never grow longer again.

When other people heard of their living conditions after their father had passed, Nezuko and Tanjiro would sometimes get remarks of pity for the two eldest siblings essentially having to raise their younger siblings. They always said it didn’t bother them, and for Nezuko, that held through even now.

She could care less about missing out on some of her childhood or being forced to mature too early. She largely preferred that to losing such precious children in her life. She would willingly become their mother in Kie’s place if it came down to it. She would have happily exchanged her life for theirs if that wager was even available in determining who survived the attack.

Their smaller figures carried wounds that covered almost their entire bodies. It would have been laughable that Kibutsuji Muzan was stupid enough to assume children this small could handle such a large amount of his blood, if it wasn’t so devastating.

She looked again at her mother’s slumped figure and found her heart growing heavier and her knees getting weaker.

Why was Nezuko the only one who survived Muzan’s blood? She remembered asking herself in one of her nightmares. Her mother was so much stronger, why couldn’t she have endured the process like she did? 

Kamado Kie had birthed all of them, protected them with her hard head, and taken care of all of them when their father fell ill and eventually passed. Nezuko idolized her for her strength and grit, so it made no sense to her why she remained unmoving in this bloodied home.

She sat in her lap, and nuzzled her forehead into her mother’s chin, sniffling as she tried to get the last bits of comfort she could find in her mother’s touch. 

Kie had been there to help remind Tanjiro and Nezuko that they were still children, and helped reel them in when they were both taking on too much and weren’t enough to balance each other out. How she wished she could hear her voice again. Where were the ghosts when she was right next to their bodies?

When she opened her eyes and glanced in the direction of the door, she spotted Tanjiro still standing there, watching her with tears flowing freely down his face. She could watch how his breath shuddered in the cold air of the mountain.

She weakly lifted an arm up and out towards him in a silent gesture to invite him, and he gave in. He ran forward and engulfed both her and their mother in his arms, the sounds of him choking as he held back sobs painful to her ears.

In the original version of events, Tanjiro likely got to work as quickly as possible because of Giyuu’s warning. He must have tried to keep everything together as he went back home, only to be greeted again by the sight of his worst nightmare made true. And he was alone.

But this time, he has her. Not just in body, but in mind as well. She wouldn’t let her precious, kind brother shoulder everything by himself again while she could help it.

After they wrenched themselves away from the embrace, they reluctantly worked together to bury their bodies. Nezuko had originally been asleep for the entire process, so she hoped that it had gone faster this time with her help, if only to make things easier for Tanjiro.

No words were uttered between them as they worked, even until they kneeled in front of the graves, praying for their family’s souls to find peace. Tanjiro didn’t even ask her if she was handling the smell of their blood well. But she could tell from his occasional glances that it was a concern that popped up in his mind.

At one point, it had crossed Nezuko’s mind that there was the possibility that she wasn’t the only one who had gone back, especially since she wasn’t alone where she was when she was taken by whatever force took her back.

She selfishly held hope that her brother had come back as well and was just trying to pretend to be as he was all those years ago. But she could easily tell when Kamado Tanjiro pretends, when he keeps a secret. And he would’ve caught onto her attempts to wake up and her retention of a working, thinking, teenage mind.

The boy she was going to travel with was not the 16-year-old former demon slayer who had contributed greatly to eradicating demons. He was truly the 13-year-old who had just lost his family in front of him and had accepted the responsibility of turning his younger sister back into a human.

Nezuko finally pulled the muzzle off to speak when Tanjiro pulled out some unsullied paper to write a letter for Saburo or the villagers to find.

“You should tell them that Tomioka-san was a family friend who took us in.” She suggested.

She recalled one of the conversations she had with the black-haired man. It turns out that he was accused of murdering their family not long after this point in time. Although it was not that bothersome of an event, she would like for their close friend not to be seen in such a bad light this time around.

“Oh, you’re right! Because if someone saw him around, they’ll think he did it!” Tanjiro earnestly wrote it down. Thankfully, his writing didn’t look weird whenever he wrote a lie like his face did whenever he would say one. And he always had an easier time whenever Nezuko was feeding him the lie instead of having him come up with them on the spot.

She helped him with some more parts that would hopefully help prevent Saburo from blaming himself for keeping Tanjiro with him overnight as he did when they originally reunited. He didn’t need the guilt. None of it was his fault. 

If her brother had gone back home earlier, he likely would have turned into a demon with her, and they wouldn’t have regained any sense of clarity enough to warrant Giyuu sparing both of them as he had with only Nezuko.

They finished it in almost no time, thanks to the eldest living Kamado’s expertise in writing. She was glad to see that his mood had lightened up some. She didn’t like it when he was quiet for too long. They were both chatterboxes, after all.

They walked hand-in-hand, but when they were halfway through the clearing, Tanjiro stopped to look at their house one more time. He didn’t know if he was going to make it back after everything. It might as well be the last time he’d be home.

Nezuko gave his hand a squeeze, waiting for him to turn around and look at her. She nodded determinedly at him, as if to tell him they’ll get to go back for sure and to remind him that he wasn’t alone in this. And he visibly relaxed at the gesture.

He squeezed back with a tiny smile before they broke off into a light jog to make the most of the cover they still had before having to stop to hide her away from the sunlight.

‘If you could go back in time, at any point before anyone you were thinking of had perished, would you try to prevent them from dying the way they did when you first went through those events?’

‘I…I would. If I could do anything to help with the knowledge I had from the future, I would do what I can to make an even better future than before.’

‘But Blood Demon Arts are gone now, and Yushiro-san isn’t capable of such a thing. So I think it would be better to think of what we should be doing now, instead of back then. I’m sure they would have wanted you to keep on living.’

That conversation they had with Shinjurou echoed through her mind as they journeyed. Her statement had originally been to get their minds off of the line of thought. But now, it was her reality, and she had to consider things more seriously.

Doing what she could to make an even better future than before. Was she up for the task? She looked down at her free hand, noting the claws that reminded her of her demonic nature. Surely, her retaining her consciousness and memories of the future could change something, right?

She clenched that hand into a fist before dropping it and looking ahead, eyes burning with determination. She wasn’t a Kamado if she didn’t at least try.

Especially for a better future.

Chapter Text

Nezuko couldn’t tell how long they had been jogging. By that point, they had already gotten off Mt. Kumotori and no longer had access to the many downward slopes to give them an edge in getting down faster. She could tell that Tanjiro was beginning to tire, having to exert himself much more.

She had expended a lot of energy as well, compared to the first time they had set out on this journey. Giving herself additional injuries to heal and crying her heart out for her family was significantly more tiring than sleeping the entire way through, after all.

She felt a little ashamed that she reacted so strongly then. Her family had already been gone for years, yet truly seeing their corpses for the first time had her completely shaken. At least, it was a believable reaction to her brother. And it gave her an excuse to convince him to let some of his despair out for a bit. It wouldn’t do for him to keep everything inside, not as long as she could help it.

She knew she could just will herself to be half asleep as they moved at that pace so that she could gain some energy back and ignore the eternal hunger better, but she couldn't just let her brother keep going on like this. 

So she gave his hand a small squeeze and let a noise out through her muzzle, before trying to slow down to a walk.

Tanjiro understood what she wanted to do and slowed down with her, trying to hide the sense of relief he felt at finally being able to take it easier. But she could tell that he was also still worried about losing too much time.

They made a point to avoid going into the village they sold charcoal to. There was no doubt that if they were spotted there, it could spell trouble for them.

The route they took to steer clear of the village was longer, not that she minded much since she was drifting in and out of a light sleep.

Just like in the original sequence of events, the two had found a cave for her to hide in once the daylight had become nigh impossible to avoid while travelling.

“Nezuko, I’ll go out and get something, okay? I’ll be right back.” Tanjiro told her as she settled in.

Nezuko sleepily nodded, knowing exactly what her older brother planned to get. As she watched him leave, she opted to take a quick nap. She didn’t bother digging a hole and hiding in it this time around, she just found a spot in the cave that was the safest from the sunlight and fell asleep.

When she awoke, Tanjiro was already back. He was close to finishing the improvements on the basket he had obtained to put her in.

Nezuko rubbed her eyes as she watched him, noting that he tried to make the basket comfy as well, not just sun-proof.

He turned around when he finished up his handiwork and was delighted to find that she had woken up.

“Nezuko! Look, this is what I wanted to get.” He showed off the new and improved basket before bringing it over to her for a closer look.

Nezuko pulled her muzzle down and took the basket.

“I really like what you’ve done to it! You really have been getting better at working with wood, Onii-chan!” She smiled as he got a bit sheepish from the praise.

“Still not as great as Tou-san.” There he was again, trying to lower himself.

“But you’re getting there.” She said sharply. “And you will get there, eventually. Who knows? You could even surpass him!”

“You really think so?” 

Nezuko grinned as she nodded in response before looking back down at the basket in her hands.

“I think I know what you got this basket for.” She remarked. Tanjiro then sighed.

“I wanted us to be able to move around during the day, too. But seeing you with it now, you can’t fit in it!” He whined, cursing himself for his oversight. 

It seemed it was easier for him to openly judge himself for certain actions if he was accompanied by someone who was about as self-reliant as he was, compared to her past demon self.

“But I can fit in it, though.” She said to cheer him up.

“Eh? But how?” He asked with an incredulous look on his face.

Nezuko beamed as she willed her body to shrink, watching her brother stare at the process with wide eyes.

“See?” Her voice still sounded the same, even if she was smaller. It was weird, but it didn’t bother her too much. Hopefully, the same could be said for the older Kamado sitting in front of her.

“Ahh! It’s like when you made yourself bigger last time!” Tanjiro was clearly fascinated.

“Mhmm! Pretty handy, huh?”

“Very!” They both laughed in unison before he helped her into the basket.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Tanjiro asked as she settled into the basket.

“Yes, I’m sure. I like this a lot more than hiding in a cave and not making much progress.” Nezuko answered. “We don’t want to keep this Urokodaki person waiting too long.”

He was satisfied with the answer and decided to get on with their plans. She put her muzzle back on as her brother secured the lid and then wrapped the basket up in a large white cloth, fully engulfing her in darkness. Because of her demonic biology, she was still capable of seeing in the dark, so she wasn’t completely bothered by it.

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She lost some time because of her need for sleep, but now that she was wide awake and required to keep quiet so as not to draw suspicion to her brother’s ‘luggage’, Nezuko now had the opportunity and intention to think things over.

She was in the past now, and she needed to think more deeply about what that meant for her and what she could do about it.

What could she change? She couldn’t just go and meet other Demon Slayers because of her condition as a demon. She would have to wait for Tanjiro to finish his training first so that he could gain more trust from the Corps and the Oyakata. And even if she could, what would she do or say in order to change things in their favor?

She should go through things one at a time. It wouldn’t do well for her to overwhelm herself with her own thinking, especially since she wasn’t exactly that educated or strategic in her own right.

What did she want to change? That was an easy question. She wanted to prevent all the deaths that she could. Avoiding some life-altering injuries would be a nice bonus as well; the chronic pain Zenitsu suffered from in his legs after the war was one of many examples she first thought of. 

She just wanted less pain this time around, physical and emotional.

And what a great job I’ve done so far. She bitterly thought to herself about what she had subjected her older brother to when she first regained her consciousness. She definitely shouldn’t tell him about her situation, at least, not anytime soon. He was stressed enough as it is, he didn’t need to think about all this.

She shook her head, trying to get back on track. Rengoku Kyojurou was the first major loss they had suffered since joining the Corps. What could she do to prevent that? Could she trust herself to be able to stay awake this time around and take the fatal blow in his place? Could she help Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Inosuke get stronger faster so that they could possibly help in the fight with Akaza? 

Could she somehow get another Hashira to be there? Or at least have one or two arrive as backup on time? How is she meant to do that? Could she somehow prevent the mission altogether? That would save around 40 civilians as well. But how???

She thought back to her brother’s journal, to all of the rambling he did to her as they did their chores together, to all of the stories she heard from everyone else after the war. She remembered something that Tanjiro had gotten flustered about when Kiriya mentioned it to them in one of his letters. What was that word again? It was on the tip of her tongue.

A catalyst! Kiriya had said that his father described her brother as a catalyst who kick-started a lot of major events in the lead-up to the final battle. Why was that again? 

His encounter with Muzan! Something about him agitated Muzan into making moves instead of letting everything stay as they were.

She remembered now. Muzan had sent demons after Tanjiro because of the earrings that the Kamado bloodline inherited from the first breathing swordsman. Lower 1 and Akaza were among those demons. Does that mean that if her brother had hidden his earrings when he met Muzan, it could have kept the Flame Hashira alive even a little longer?

That thought didn’t sit well with her, that the older Kamado had caused the death of one of his favorite people. She would DEFINITELY never let him know that if she even ended up confiding in him about her knowledge of the future.

So if Tanjiro either never met Muzan in Asakusa, or alerted him with his hanafuda earrings, Lady Tamayo and Yushiro wouldn’t be attacked, Lower 1 wouldn’t target a train of people so brazenly, and Akaza wouldn’t kill Kyojurou. 

Were there other instances of demons targeting her brother after those events? Daki and Gyutaro were simply found in their home turf. But the attack on the Swordsmiths’ village may have been targeting him. Or maybe the demons were truly just after the source of the Nichirin blades?

She held herself back from growling in frustration. She didn’t need to alert her brother. She wished she knew much more about everything that occurred when she was a demon. But she just had to be asleep most of the time.

She’ll get back to these details later. She figured it would be better to move on to a different topic so that she wouldn’t be stuck on the first one.

The deaths in the Infinity Castle and then the final showdown with Muzan. She recalled that everything went down barely a couple of months after she conquered the sun. She found it quite unfair that they were only given such a small amount of time to prepare for such a decisive battle. All because Muzan was in a hurry to get rid of the Ubuyashikis and find her.

A heavy guilt settled in her gut as she resolved to try her best to delay her conquest of the sun as much as possible, if only to give the Corps members more time to get stronger on their own before they get a race against time. 

She wasn’t sure if there was any way to slow down the last Upper 4’s ability to scout, so she had to focus on herself first and foremost.

The drug that Shinobu, Tamayo, and Yushiro made for Muzan was so effective, and they had only collaborated for around a month. She wondered if they could improve on it even more if they were just afforded so much more time. 

Could they have weakened Muzan more to the point that he wouldn’t have taken out as many slayers? Could they have duplicated the drug so that it could be used against the Upper Moons in the Infinity Castle?

If she offered herself up to be a more active participant in experimentation, would it have boosted the speed of their research?

How should she go about getting their best doctors to work together sooner? If she had built more trust between herself and the Demon Slayer Corps, would the Oyakata have acted faster? 

If she told him about what she knew, would he believe her? Would he even try to change anything? He seemed to be content with anything as long as Kibutsuji was finally eliminated. Would it hurt her to try?

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“Mt. Sagiri?” Nezuko’s thoughts were cut off when she finally registered that there was a conversation happening between Tanjiro and a stranger. “If you want to go to Mt. Sagiri, you’ll have to cross over that mountain, but…”

Even within the dark confines of the basket, she could tell that the sun was close to setting. It made sense that demons had a natural sense of when the sun was close to setting and rising, in the same way they had a natural fear of the sunlight.

As the woman her brother was talking to reminded him to be careful, Nezuko wondered if she had later heard about the bodies in the temple up the mountain, if she thought she had sent the young traveler to his demise. They should probably visit her sometime after getting settled at Urokodaki’s place.

Once the sun had set, and she could feel that they were alone, Nezuko tapped on the basket loudly enough for Tanjiro to hear. He took his time setting the basket down and untying the cloth around it to make sure not to jostle her too much, even if she wouldn’t have minded.

She climbed out of her confines and shifted back into her normal size. She wordlessly offered to carry the basket and cloth for her brother, and he reluctantly handed the items to her.

“Can all demons change sizes?” Tanjiro asked as they walked up the mountain hand-in-hand. Nezuko hummed before pulling the muzzle slightly away from her face.

“I think? But maybe not all of them know they can.” She answered before quickly securing the bamboo back in her mouth.

“...Are you sure you still want to use that? It seems… bothersome.” And dehumanizing. She could practically hear him thinking that.

“Tomioka-san put it on me for a reason. And I want to be sure to have something reminding me that biting down on something is wrong.” She answered reassuringly.

And that was true. Nezuko thought back to the moments she had been tempted in the original happenings, and the muzzle had played a part in grounding her and helping her snap out of her hunger. She also figured Giyuu wouldn’t be too happy seeing her walking around without it, and that it would make other slayers feel safer around her.

“If you say so…” Tanjiro seemed to have something else on his mind. Hopefully NOT the suicide attempts she made that he assumed were because of her muzzle.

She wanted to crawl into a hole and rot from the shame and embarrassment she felt for those actions and how they affected her older brother.

“Oh, there’s a temple over there! And the lights are on.” She looked in the direction he was pointing and feigned excitement. She knew what awaited them in that temple.

He then froze as he smelled something. “I smell blood!” Her brother exclaimed as he started running up the path with her in tow.

“This mountain path is pretty rough. Someone could have gotten hurt!” Oh, how she wished that were the case here.

She sensed the demon’s presence before they reached the doors to the temple and braced herself for when Tanjiro opened the doors.

“Are you alright?!-” He cut himself off from saying anything else as he saw the bloody scene before him.

Food

Echoed in Nezuko’s mind as the smell and appearance of the blood started tantalizing her once again. It was harder to just keep everything in check this time around since the bodies sprawled before them were not of her precious siblings and mother. But she still fought.

The voices of her brother and the demon they had found faded into the background, and it scared her how quickly her newly turned body tried to ignore everything else just to focus on the humans it so badly craved.

As she clenched her free hand into a tight fist and accidentally poked her palm with her claws, she could vaguely sense the presence of a powerful human nearby. Urokodaki had arrived. 

She let go of her brother’s hand and quickly wiped the drool off her chin and the sides of her mouth. She didn’t even notice when she had started drooling. How revolting.

“Ack!” The sound of her brother being tackled by the unnamed demon snapped her to attention.

She turned around to see what had happened just in time to witness Tanjiro slicing the demon across the neck with his hatchet. She’d applaud him for his reflexes if not for the situation. 

As the demon gloated about his regenerative abilities, Nezuko ran and slid in front of her brother, arms out in a protective gesture. She growled at the demon, pupils turning into slits as she glared daggers at him.

“What the hell? So you’re a demon too? No wonder you smelled so weird.” The demon remarked.

She made no move to answer him or acknowledge his words. It wasn’t worth the time and energy to take her muzzle off just to talk while in such close proximity to fresh corpses.

“What are you thinking, protecting that human, huh?! This is MY turf! Back off or I’ll kill you too!” He yelled and dashed towards her.

“Nezuko!” Her brother shouted in concern.

She swiftly dodged the demon’s outstretched claws before kicking him in the side, hard. He grunted as he flew straight into a tree, bones cracking against the trunk from the impact.

Tanjiro had a shocked look on his face, not expecting his younger sister to display so much strength.

“Aaauuugggghh! What the hell?! How are you so strong? You don’t even smell like you’ve eaten anybody at all!” The demon slowly righted his posture as he stood up and healed his injuries.

She mentally noted that other weaker demons seemed unable to detect the large amount of blood she had obtained from Muzan. Perhaps it was for the best. The less related she was to that horrible monster, the better.

Nezuko looked back to check on her brother’s condition, relieved to find him alright, only to become alert again when she saw his eyes widen in alarm.

Instinctively, she kicked the demon lunging for her at his chin. Unable to control how much strength she put into her leg because of the urgency, she had once again ended up kicking the demon’s head off his body.

“Y-you kicked his head off!” Her brother stammered. Understandably so. He would have never expected fights between demons to be so extreme, after all.

She gave him a look that told him it wasn’t over yet, and he understood immediately, likely because he had already seen her survive without her head.

She used her hands to signal to her brother, putting them against the sides of her head as if she were holding it and then pointing at him, before sweeping her hands in front of her body and then pointing at herself, hoping the message came across nicely enough.

Tanjiro nodded, to her relief. “Alright. Be careful, okay?”

She should be telling him that. But she smiled through the bamboo and nodded back at him before bracing herself for any sneak attacks from the separated demon parts.

She decided to let them fight the same body parts as before, only because it had mostly gone well the first time around. She wasn’t sure if she could trust her older brother with the demon’s headless body just yet, considering how it had overpowered even her originally.

Just like last time, the demon’s body parts took a while to get back up and pose a threat to either of them.

Trusting Tanjiro to pin the head to a tree just like he did originally, Nezuko took the initiative and tackled the body, throwing both of them into the forest.

Dodging and weaving, she avoided the demon body’s attacks much more easily than she had the first time she had fought it. She didn’t memorize any of its attack patterns; her memory wasn’t that good, but she felt different. 

It was as if her body was lighter and easier to control in a fight. It almost felt like she wasn’t sacrificing much to evolve in strength and slowly work towards conquering the sun this time around.

She chose to file that information away for another time. Although it was an easy fight, she didn’t want to lower her guard while thinking about something else. It was still a man-eating demon that she was up against, after all. And they were still being watched and judged by a former Hashira.

Nezuko made sure to take note of her surroundings and subtly led the body toward the cliff that she remembered. Thankfully, despite having some awareness of its own, it didn’t retain the sharp vision a demon usually had since it would need its eyes for that.

It moved to kick her hard enough to launch her a good distance, just like the first time. She wasn’t having that when she was so close to her goal, and she jumped back just in time, agitating it even further. She stood close to the edge of the cliff, watching the headless body closely for the perfect opportunity.

It charged forward in a burst of speed, even faster than when it had tackled her brother awhile ago. But Nezuko was quicker. She dodged slightly downwards and to the side, spinning so that she could heft the body onto her shoulder. 

Before it could process what she was doing, she used her demonic strength to change its trajectory and add even more momentum, throwing it hard at a slanted angle down the opposite side of the cliff neck-first.

The resounding THUMP shook the cliffside and caused some loose rocks to tumble and fall.

She peeked over the edge to see if it was knocked out and was slightly satisfied to see that it had indeed gone limp.

She stood and turned around, making her way back to the clearing where Tanjiro was supposed to be dealing with the head. Although she placed her trust in her older brother, she still couldn’t help but be slightly worried that a change to the original events could have occurred while she was away and put her brother in more danger.

“Ah, Nezuko!” She spotted her brother near the edge of the forest. He was running to check on her just as she was for him. Her shoulders sagged slightly in relief.

“Are you alright?” Tanjiro looked her over as they started walking back to the clearing together. 

Nezuko nodded reassuringly before tilting her head as if to ask the same question back.

“I’m alright! I headbutted the demon and stuck him to a tree with the hatchet!” He answered with a sheepish smile.

She already knew this, but still let out a muffled giggle anyway. It was nice seeing that he wasn’t so shaken anymore.

The lighthearted mood didn’t last for long as they reached the scene they were just at. Idly, she noted that the scent of blood had faded significantly. Urokodaki sure was quick with those bodies.

“He’s still there…” Murmured Tanjiro as they faced the head of the demon he had pinned to the tree. It was unconscious but very much still alive.

“We should put him out of his misery.” His voice dripped with hesitation. “How…do we do that?” He asked, facing Nezuko.

She pointed up at the sky first, hoping he would understand that she was referring to the sun. His eyes widened in recognition. Seeing her finger still simmering and all charred from the sunlight when he found her in the snow should be a good enough example of how dangerous sunlight was to demons.

“But.. the sun isn’t rising yet.”

She then used a hand to make a slicing motion across her neck, indicating decapitation. And then she tried to mimic the slicing motion of a katana with both hands, before holding her hair back in a low ponytail style, trying to emulate Tomioka Giyuu.

“Demon Slayers like Tomioka-san use special katanas for killing demons by beheading? You mean, I can’t use my hatchet or my dagger?” Tanjiro asked for clarification.

Nezuko nodded at both questions.

“But we don’t have a katana like that… Do we just wait until sunrise?” He asked himself rather than her this time. Before she could answer, a hand suddenly appeared from behind them and settled on her brother’s shoulder, startling him.

“What if I gave you one of these katanas?” The gruff voice coming from none other than Urokodaki Sakonji was one she sorely missed. Although the warmth it had taken on eventually as they got closer was notably absent, she didn’t look for it. She understood why he held a harsher tone towards them on their very first meeting.

“H-huh?” Tanjiro was understandably still catching up to this turn of events. He wasn’t aware of how long the former Hashira had been watching them and listening to their conversation.

“I’m willing to lend you one of these ‘special katanas’.” The older man held said sword out, the sheen of its blue eerily similar to that of Giyuu’s own blade.

Tanjiro, ever the good-natured boy that he was, didn’t seem to think to ask why the masked man won’t just finish the demon off himself. He now seemed aware of the fact that they were being tested.

The older Kamado held his hands out to allow Urokodaki to give the katana to him without much difficulty.

He then faced the unconscious demon head once more, sword held in front of him with both hands.

“But he has no neck. How am I supposed to behead him?” He shakily asked.

“Can’t you figure that out yourself?” Came the rough non-answer of the retired slayer.

Tanjiro gulped and tried to position the katana at an angle, obviously considering the possibility of slashing it by the chin, the closest thing you can get to beheading a head. But his hands trembled with reluctance. 

Even when presented with a less painful way to kill a demon, he still hesitated. She couldn’t blame him. He had never tried to kill someone where his thinking was influenced by pressure and adrenaline. But now he had to think deeply about the best way to kill someone, something a kind charcoal-maker like him never dreamed about having to ruminate over.

Nezuko placed a clawed hand on both of his, where the hilt of the sword lay, hoping to calm his nerves. As much as the original events weren’t too bad, she didn’t want to stand back and avoid providing support to her brother just because ‘it would turn out okay’.

Her older brother looked at her, searching her gaze and finding the assurance that he needed.

Still with great reluctance, he finally pressed the cool blade against the head and pushed. She kept her hand on his and helped him along, trying to make the cut a little smoother.

The Nichirin blade sliced through the demon easily, especially through his tangled hair, which resulted in the top part falling away from the hatchet. And then the telltale sign of death came, with the demon slowly disintegrating away.

Tanjiro gasped after letting out a breath that he had been holding in. To kill someone like that, it was obviously doing numbers to his psyche.

Urokodaki stayed silent throughout the entire ordeal. And even though a mask was covering his face, Nezuko could still tell that he was slightly disappointed.

They stood there for a while before her senses started tingling, warning her. Sunrise was coming.

“Mmm!” She made a noise to alert her brother and somewhat ask for his permission, pointing to the east as the sky was starting to lighten.

He understood immediately and nodded, watching her as she put the basket she was carrying down and settled into it.

“Thank you, Nezuko. For everything just now.” He whispered before putting the lid on and tying the cloth, before securing the basket on his back.

She shifted her position inside the basket so that she would be as comfortable as she could make herself, accounting for the running that her brother would soon be participating in.

“I am Urokodaki Sakonji.” She heard the masked man introduce himself to her brother. “I’m assuming you’re the one Tomioka Giyuu sent my way.”

“Ah, yes! My name is Kamado Tanjiro!” Her brother replied politely. “My sister’s name is Nezuko, and-”

“Tanjiro.” The old man cut him off. “What will you do when your sister devours a human?”

Her older brother was unable to answer, just like the first time.

The resounding sound of a slap was expected, but still unpleasant. Nezuko wasn’t very happy that her brother had been hurt.

“Too slow! You are just too slow at making decisions!” The gruff voice reprimanded.

“Your resolve is too weak! You cannot simply rely on your sister to help you decide all the time.”

“I’ll tell you what to do if your sister kills a human… Kill your sister, and then slit your own belly and die. That’s what it means to be travelling with your sister who became a demon!”

Nezuko felt weird overhearing this conversation. Perhaps she should have willed herself to sleep sooner to avoid such an awkward feeling.

“But that must never happen, no matter what. And you’d best not forget. Your sister, taking the life of an innocent person, that’s the one thing that must never happen. Ever!” He continued.

She wondered how he would react if he knew that she came from a future where she had turned back into a human while remaining clean.

“Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“Yes!” Tanjiro finally replied. Hearing his voice again put Nezuko’s mind at ease, so she decided to finally relax and take a nap to regain some energy.

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When she awoke, she was tucked into a futon and a blanket inside of Urokodaki’s home.

It was this familiar sight that alerted her. She had completely forgotten about the 2-year coma! Had she fallen under it once more? But her body didn’t feel significantly different compared to when she fell asleep.

Sitting up, she saw Urokodaki sitting to her left. It seemed like he had been watching over her. She looked at him and tilted her head, hoping he caught the question in her gaze.

“Your brother is still taking his test. He’s making his way down the mountain as I speak.” The retired slayer answered her.

Her shoulders sagged in relief, glad that she didn’t lose years of her life again and that she wouldn’t end up worrying her brother about never waking up over the course of his training.

“I was watching since before the fight began.” His gruff voice surprised her, so she turned her head to face him again. She was not expecting the man to strike a conversation with her while they were waiting.

“I saw the way you struggled with the hunger when faced with so many fresh corpses. And how you resisted. I can smell a large amount of his blood inside you. But you refuse to give in to the instincts he gave.” He continued.

Nezuko couldn’t help the way her gaze hardened when a certain someone was mentioned. She sometimes fantasized about participating in the final battle so that she could witness his pathetic demise in person.

“I hope you know that what you have done is truly one-of-a-kind. The Corps does not spare demons lightly, Kamado Nezuko. Be aware that in taking you in and protecting you, Tomioka Giyuu, your brother and I have all staked our lives as punishment should you fail to be kept in check, whether by any of us or yourself.”

His tone carried a gravity befitting his words. She nodded resolutely, already aware of all of this.

The conversation didn’t go further as Urokodaki suddenly looked towards the doorway, causing her gaze to follow.

She felt him before she heard him. His presence was weak and flickering from exhaustion, but she had already expected that from the descriptions she had read in his journals.

Hunched over in the doorway, panting heavily, was Tanjiro. Injuries littered his body, which was covered in dirt and branches. Basically, he was a mess.

“I…have…returned.”

It hurt Nezuko to see her older brother this beaten up, but she knew that it was necessary.

She moved to stand up when she saw him sink to his knees, about to pass out. But she couldn’t get to him yet, not when the sun was shining down on his back.

“...I accept you as my student, Kamado Tanjiro.” Uttered Urokodaki with a tinge of respect before standing up and taking the boy’s unconscious form inside, so that he could rest and heal properly.

Nezuko couldn’t help the look of pride she wore as she helped tend to her brother’s wounds, easily ignoring the smell of his blood. 

She’ll help him train this time. In whatever way she could, she was going to make the most of these next two years.

Chapter Text

Nezuko watched over Tanjiro the entire day, unable to do much else since Urokodaki wasn’t keen on letting her handle any of the chores at the moment. Perhaps he didn’t trust her to be careful with her newly gained superhuman strength and sharp claws.

She was itching to do house chores to achieve a sense of familiarity and routine, but she had best not overstep any boundaries. She didn’t want the man to become even more wary of her if she tried to do anything behind his back so soon after being taken in.

The older man had asked her if she was willing to see if she could substitute human meat with normal food instead. But just from the smell of the breakfast he had prepared, she knew that she couldn’t stomach the meal that would have been mouthwatering to her when she was still human, so she refused.

She occasionally took some naps, hiding away in a corner each time to make sure the sunlight didn’t accidentally reach her in her sleep.

Nezuko used her free time to think more about what she should do now that she hadn’t fallen into a deep sleep even after all the napping.

Should she help her brother grasp the concept of breathing techniques faster than he originally did? Could she? 

She was never that great at getting foreign concepts like her brother was. Even after reading through his journals over and over again and listening to everyone’s stories earnestly, she still found herself lost and confused.

Nezuko knew that demon slayers turned demons were still able to make use of breathing techniques, like Upper 1 and the Upper 6 that had replaced Gyutaro (she refused to acknowledge him as Zenitsu’s former adoptive brother). But would it affect an inexperienced demon such as herself? Could they even get stronger from training?

Usually, she’d have a better time understanding things if she had experienced them as well. Does that mean she would have to learn breathing techniques to help her brother master them faster? Was she even allowed to?

Was it even okay for her to ask?

Her pondering was cut off when she heard shifting in front of her, and she quickly paid attention to the fact that Tanjiro was now waking up.

“Mmm!” She called out, knowing that hearing a familiar voice would help him be less disoriented upon coming to. It could also alert the nearby retired Hashira to what was happening if he hadn’t been aware yet.

“Ow, ow, ow…” Her older brother hissed out as he tried to sit up and failed.

“Ah, Nezuko…you’re awake.” He uttered, and she had to resist rolling her eyes and taking her bamboo off just to say ’I should be saying that to YOU!’

The reason she couldn’t take her muzzle off had finally appeared by Tanjiro’s side and started reapplying some healing ointment. 

Urokodaki didn’t let Nezuko rub the ointment on her brother’s injuries the first time around, so she was sure he was still not open to the thought of her taking her bamboo muzzle off just yet, especially when blood was exposed. She’ll have to wait a while before even entertaining the thought of taking her restraints off.

“Go rest up. We will begin training tomorrow.” The older man said in a stern but soft voice.

“Yes, sir.” Tanjiro said, trying his best not to wince.

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The older Kamado recovered faster thanks to the special ointment provided by Urokodaki, causing Nezuko to grow curious about the exact ingredients and process behind such a medicine since she had partly dabbled in herbs and homemade remedies for her family.

By the next morning, he was deemed fit enough to start the training off lightly.

He was still a bit sore and sluggish, but he had insisted that he wanted to get stronger as soon as he could so that he could help cure her faster.

It took everything she had not to rip the muzzle off right then and there and give him one of her rare stern lectures about putting her and everyone else above himself.

The next best response she could give was stubbornly staying outside under the shade of trees while openly glaring at the hard-headed boy as he received an introduction to the Demon Slayer Corps.

Nezuko rarely got angry back when she was only dealing with humane matters, and it was even more unheard of for her to be irritated by Tanjiro of all people. But his stubbornness and constant self-pity sometimes drove her up the wall.

Back then, she had to drag him into the forest of Mt. Kumotori to tell him off without being overheard by their mother and younger siblings. It was when the loss of their father, Tanjuro, was still a fresh wound in everyone’s hearts. He took on a lot of burdens and felt the constant need to apologize and humble himself even further than most Kamados were prone to do.

She stewed in the irritation so much that she had missed the faint hint of amusement building up in Urokodaki’s tone of voice as Tanjiro squirmed under her unrelenting gaze.

(Another benefit she had neglected to appreciate so far about demons was that they didn’t need to blink when keeping their eyes open for extended periods of time.)

Nezuko finally knocked it off when they had moved onto trying basic exercises aimed at improving the body, her reprimanding stare now becoming a fascinated gaze full of curiosity.

She wanted to learn more about the training as closely as she could, after all. Just in case she could glean something that could help her brother out.

She watched as Tanjiro was made to dunk his head into a basin of water and keep it under for as long as he could handle, the exercise obviously meant for the lungs.

Next, he underwent other forms of exercise. Some focused on improving his core, others on his flexibility, and the rest on a mixture of strength and stamina.

She recognized a few of the exercises as ones that he had gone through to prepare for the Hinokami Kagura ceremony ever since their father had passed.

But his experience as a charcoal maker and seller who traveled up and down a mountain and the practice for the New Year ritual still wasn’t enough to prepare him for going through so many strenuous activities all at once.

Nezuko patted his back supportively as he slumped down next to her after they were done, panting hard and sweating heavily. Urokodaki soon approached them with a container filled with water in hand, which Tanjiro gulped down as greedily as a demon would with Marechi blood.

“That’s enough rest.” The masked man suddenly barked out. “Come, we will climb the mountain once again.”

“!!!” 

She let out a muffled laugh as her older brother made a noise of bafflement and complete exhaustion, even if he followed after his new mentor immediately.

The former Hashira glanced back at her, and she nodded before going back inside the house, since she had no more valid reasons to risk staying out and about.

She had already been feeling the familiar heaviness of sleepiness weighing upon her for some time, anyway. So after securing her spot in the most sun-proofed spot in the home, she lay down and started yet another nap. 

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When she opened her eyes, Urokodaki was already back from the hike, preparing dinner. Her brother was nowhere to be found, though she felt no sense of urgency since she could trust this man she came to care for as if he were their father or grandfather.

Nezuko watched lazily as he made small adjustments to the meal according to what he had observed from her brother’s mannerisms when he ate lunch and dinner the previous day.

She could already tell this man had gotten attached, and they hadn’t even been there for a week yet.

Rubbing her eyes with her clawed hands carefully without scratching herself, she thought back to when Zenitsu had to ask the masked man to bless his and Nezuko’s engagement. 

Normally, the prospective groom had to ask the girl’s father, or whoever the head of the household was. Tanjiro was the head of their house, despite Inosuke’s repeated claims of being their boss, but none of them felt comfortable treating the older Kamado sibling as if he were her father. 

He had already directly given his blessings anyway by pushing the Thunder Breath user along and convincing him to change his ways so that he had a better shot at getting her to reciprocate his feelings.

So they picked Urokodaki Sakonji as their best option. And that man was horrible at hiding the tears he was shedding behind that mask of his when they came over to ask. But they all chose to keep quiet about it to spare his pride.

Underneath the tough exterior was a man as caring as his face suggested. 

A man who took orphans in not to pass his technique down, but because he truly wanted to help them get the closure they so desperately sought. 

A man who painstakingly bought and set up new traps tailored to his students before any of them got up. 

A man who handcrafted customized masks for his children in hopes that they would protect them, but had unknowingly doomed them…

“You better not be glaring at me like you did to your brother the whole morning.” His gruff voice snapped her out of her reminiscing, causing her to find the floor very interesting to look at instead.

She should do less of that. Especially when she’s around people who could smell her emotions, and sometimes what she was doing. She might end up revealing too much without even meaning to.

Nezuko could overhear him huffing in amusement. And now she felt less worried and more embarrassed.

“You were quite invested in the training your brother is going through.” It came out as both a statement and a question.

“Mhmm.” She responded, finally finding it in herself to look back up. She wasn’t sure where this conversation was headed, since she never had a proper talk with him while she was a demon.

“Why is that, Kamado Nezuko? Is it because of guilt? Envy? Admiration? Protectiveness? Curiosity? A desire to help?” It was then that she realized that the man had been observing her scent closely during the earlier training session. 

How could she have forgotten that his nose was more experienced at distinguishing smells than Tanjiro’s?

No matter how much she mulled it over, he hit every single nail on the head. It was a combination of all of those factors. So she simply nodded.

“What do you plan to do about it then?” He asked.

That question stumped her. She had yet to come to a conclusion for her musings yesterday. She simply didn’t know enough. What if what she ended up doing only wasted the time she had been so graciously given? What if she somehow made things even worse?

What does he want her to do about it? How was she supposed to give him an answer when she couldn’t even open her mouth to ask for information that would help her decide what to do?

Nezuko was so distracted by her line of thought that she didn’t even register the retired Hashira smoothly untying her bamboo muzzle and snatching it away in one swift motion, until she unintentionally tried to purse her lips while thinking and felt the muzzle’s absence.

The first thing she felt was panic, her mind racing with even more questions as she clamped her hands over her mouth and turned to look at where Urokodaki had gone with the bamboo.

“First, stop waiting for others to give you the opportunity to earn their trust.” He chided her.

“Trust is best when earned, not when given. You are too afraid to take initiative, and you treat the possibility of even a minor negative consequence to be one step towards the worst-case scenario.”

She was following along somewhat. So he had been testing her still, not for her trustworthiness, but for her willingness to act and create chances instead of waiting for them. She had been so afraid of just getting disapproval for removing her muzzle that it was almost like she was afraid of him beheading her at the slightest infraction.

She could have chosen any moment to pull her muzzle off to speak, and look him in the eye as she showed how she didn’t lose focus around her brother’s open wounds. But she chose to hide behind the bamboo instead.

She could have proven herself sooner, than later. But chose not to.

He wanted her to learn how to quickly take initiative and build trust between her and other parties, since not all situations would allow her to take it nice and slow.

Once again, he was pressuring someone with his words while keeping their best interests in mind. And this time, it was directed at her, and not her brother. How she adored this man, and the way the rough texture of his mask hid the softness of his features both literally and metaphorically.

She teared up and sniffled as she let the mixture of emotions swell inside her. It was nice to have someone more mature than both she and her brother were reining her in and giving her the security and assurance she needed.

“Your demonic nature has not robbed you of the option to speak or act for yourself. Not everyone has the fortune of being heard or getting to choose. Do not squabble that opportunity even when others use their own words or actions against you.” Urokodaki’s voice then took on a softer quality.

“Now tell me! Do you want to do something? What is it? Do you wish to know something? Ask. Do not wait until you have lost your mouth to scream!” The conviction in his words was enough to bring Nezuko back from speechlessness.

“I….I want to know if I can train as a demon!” She closed her eyes and yelled.

“I don’t want to stand back and make Onii-chan do all the work. I want to help cure myself, too. And I don’t want him to be the one doing all the protecting when we’re out on the field. I want to help him and others. 

There’s no point trying to get used to being a demon for now if I’m not strong enough to help defeat other demons.” The words now fell from her mouth like water off a cliff.

“But could demons even train? Can they learn how to use breathing techniques? Would demon slayers be more afraid of me if I trained and used breathing techniques?” Her voice started trembling as she asked these questions.

Silence sat in the house as Nezuko sat there and wiped at her eyes. Urokodaki then walked over and kneeled as he put a hand on her head.

“I can tell your intentions are pure, so I will answer as honestly as you have asked.” He finally said before moving to sit in front of her.

He held the bamboo muzzle out towards her, and she stared at it for a moment before taking it back from him. But she made no move to put it back and simply kept it in her hands.

“Yes, demons can learn how to use breathing techniques, and get stronger through training.” He started.

“I have encountered some during my time as a demon slayer. A few demons eventually grew curious about the breathing techniques the slayers used against them and took the time to learn on their own. Others tried to train to make up for how inefficient they were at getting stronger from consuming humans.”

Her face lit up as she listened.

“It is about as taboo to train a demon as it is to spare one, so I see no problem in teaching you.”

“But be aware that you will not be allowed to take the Final Selection and officially become a Demon Slayer. The test takes place on a mountain surrounded by wisteria trees. You won’t be able to get in or out on your own.”

“I understand! And thank you for agreeing to teach me, Sensei!” Nezuko bowed with her head touching the floor.

“Uh, there’s no need for that.. And don’t call me that, your brother doesn’t.”

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The two of them worked together on the remaining house chores while waiting for Tanjiro to get back. She had been told that he wasn’t given a time limit this time to account for the state of his body, so it naturally took him longer.

Nezuko was reheating the dinner when she finally sensed the familiar, exhausted presence approaching them.

“I’m…hah, back..!” Her older brother announced. He looked less beat up this time around.

“Good.” Urokodaki handed him a container with water. “Drink, wash up, and eat dinner.”

The older Kamado nodded and started to do just that, too tired to even notice that his younger sister had her muzzle hanging around her neck.

“Ah, the sun has fully set.” She remarked just as her mind had supplied that information to her. “Will I begin training tonight?”

“Do you want to?” Came a quick reply from the masked man.

“Yes! I want to!” She replied, not even noticing her brother standing by the doorway, freshened up but wearing a flabbergasted expression.

“Eh? Training? Wait, you’re talking to him now? When? What?”

Nezuko giggled and started preparing dinner for her brother as Urokodaki kept quiet.

She decided to explain to her confused brother the general gist of the conversation they had while he was gone.

Tanjiro earnestly listened as he ate, his face twisting with different emotions.

“Nezuko…I can’t say I’m all that happy about you training. But I understand. And Nii-chan will support you just like you want to support me!”

When they stood outside at night, Urokodaki gave her brother a katana and instructed him to swing it repeatedly at least 100 times. From what she remembered, the number of required katana swings increased per day.

Tanjiro gulped as he tried weighing the katana in his hands before wishing Nezuko good luck and finding a good spot to start that was far enough to not have their voices disturbing each other as she awaited her own instructions.

Her exercises were noticeably different from Tanjiro’s. The most obvious being that she didn’t have any that were focused on increasing her lung capacity or her flexibility. Demons only breathed out of familiarity, not because they needed to. They could stay in bodies of water for as long as they wanted, and it wouldn’t impact their lungs at all.

Urokodaki told her that this actually gave her an edge over other slayers, as this reduced the amount of drawbacks she could experience from learning and using breathing techniques. The fact that this meant that she would have a much easier time learning how to do Total Concentration: Constant was left unsaid.

She wasn’t allowed to descend the mountain and avoid traps at the moment, because they were still unsure of what they should do if the sun came up mid-descent and she was unable to hide away in time. 

Their trainer wanted to be able to watch over her, but she knew that he would already be spending a lot of his time watching over Tanjiro. The man’s stamina was immense, but ultimately still limited.

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Days passed by, with the Kamados slowly getting used to their new routines. Urokodaki trained Tanjiro during the day, and then trained Nezuko at night. Of course, he needed his rest, so there were times when they would be left with a list of tasks to get through without his supervision.

He agreed on letting the Kamado siblings go to the nearby towns to purchase necessities and supplies every now and then, giving the retired Hashira more opportunities to rest. 

The very first time, she had asked if it was alright for them to visit the woman who gave them directions to reassure her that they were not killed off by the demon in the temple. They were permitted. Though she ended up having to carry her tired older brother and most of what they bought during the night because of the longer journey.

Nezuko immediately decided to shrink as far as she could into the basket during these runs so that she would be lighter and her brother could fit some items in it.

She vaguely remembered Hantengu’s clothes growing and shrinking with him. Perhaps she should try practicing that next time so that her own clothes wouldn’t get in the way too much next time.

Despite the training being harsh and forcing her to sleep more often, she was quite happy with the time she spent on Mt. Sagiri with her brother and their mentor. One day, she woke up in the afternoon to a rather strange mood.

Tanjiro was oddly despondent. His mind was burdened by thoughts to the point that he had frequently forgotten what he was doing throughout the day. This worried Nezuko immensely when she concluded that it wasn’t due to lack of sleep.

 And she was sure that Urokodaki had caught on as well, since he decided he would be the one buying supplies and ingredients this time. It seems he wanted the siblings to talk things out.

When she helped bandaged his finger after he had accidentally nicked it with a knife while preparing for dinner, she realized he wasn’t going to say anything unless pushed. So she finally decided to ask.

“Onii-chan, what’s wrong?” She asked, looking him in the eye as she set his bandaged hand back down. Tanjiro sighed and looked down, appearing guilty.

“Today is the day before the New Year starts.” He answered, and she understood what the significance of that day was to him, to them.

“How many times will I have to tell you? There’s nothing you could have done. If you didn’t go down to sell charcoal or if you came back up that same night, I could’ve lost you, too. You going down the mountain that day so we could have more food for New Year’s Eve, was a good thing.”

“No, no. It’s not that, Nezuko.” He tried to smile reassuringly. “It’s just…”

“...”

“Just what, Oni-chan? Do you want me to recite everything Urokodaki-san said to me about hesitating to say what I want so you can learn that lesson too?” She pouted, not liking it when he got like this.

“We won’t be able to do the ceremony this year.” He finally told her. “The items we need for the ritual are all back home. And it’s days away from here. I only remembered what the date was when Urokodaki-san mentioned it to me in the morning.”

It made more sense now. Nezuko recalled reading from her brother’s journal that he had also felt some shame and guilt every time New Year’s Eve passed by while he was on the mountain, but he was too worried about her comatose state to think about much else.

“You feel bad about breaking the family tradition.” She stated for clarification. And he nodded.

“Onii-chan. I’m sure our family wouldn’t mind. They care much more about our well-being than a kagura. Nobody who came up with it ever thought that our lives would just be uprooted by demons.”

“I know, but-” She shushed him by pressing his lips shut with her index finger.

“When we get more used to the training and get permission from Urokodaki-san, let’s go back home and hold a late ceremony. How about that?” She suggested, hoping that this younger Tanjiro would be as open to the idea as he was in the future she had come from.

He stayed quiet as he crossed his arms and mulled it over. She pulled her hand back and watched him.

“A-alright. We’ll go do that.”

“Now to see about getting some bigger clothes and a big umbrella so I can watch the entire dance without burning by the end.” She joked, and he laughed before suddenly pulling her into a hug.

“Thank you, Nezuko…” He murmured. She smiled and hugged him back.

“So are outsiders allowed to watch as well?” They both jumped at hearing the gruff voice of Urokodaki, who was standing at the doorway for who knows how long.

“Ah, Sensei, you’re back!”

“I told you not to call me that.”

“Sorry!” Nezuko rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.

“But to answer your question, yes. People who aren’t of Kamado descent are welcome to watch!” Tanjiro smiled up at the older man.

“...May I?”

Brother and sister blinked, both not expecting such a question from their mentor. But they then broke out into grins.

“Of course!” The Kamados answered at the same time.

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About three days later, Nezuko awoke one afternoon to the sight of a weak-looking crow hobbling around in the house. She recognized that sweet elderly bird anywhere! It was Kanzaburou, Giyuu’s designated Kasugai Crow.

She almost shot straight up in her excitement to see the forgetful bird, but she quickly remembered that she wasn’t supposed to know him yet. So she rubbed her eyes with one hand and beckoned the crow closer with the other, trying to appear fascinated instead.

“Who’s this little guy?” She asked Urokodaki, who was writing a letter at the table in the common area.

“That’s Kanzaburou. Each slayer is assigned a Kasugai Crow after passing the Final Selection. This one is Giyuu’s.” He answered.

“Oh? Is Tomioka-san here?” She didn’t have to hide her excitement that much anymore on the topic of the slayer that had spared her.

“He is not. But it is his birthday.”

Nezuko blinked. She had almost forgotten that that year’s New Year was just a couple of days before Giyuu’s birthday! She had focused on the date of the New Year so much that she neglected to keep track of the birthday of one of her friends!

Although, perhaps it was a good thing. It would have been suspicious for her to know about it, in any case.

“Could you tell him I said hi? And that I wish him a happy birthday?” She asked as she gently stroked the feathers on Kanzaburou’s back.

Tanjiro chose that moment to poke his head out of the room he was staying in, grin wide with excitement.

“I already have! Is there something else you want me to put in our letter, Nezuko?”

“You’re writing one for Tomioka-san, too? Ooo, let me see!” She got up and walked over, cradling the sleepy Kanzaburou in her arms.

She was not surprised at all to see that her brother had already written a whole lot, even to someone he had only met once. She even noticed an invitation to come watch him perform the Hinokami Kagura with Urokodaki written in there.

She happily told him what she wanted to add after reading the letter through, not minding at all that they wouldn’t even hear back from the active Water Hashira.

Nezuko was already aware from the future Urokodaki’s stories that Giyuu had never replied to any of the letters he had sent him since Sabito had died. He never replied to anyone except for the Ubuyashikis.

The letter he sent to his master about the Kamados was the first letter in years, so Urokodaki was even more hard-pressed to give them a chance and honor the rare request of his student.

Even if Giyuu wouldn’t start replying any time soon, he does still read the letters and appreciate their contents. So, Nezuko didn’t hold back on the sentiments she and her brother poured into the writing.

Once they were all finished, Urokodaki gave the letters to Kanzaburou and then fed him a little snack for the trouble before sending him off.

While she was still waving farewell at the retreating figure of the senior Kasugai Crow, the former Hashira that released it turned to Tanjiro.

“You’ve had a long enough break. Time to descend the mountain again.”

“Y-yes, sir!” Her older brother definitely forgot about continuing his training since he was so engrossed with writing.

Nezuko shook her head and smiled as she watched Tanjiro and Urokodaki leave for the summit.

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“I’m sure he’ll be fine. Saburo-san has probably made your Nii-chan stay for the night.”

“Who’s that at the door?”

“Wow, he must be cold in those clothes!”

“Shigeru, hush! Do you need something, sir?”

“Onee-chan! Run for it!!!”

“So they die from this much blood?”

Nezuko woke up with a strangled scream and tears streaming from her eyes. Once again, she was having a nightmare of her family’s massacre. It was the most frequent of all the bad dreams she had since turning back into a human.

“Nezuko! What’s wrong?!” Tanjiro ran up to her, worry etched into every inch of his face. From the looks of it, he had just finished up with his sword swings and had already started resting for the day.

Urokodaki followed not too far behind, but not too closely in case she wasn’t too keen on seeing someone that she hadn’t known her entire life.

“I-I dreamt about what happened… that night…” She tried her best not to hiccup as she spoke. Her older brother’s gaze immediately softened, and he seemed to be one more moment away from shedding tears himself.

“The attack?” He asked gently as he sat down in front of her and held her hands in his. She nodded weakly.

“I saw the one who did it…” She confessed. Something seemed to have clicked in Tanjro’s mind as his grip tightened slightly without his knowing.

“Him? What did he look like?” The monotony in his voice was unsettling.

“I’ll tell you, but please calm down first, Onii-chan.” She replied.

He snapped out of the anger that had taken hold of him and let go of her hands before taking a deep breath. “I’m sorry…”

“What did I tell you about apologizing so much?” She couldn’t help but chide him.

“Not to do it too much.” He muttered, and the mood didn’t seem too heavy anymore.

“Alright, I’ll tell you. He was a pale man who looked like he was in his 20s. He had black wavy hair and red eyes. And he wore western-looking clothes. He looked almost completely human. I know who he is, too.”

Both Tanjiro and Urokodaki were paying rapt attention to her as she spoke. But the masked man jolted to the last part, and she knew why.

“What do you mean you know who he is?” Her brother asked, confused.

“Nezuko, if that is who I’m thinking of, do NOT speak his name.” There was a grave warning in the man’s voice.

“What? Why?” Tanjiro only grew more confused.

“Kibutsuji Muzan.” She finally uttered, and their mentor’s breath hitched in fear.

A beat, then nothing happened. So she continued.

“The King of Demons. The First Demon. He was the one who came to our home and killed everyone. He turned me into a demon.”

“You truly have escaped his control…” Awe and relief filled Urokodaki’s voice. 

Her brother was reaching unprecedented levels of confusion.

“All demons are created with a curse. They aren’t allowed to say his name or reveal much information about him. If they managed to get past the natural fear that he had implanted in them, he would kill them.” Tanjiro’s eyes widened at the explanation.

“But yo-”

“I broke free. I can’t remember when exactly, but when I woke up after the encounter with Tomioka-san, I couldn’t feel his hold on me any longer.” She then looked at the former Hashira. “I can give all the information I have about the Demon Slayers’ primary target without dying.”

“..Let’s hear it, then. I would ask if you were willing, but I can tell that you are.” Urokodaki motioned for her brother to give her a bit more space.

“Muzan tried turning all of us into demons.” Nezuko started, and Tanjiro was understandably horrified.

“I don’t know why, but he assumed that our family had a high chance of producing the demon he wanted.”

“He wanted a demon that could conquer the sun.” Their mentor guessed.

“But he put a lot of blood into all of us. And he thought that I didn’t survive and left. What he thought he was achieving by injecting us with such a lethal amount, I would never know.”

“I should tell the leader of the Corps about this. Perhaps they can look into why your family seemed like a promising lead. And discuss the possibility that his assumptions were not unfounded.”

The mention of the Oyakata, who was still Ubuyashiki Kagaya at the time, sparked an idea in Nezuko’s head. Kiriya had admitted to them that Kagaya had purposefully sent them to meet with…. What if…

“There’s also something else!” She cut off Urokodaki’s explanation to Tanjiro about why the Demon King would even want to create a demon immune to sunlight.

“He mentioned someone. A fugitive. When I heard her name, orders flashed in my mind.” She did all she could not to let them smell anything that would point to her deception.

“A fugitive? Orders?” Her brother pressed on.

“Kill on sight. I think all demons under his control were given these orders. As he walked away, he mentioned that there were rumors in Asakusa pointing to this fugitive, and that he planned on sending more demons there to investigate.”

“Who is it?” Nezuko steeled her nerves. She had already planted the lie, she might as well stick with it.

“Tamayo. A traitor to demonkind.”

END OF CHAPTER 4 YIPPEE 

Also

My friend, Straw, recently drew me an avatar! I’m actually already using it as my icon here hahaha. But here’s the non-cropped version!:

Chapter Text

“A traitor, you say?” Urokodaki had leaned forward slightly, clearly interested in the topic.

“Yes. She broke free from Kibutsuji’s curse and has been in hiding. Based on how he talked about her and the orders he gave, it seems like she’s working against him.”

“You mean that there could be another good demon out there?” Tanjiro was excited at the thought. More good demons sounded good to him.

“Our situation isn’t the first time a Demon Slayer spared a demon. She may have been from one of those cases. Demons have existed for more than a thousand years, after all.” The former Hashira rubbed his chin.

“There’ve been others? What happened to them?” The older Kamado tilted his head.

“Most of them were executed.” The trainer answered bluntly. Tanjiro was once again horrified.

“Executed?! Will we be as well if we get caught?”

“I have asked the leader of the Corps, the Oyakata, to sanction your situation under the condition that Nezuko never kills a human. But I would advise trying to avoid slayers stronger and faster than yourself, like the Hashira. The crows might not be able to stop them in time.”

“Wait, you said most. What happened to the rest?” It was Nezuko’s turn to ask.

“Some have fled and were never heard of again. A few were killed by the very demons they put their faith in. I hear there was at least one slayer that was simply banished instead of executed.” So the outcomes changed depending on the details of the situation, which made sense.

“All of the spared demons were closely monitored by Kasugai Crows of the Oyakata throughout the ages. Slayers were usually deployed to kill them if they stepped out of line. And it seemed almost all of them did.”

“You mean we’re being monitored right now, too?” Tanjiro was unsettled, though that was to be expected.

“Does that mean that the current Oyakata knows about Tamayo?” Nezuko steered the discussion back on course.

“I would not be surprised if he had been aware of her existence. The leaders of the Corps possess higher intellect and great foresight.”

“May we go and meet her?” She finally asked, hoping she wouldn’t be rejected.

Urokodaki stayed quiet for a moment. “...Why?”

“I want to know if she’s truly a good demon like me. And ask her about her experiences and knowledge. She could have useful tricks for staying a good demon. And if she has any valuable information against Muzan.” Nezuko explained.

Her brother’s face lit up as he listened. It looked like the possibility had given him hope for asking a demon about a cure. Which he wouldn’t have been wrong about in hindsight.

“Hmm…” The masked man mulled it over for a few moments, making both her and her brother nervous.

“i-if we find out that she’s a bad demon, we can kill her and prevent her from killing more innocent people…” Tanjiro suggested weakly.

Urokodaki looked at Nezuko. “What do you think about your brother’s suggestion just now?” 

She stared back at him with conviction and determination in her eyes.

“I have no objections. If she hasn’t been stopping herself from doing the one thing that she was spared for, then I won’t be against giving her the death that would give her victims the justice they deserve.”

He nodded before standing up and heading to the drawers, opening one which she recognized as the storage for writing materials.

“I will have to consult with the Oyakata first and seek his permission for a trip to Asakusa. As I have said, he has superhuman foresight. We’ll have to ask him if this move would be good or bad.”

Nezuko nodded, cheering silently in her own mind.

“Ah, right. Is there more you’d like to share before I write?”

“Muzan attacked us with a large, fleshy tentacle that had spikes all over it. It was faster than anything I’ve ever seen. And it turns back into a normal human-looking arm after. That’s all I can recall at the moment…”

“Your description is more valuable than you might think. Sightings of the Demon King are few and far between. People who survive such encounters are rarer still.”

“Yeah, Nezuko! You’re awesome!” Tanjiro added in.

Urokodaki let the Kamado Siblings read over the letter he was writing to see if they wanted to add something. Nezuko was pleased to see that he didn’t need much reminding, and he even included a suggestion to look into their family background for why they were targeted. She hoped this was another small push towards getting earlier, believable revelations that would lead to the Kamados' relationship with the inventor of breathing styles.

“You don’t have to train tonight, Nezuko.” The masked man told her as he prepared his own crow for the delivery of the letter.

“What? Why?” She asked, not aware it was even possible for her to be excused from training because of her increased stamina and because she had just woken up.

“You just woke up screaming and crying from reliving the worst day of your life, and you allowed yourself to wallow in those memories longer in order to describe your family’s killer. You deserve a longer rest.”

“But I have so much energy since I just woke up. And I want to train!”

“Alright, you may train if you want. But you don’t have to complete any of the exercises if you don’t want to. Feel free to stop as soon as you want and go rest with your brother.”

“Thank you, Urokodaki-san!” She jumped and gave the old man a quick hug before running to the training grounds.

“Ahaha, Nezuko has always been a bigger hugger than I am.” Tanjiro watched her bound off with a smile.

“I can tell.”

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A few days have passed since then. Tanjiro has just had the difficulty of his daily descents increased, while Nezuko has started the part of the training where one has to rush Urokodaki and ‘fall properly’. He threw her further and further, telling her to remember that fights between demons tend to be more brutal and reach wider. 

It is important to learn the best way to prevent herself from gaining too much distance between her and the initial site of battle, especially if she has comrades nearby. And even more so if there were civilians in danger.

It was during one such session, where she tried to hang onto a tree to stay near but ended up accidentally slicing through it with her claws, that the crow they had sent out finally returned. Training was paused promptly, and they went back inside to read the response they’d been waiting for.

“Tanjiro!” Urokodaki barked out as they walked into the house. “We got a reply.”

Her brother came scrambling out of his room to greet them by the doorway. Just one look at his demeanor revealed that he was too excited to remember the exhaustion he was previously feeling because of the intense training he had endured for the day.

“Is it good news?!” He panted out as he looked up at their mentor with hope shining in his eyes.

“Slow down. We haven’t read it yet.” The siblings were motioned to sit down.

Nezuko giggled as Tanjiro scratched the back of his head and apologized before sitting down next to her.

Urokodaki gently opened the letter and read it for a few moments. Both of the Kamados leaned forward in barely contained anticipation.

“A trip to Asakusa to investigate the so-called fugitive named Tamayo has been approved.” The masked man announced.

“Ya-”

“But!” Urokodaki cut him off. “It is advised to not have Tanjiro join. For the reasons that Muzan or his demons might have already gone to Asakusa and having an inexperienced person presents more risks in the event of an encounter than benefits. It is recommended to bring the least amount of people possible to keep a low profile.”

Her older brother visibly wilted, and Nezuko felt disappointment as well. She wanted her brother to go with them, but she could understand why the Ubuyashikis would want to be as careful with this sudden suggestion as possible.

“There is also the matter of the Kamado family being targeted. They have yet to find anything about the reason your family was a lead that Kibutsuji pursued. With the assumption that the Demon King may have heard descriptions about the last living Kamado, it is in our best interests not to have Tanjiro show up where Muzan may be.”

“Oh, right… If that man ever finds out that Onii-chan was from the family he killed, he might try turning him into a demon too and make sure he survives the process.” 

She almost felt sick to her stomach at the thought of encountering the demonic version of her brother this early. They would stand no chance.

She still had no idea how her brother was able to conquer the sun so quickly compared to her. Even the explanation of Muzan manipulating the cells to focus only on gaining immunity wouldn’t completely explain the disparity. There was something about her brother that made him more suitable to be the chosen demon. She hoped she would find out why.

“Does that mean it’ll just be the two of you?” Tanjiro asked uneasily.

“At the least, yes. I am welcome to make a request for anyone I would think would benefit us, but they would prefer it if Nezuko was accompanied by me alone.” Urokodaki answered. He didn’t make it clear how he felt about the news.

“But if we requested someone who wasn’t Tomioka-san, they’ll find out I’m a demon and get angry, right?” She asked.

“That is exactly why they prefer a 2-person trip. I am not closely acquainted with any of the active Demon Slayers apart from Giyuu. Even if they were to be briefed about the situation beforehand, there’s no guaranteeing how it will go.”

“Could we ask for Tomioka-san, then?” Her brother asked, his face filled with worry for the two of them.

“Not for accompanying us.” Urokodaki responded. Tanjiro’s face fell once more.

“Some demons are capable of sensing the fighting capabilities and strengths of humans. Muzan or whoever he might have sent to investigate would undoubtedly have this ability. Giyuu is currently an active Hashira. His presence would be noticed immediately.”

“What’s a Hashira?” He tilted his head, earrings clacking.

“The highest rank in the Corps. The strongest current Demon Slayers. Tomioka Giyuu is the Water Hashira. I was a Water Hashira before him.”

“Oh… Wait, I almost killed a Hashira?!” Tanjiro muttered in horror, but not quietly enough.

“You…what?” The masked man snapped his head in the older Kamado’s direction so quickly that Nezuko almost expected his neck to twist off. 

It made sense that he immediately concluded that her brother was talking about Giyuu, since there had yet to be a single instance in these weeks where he was even close to almost killing the retired slayer.

“I think that’s a story we can tell for another day, hahaha!” She tried to steer the discussion back. 

Urokodaki cleared his throat.

“As I was saying, an old retired slayer such as myself will be less detectable than Giyuu. Not only will I be less likely to attract the attention of possible enemies, my weaker presence would also be less likely to scare off Tamayo.”

“Wait, why would she be scared off?” Nezuko asked.

“A demon who has been hiding and isn’t openly in collaboration with the Corps would also be cautious about slayers. Even if she may be against Muzan, she and the Corps don’t completely trust each other at the moment.”

“Do you think the Oyakata approved of this trip with the intention of establishing some trust between Tamayo and the Demon Slayers?”

“I wouldn’t put it past him, even if he didn’t mention as much in the letter.”

“I see.” Nezuko thought about that line of thought. 

If they successfully meet up with Tamayo and Yushiro on this trip, would she and Tanjiro still be led to Asakusa in two years? Would it be to meet up again? Or did Kagaya truly intend for Tanjiro to run into Muzan AND Tamayo? She wished she knew.

“In any case, I will ask for Giyuu to be given a temporary leave.” Urokodaki said.

“Huh? But you said you shouldn’t bring him along.” Tanjiro appeared to be trying to recall everything they had just discussed.

“Well, I can’t exactly leave a 13-year-old boy alone here for however long it may take.” Replied the masked man as he prepared to write back.

“Eh?”

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Nezuko couldn’t help but stare at the Hashira in front of her. From her perspective, it had only been less than a month since she last saw the black-haired man. Seeing how open and joyful he was in the future made her almost get mental whiplash when she was faced with the Giyuu of the past.

Urokodaki had just finished briefing the younger man on what stage of training Tanjiro had reached, since they intended to have the current Hashira watch over her brother and facilitate his training while they were gone.

“Thank you for agreeing to take care of my brother, Tomioka-san.” She pulled her muzzle off slightly to speak. Giyuu blinked as he looked at her.

“You can speak.” A question hidden behind a statement. To other people, it would have sounded offensive. But she knew he meant no harm.

“Yeah, she retained a lot more of her humanity than she did when she first woke up!” Tanjro cheerily cut in.

“Though she still keeps the bamboo since she told me it’s good for keeping her extra-grounded.”

“I see.” Knowing him, he probably felt bad for forcing a muzzle on her. And he would have felt worse without the reassurance that she needed it.

“Giyuu. When we get back, you’re telling me all about how you almost let an inexperienced boy kill you.” Urokodaki announced threateningly as he finished packing for the trip.

Nezuko and Tanjiro shared a look as the Water Hashira tried his best not to flinch at the thought of being reprimanded by the older man.

“Anyway, we’ll be off now!” She declared before her brother suddenly pulled her into a hug.

“Be careful, okay?” He whispered.

“I will.” She whispered back as she returned the hug before pulling back and securing the bamboo back on her mouth.

Urokodaki then started to run down the mountain, Nezuko following closely behind as she hoped that everything will be alright.

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Because of their pace, they were able to get to Asakusa in less than two days, despite the stops they had to make to rest and to hide Nezuko in the basket when the sun was out.

The city was no less impressive as it was when she and Tanjiro first visited. Lights adorned every structure so brightly, you could be forgiven for assuming it wasn’t nighttime. People flooded the streets, and they had to be careful not to bump into someone in the large but crowded street. It was almost as if the city were in a perpetual festival. Nezuko almost couldn’t believe she was able to sleep through all of this brightness and noise.

“Did you sense anything yet?” Urokodaki asked her.

She shook her head.

“I’ve been smelling a faint hint of demon, not you, but somehow I can’t pinpoint what direction it’s coming from. If it’s her, she’s likely making use of a highly effective Blood Demon Art.”

She knew that had to be Yushiro’s cloaking ability at work. She didn’t feel the oppressive presence of any Muzan-aligned demons nearby at all.

They pulled away from the busy street into a quiet part of the city that favored residences over businesses.

“Do you think we can find a way to lure her out? Or convince her that we don’t mean any harm?” She asked, not pulling the bamboo away too much so that any passing people wouldn’t spot her fangs.

“The second choice would require her to be watching us. I could find a Marechi, but if we’re to assume she hasn’t been feeding on humans this entire time, then the bait would alarm her instead of entice her.”

“Marechi?”

“Humans with special blood. Their blood and flesh are at least a hundred times more nutritious than that of normal humans, and that much more tempting for demons as well. I hear that one of the current Hashira is a Marechi.”

She nodded, remembering Shinazugawa Sanemi and the potent smell of his blood. She hoped she would have a better time restraining herself against it the next time she would be put on trial.

As they walked, Urokodaki sniffed the air once more before sighing and shaking his head.

“Maybe we should rest a little.” Nezuko suggested. “You haven’t eaten for a while, and it’s probably not a good idea to keep going on with an empty stomach.”

“...”

“That way, we can also wait for the hustle and bustle to die down. Maybe this Tamayo is only waiting for there to be less people around, since she’s a demon and all.”

“...Alright.” He conceded, leading them to an udon stand he spotted.

She was delighted to see that this udon stand was in fact the very same one her brother had eaten at in the original sequence of events. He had come back at least twice since the first visit to Asakusa and had become pen pals with the owner. 

Nezuko decided to feign sleepiness as she sat beside Urokodaki, so that she could avoid seeing his face as he lifted his mask to eat, and so that the stand owner wouldn’t question why the old man didn’t buy any food for the young girl who could be assumed to be his granddaughter.

She closed her eyes as she leaned on the masked man’s shoulder, trying to keep the rest of her senses active in case something happened.

And then she felt it. The presence of both Tamayo and Yushiro lingered behind a corner of the street. They were watching them. Urokodaki tensed up slightly, and she could tell that he felt them too.

He quickly finished up his meal and gave his thanks before gently shaking her awake to keep up the act while trying to alert her at the same time.

She opened her eyes and stood up with him, looking in the direction of the friendly demons.

He nodded at her and started walking towards the hidden pair.

When they turned the corner, Nezuko felt like they had passed through a stillness in the air. Experience and memories of her brother’s stories told her that this was Yushiro’s concealment ability at work once again. Only this time, they were being concealed as well.

Urokodaki stopped as they finally came face to face with who they wished to find. Standing in front of them were Tamayo and Yushiro. Yushiro positioned himself protectively in front of Tamayo, keeping his gaze locked on the masked man.

“You were looking for me.” Tamayo started, and Nezuko had to keep herself composed after hearing her voice again. If seeing Giyuu back to how he was was strange enough, meeting a dead person all over again was much more off-putting.

“And you let us find you.” Urokodaki replied.

“Yes. When I saw the way you interacted with that demon girl, I felt like taking a risk. Ah, I forgot to introduce us. I am Tamayo, and this is Yushiro, my assistant.”

Yushiro kept quiet and made no move to demonstrate any formalities. That was expected. The older man seemed to be analyzing and judging the two demons. He probably smelled that the oldest demon in the group had blood on her hands. Nezuko pulled her muzzle down.

“I-I am Kamado Nezuko! And he is my mentor, Urokodaki Sakonji.” She bowed stiffly, almost missing the strange way that the mint-haired demon boy glanced at her.

“Pleasure to meet you, Nezuko-san, Urokodaki-san.” Tamayo smiled and returned the bow politely.

“If you don’t mind, could we have the rest of this conversation elsewhere?”

Nezuko glanced at Urokodaki, silently trying to ask him with her eyes if it was alright with him. The older man nodded.

“We accept.” He replied. The tension seemed to have dissipated at that statement.

 = = = = - = = = - - = = - - - = - - - - = - - - = = - - = = = - = = = = 

After some careful maneuvering through the streets of Asakusa to avoid being seen by others, they eventually reached Tamayo’s hidden residence. Urokodaki was still careful, but not completely untrusting.

After settling down and having tea poured for both the oldest members of the group, they decided to continue their conversation.

“Why exactly have you sought me out?” Tamayo asked, appearing as approachable as ever.

Urokodaki then explained the situation to the two demons, detailing how Nezuko had yet to eat a single human, how she regained energy through sleep, and how she had broken free from Muzan’s curse less than a day after being turned into a demon.

Nezuko couldn’t help but notice the way Yushiro looked at her sometimes during the conversation and thinking he wasn’t acting anything like he had during their real first meeting. Did he simply act differently around an older, stronger slayer like Urokodaki? They’d never met before in the year after the war, so she couldn’t tell.

 “Nezuko-san, will it be alright for me to take a sample of your blood and examine it right now?” Tamayo asked.

“Yes, I won’t mind at all.” She answered enthusiastically.

When she stuck her arm out with her sleeve pulled back, and the syringe was inserted, it simply itched instead of stinging. It looked like her demon body was already becoming numb to minor instances of pain.

“I have a feeling that your blood may unveil secrets to making a cure. A way to turn demons back into humans. Yushiro and I still consume a small amount of blood in order to survive. Only you, Nezuko-san, have been able to develop a true alternate way to sustain yourself.” She couldn’t help but blush slightly at the praise.

Once again, she was reminded of her mother, Kie. But she tried to mentally shake the thought away. Tamayo was her own person. A 19-year-old mother who was tricked into becoming a creature that would eat her young children.

Tamayo stood up with the blood sample in hand and asked for Urokodaki to accompany her to the laboratory as they continued their conversation, promising to explain why she had the stench of death on her and how she intended to make up for her sins.

Yushiro was told to stay behind and keep Nezuko company. But he seemed strangely fine with that. She thought he would have protested or at least looked bothered that Tamayo would be alone with a stranger. But instead, they sat in silence for a little while.

.

.

.

“You didn’t hear Muzan mention her at all.” The demon boy broke the silence, crossing his arms as he looked at her pointedly.

“H-huh? What do you mean? Of course, I did!” Nezuko felt her heart drop. He knew she was lying about that, even through the words of another? 

What gave it away? Was it simply impossible for Muzan to have heard of them this far back in the past? What should she say?

“You know, I didn’t expect you to be a much better liar than your brother.”

“But we never mentioned that I have a brother-” Nezuko thought aloud before her eyes widened as she stared at Yushiro dumbfounded. “You…”

“Me.” He sat there with a smug smile. “Don’t look at me like you’re seeing a ghost, I never died. Not-so-long time no se- ACK!”

She cut him off as she launched herself at him and engulfed him in a hug, tears streaming down her face. The demon boy, who was usually uncomfortable with physical contact, decided to let her be for now, instead opting to pat her back comfortingly as she cried from relief.

“I-I thought I was alone! I was so scared!” She tried her best not to yell too loudly and alert Urokodaki and Tamayo, who were a few rooms away.

She didn’t realize how reassuring it was to find someone else who had also gone back in time. There was finally someone she didn’t have to hide her knowledge from. And she doesn’t have to make a better future by herself anymore. It felt liberating.

“I thought I was alone, too…” He confessed. “Didn’t know what to think when you showed up here a couple of years too early with a retired Hashira. I thought I somehow messed things up.”

She pulled away from the hug and sat back down, wiping at her face as she sniffled. “Sorry for scaring you..”

“It’s fine, geez.” Yushiro waved his hand dismissively.

“So, no coma this time, right?” He asked. And she nodded in response.

“I don’t know why, but I’m not sacrificing my consciousness like I did the first time around. My body is still evolving, though.”

“Maybe it’s because your brain already knows what to do.”

“What?” She tilted her head.

“Think of it like how your blood made antibodies when you were a human again and helped your brother. Your brain controls your entire body, and it remembers what it did to evolve and conquer the sun the first time around. So now you have an easier time doing that.”

“I kind of get it…” She murmured as she tried to understand it a little more.

“The same thing happened to me, actually. I’ve found that improving my Blood Demon Art all over again is much easier now than it was back then.”

“Ohhhh.”

“What’s important is that you’re awake.” He dismissed it.

“So, how long have you been back?” She then asked.

“Some days before the year started. And you?”

“Same for me.” She answered.

“I’m guessing you’re doing what you and your brother said to that Rengoku guy?”

“How do you know about that?” Nezuko scrunched her face as she tried to remember what time of the day it was when Shinjurou had that talk with her and Tanjiro. Had Yushiro been waiting in the shade for that long?

“Oh, Tsuyuri and Kanzaki were telling me about it before…this. I still have no idea what caused this whole thing.”

“I knew it wasn’t you! It didn’t match the rest of your abilities.” Nezuko then remembered to lower her volume.

“Anyway, yeah. I’ve been trying to think of ways to save more people.”

“What have you got so far?”

“Nothing really specific yet for the final battle since they all happened one after the other. But I was thinking of preventing Onii-chan from running into Muzan years from now, and trying to get a headstart on my strength so I could stay awake longer during the big fights and take hits for others.”

“Makes sense. Everything happened so quickly after that big baby got scared of Tanjiro’s earrings.” Something clicked in Yushiro’s mind.

“Hey, could you draw the design on his earrings? We could show it to Tamayo-sama. I think she knows a little something about that guy your brother saw in his dreams. I could do it, but she’d know I did the drawing.”

“Yoriichi? If she knows about him, that’s great! I’ll get right on it!” Nezuko practically bounced where she sat as she waited for Yushiro to pull out some supplies for her to use.

She wasn’t that great at drawing, rather average, but the hanafuda earrings gifted to the Kamados had a simple but beautiful design that wasn’t too hard to replicate from memory.

As Yushiro held up the drawing and examined it, a question flitted into Nezuko’s mind.

“What’s it like? Being with Tamayo-san again?” She asked hesitantly. The demon boy sighed and put the paper down.

“I don’t know. I was so happy when I realized it was all real. But…when I thought about how I could prevent her death, I…” He looked to the side with a pained expression.

She didn’t need to hear more. She knew that Tamayo had wanted to die in the final battle. That she viewed it as what she deserved for all that she’s done as a demon. She paid for her sins while guaranteeing the downfall of the man she hated most. How was one supposed to go about preventing that?

“Perhaps we could have her live long enough to see Muzan die, and then she’ll decide what she’ll do after. Maybe she’ll want to undergo appropriate punishment without having to die as well?”

“...Maybe.” He murmured. She leaned forward and put her hand over his clenched fist.

“Yushiro-san. While we don’t know what to do, let’s just make the most of it while we’re here, okay? If we can’t guarantee that she will live longer this time, then let’s cherish the extra time we get to spend with her.” Nezuko looked at him encouragingly, and he couldn’t help but give a sad smile.

“Giving speeches like that. You two really are related.” He joked, and she couldn’t help but laugh.

She pulled back and started detailing what she’s done so far since realizing she wasn’t going to spend two entire years sleeping, Yushiro listening attentively and seeming to find Tanjiro’s reported cluelessness and mishaps in training amusing.

“Do you think there are more like us?” She asked him eventually.

“Not sure. Would be nice if we could get people with better connections to the Corps at the moment. And…”

“And?”

“And I’m hoping none of Muzan’s minions are back, too. If he catches wind of what happens in the future, we’re done for.” He frowned as he thought of the possibility.

“If he knew what happens, he would have come back for me or waited for Onii-chan at our house. The sun was blocked for a long time that day.” She assured him.

“I guess.. Why are WE the ones who came back anyway? At first, I thought it was because I’m a demon and you were one, but Tanjiro didn’t come back, so it isn’t that.”

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s not counted because he spent less than a day as a demon?”

“Maybe… Ugh, it’s so hard being demons that they won’t trust immediately! Sometimes I wish I could just stomp up to their headquarters and tell Ubuyashiki everything.”

“I know..”

They chose to quiet down when Urokodaki and Tamayo finally came back so they wouldn’t be caught saying anything too suspicious.

“How did it go?” Nezuko asked eagerly.

“She explained a lot of the intricacies of being a demon under Muzan’s control. I could relay it to you and your brother later on. But it was mostly information that could be useful for developing strategies against the Demon King in the Corps.” Urokodaki answered.

“Also, Nezuko-san, your blood is much more interesting than I thought it would be.” Tamayo started.

“You probably already know this, but it has a surprising concentration of Kibutsuji’s blood in it. But your blood has taken over his cells completely and is using them as a building block for advanced evolution. Your blood has changed in such a short amount of time that it may be possible to use it to break other demons out of his control.”

“You may even develop the ability to create new demons.” Urokodaki answered, uncertainty lacing his voice.

“That sounds…scary. I like that I can break the curse for others, but I don’t want even more people to become demons.” Nezuko admitted.

“I understand.” Tamayo nodded. “One more thing, it seems that Muzan’s hunch that your family may yield a demon with immunity to the sun isn’t unfounded. I’ve seen changes in your blood that are heading to that direction.”

“How do I know if that has happened without checking from time to time?” She asked.

“If you have conquered the sun, I would imagine that you would lose the instinct that teaches you to fear sunlight. You could also lose the ability to accurately keep track of time regardless of the circumstance.”

Nezuko did experience something like that in the past. But she always assumed it was just her getting used to the sun instead of instantly ridding the instinct that feared it.

“In any case, we agreed that I would send correspondence every time I discovered something that would be of importance to you. We have a cat named Chachamaru who can deliver messages for us, although he uses Yushiro’s Blood Demon Art to be hard to track. So please do not be too alarmed if you sense his talisman nearby.”

“Ah, right! Tamayo-sama, she drew the design of her older brother’s earrings in case we meet him in the future. They will be travelling together once he becomes a Demon Slayer.” Yushiro showed her the paper, and Tamayo’s eyes widened almost imperceptibly.

“This is…” She mumbled.

“Why? Have you encountered their ancestors at one point?” Urokodaki leaned forward.

“No, I couldn’t have. But…” Yushiro and Nezuko exchanged nervous looks. Tamayo then finally made her decision.

“Urokodaki-san, please ask whoever your connection in the Corps is to look into the Tsugikuni name. And Nezuko-san, if your brother ever encounters Muzan, do not let that man see his earrings. Although Kibutsuji is predictable to a point, there is still the risk of him killing your older brother on the spot.”

Nezuko nodded. “I’ll remember that. Thank you, Tamayo-san.” She tried her best to quell her happiness from finding an excuse for the people around her to hear of Yoriichi earlier by numbing it down with the disappointment of Tamayo refusing to elaborate.

Urokodaki was obviously filing this in his mind, no doubt letting the warning sow more curiosity about the Kamado bloodline and the supposed Tsugikuni name.

“There is nothing else I can share with you, at the moment. The rest, I have already imparted to Urokodaki-san. I hope that you will find his teachings about demonhood helpful in the future, Nezuko-san.”

“Even a little is already so much! Truly, thank you!” Nezuko bowed deeply, Urokodaki mirroring the motion.

When they stood up to leave, she turned to look at Yushiro. “Will you be writing to us too?”

He blinked, surprised by the question and also rather confused. “Why?”

“Well, I’ve always wanted a pen pal! My brother would also like to have one! He likes writing a lot.” She grinned at the demon boy, hoping he’d catch on to her intention.

“Uhh, yeah, sure. I’ll write to you if there’s something new I wanna talk about.” He answered awkwardly, causing Tamayo to chuckle.

“I’m glad that you two have become friends.” She remarked, and Nezuko giggled in response.

“I’m glad too.”

She waved at the two demons with a big smile on her face before setting back out with Urokodaki, her heart filled with a little more hope now that she knew she wasn’t completely alone.

Chapter Text

“There are two of them?!” Tanjiro’s eyes practically sparkled. He was leaning forward with interest the entire time he listened to Nezuko and Urokodaki recount the events on the trip.

“Mhmm! The other one is a younger demon named Yushiro.” Nezuko replied.

“Yushiro was someone who was turned into a demon by Tamayo.” Urokodaki then said, which drew a reaction out of Giyuu, who had been mostly quiet so far. 

The current Hashira narrowed his eyes.

“This Tamayo is going around making more demons?”

“She does it to save them from deadly illnesses, and with informed consent.” Urokodaki explained. “Yushiro was made without Kibutsuji’s curse and control, and is able to survive on even less blood.”

“And you’re sure these demons don’t kill humans for the blood they need?”

“Yes. Quite sure. I smelled no lie in their statements regarding that.” The fact that the man could also smell the lack of recent bloodshed went unsaid. All of the participants of the conversation were aware of the capabilities of the retired slayer’s nose, anyway.

“Tamayo-san is a doctor, so she uses her job as an excuse to buy blood donations from people.” Nezuko added. Her travelling companion filled her in partly about his conversation with the demon doctor on their way back to Mt. Sagiri, so it didn't surprise him that she knew of this.

“That’s so cool! Not only are they not killing people, but they’re not hurting them either!” Tanjiro was understandably in awe.

“Tamayo mentioned that Nezuko’s method of regaining energy through sleep was a better option, and the fact that she has yet to consume human blood has made her blood evolve differently. So it would be best to leave blood donations from willing people as the last option.”

“So they can’t try sleeping?” Giyuu asked. Urokodaki shook his head.

“At best, they could learn to do so after many years and extensive modification. Tamayo has been free of the curse for centuries and has only managed to make herself able to drink and enjoy tea.”

“What do demons normally do when they eat normal food?” Tanjiro tilted his head.

“They tend to vomit it all back out.” Was the old man’s answer.

“Yeah, food doesn’t smell good anymore…” Nezuko added.

“So, how did Tamayo deal with her urges before modifying her body to need only a small amount of blood?” Giyuu spoke up again.

“She claimed that she tried eating animals raw at first. Although it was a very inefficient way of dealing with hunger, and she ended up regurgitating almost all of what she ate.” Urokodaki spotted the sad expression of the older Kamado sibling and crossed his arms.

“Do not feel so sorry for her. She isn’t an innocent demon like her creation or your sister is.”

“She has killed?!” Giyuu practically hissed, now obviously doubting his mentor’s choice of letting the demons go unharmed.

Urokodaki raised a hand to tell his oldest living student to calm down and hear him out. Tanjiro gulped nervously as he looked at all of them in terms. Nezuko gave him a reassuring smile.

“Yes. She has admitted to killing and eating her own family upon being turned into a demon, and then harming many others in both grief and hunger. She was a servant who served directly under Muzan for a time as well. She was even one of his favorites.”

“But she has stopped ever since she broke free and was spared by a Corps member from long ago. If she had killed again, the Oyakata would have ordered her death by now. That and I can tell from her scent that it has indeed been lifetimes since she last committed such grave sins.”

“I can smell her guilt as well. It is a guilt so deep and powerful that it has kept her alive rather than compelled her to walk into the sun. She honestly wishes to end Kibutsuji’s reign of death.”

Tomioka Giyuu sat there silently, his face even more unreadable than usual, thinking the statements over. He glanced at the only demon in the group, and she met his gaze with a determined and confident expression. He then sighed and his shoulders relaxed almost imperceptibly.

“Alright…”

 = = = = - = = = - - = = - - - = - - - - = - - - = = - - = = = - = = = = 

Urokodaki went on to tell them more about the information the centuries-old demon shared with him regarding demons and their progenitor:

Muzan had the ability to read the minds of every single demon under his control. Not only that, but he could temporarily get into their minds as well, either to access their senses, memories, or to control them directly.

Tanjiro was immediately writing everything down so that he would be able to read back and remember anything useful. Nezuko figured he would also offer to let either Urokodaki or Giyuu borrow his notes for when they want to share this knowledge with the Corps.

However, he doesn’t monitor them every single second of every day. He usually lets the demons be until he needs them for something. He is capable of accessing the memories and senses of a dying demon until their ashes have completely disintegrated. He is notably unable to access demons that have broken free of his control.

“So that’s why he didn’t find out that Nezuko survived the process, and never came back for her!” The older Kamado exclaimed. “He wasn’t checking in!”

“So, what we’ve learned about him is that he is surprisingly foolish and very impatient.” Giyuu had a bit more bite to that statement. Urokodaki couldn’t help but chuckle.

He also possessed the ability to remove demons’ memories as he saw fit. He usually did this to demons that had human memories that held them back from wishing to gain more strength and evolve.

His telepathy and mind-reading don’t have infinite range, nor are they instantaneous. It takes a while for his orders to reach demons that are rather far from him, and he finds it quite difficult to track and monitor them.

That was why demons were more plentiful in the regions near Tokyo than on the borders of Japan. That was why they didn’t seem to escape to other countries.

“Did he do the same to her? Remove her memories so she wouldn’t refuse to cooperate?” Inquired Giyuu.

“She claims that he had, once. When he first tried to get her to work directly under him and look for leads on sun immunity.” Urokodaki answered.

“That’s horrible!” Tanjiro exclaimed, and Nezuko agreed. 

She couldn’t imagine living life as a demon and not being able to remember any of her family. Even when she was sacrificing her consciousness to conquer the sun, she never truly forgot them.

“However, the memory wipe wasn’t perfect. Certain things would evoke strange and familiar feelings from her. Until most of her memories as a human came back, along with her hatred for both herself and the Demon King.”

“So that’s what she went through…” Nezuko murmured, remembering the time all of her memories came rushing back full force when she was turning back into a human.

“Normally, Kibutsuji would either wipe those memories again or punish her for insubordinate thoughts. But she had already gained his favor by then and had no feasible way out, so he let her be on the condition that she kept working for him.”

“Interestingly enough, the rest of her memories that had faded with time came back to her when she broke the curse.”

“It’s a good thing that she’s the kind of person who wants to stop killing people when she gets her memories of being a human back. I haven’t met her yet, but she sounds so strong and kind.” Tanjiro remarked.

There are times when something a demon has witnessed or experienced could draw his attention. The tried and true trigger of the utterance of his name or giving information about him was one example. Even the words being mentioned by humans would alert him and cause him to pay attention to the demon that had heard them.

Tamayo had a hunch that sightings of her had been added as another trigger, especially since they had orders to kill or capture her. Naturally, if a demon has come across a solution to Muzan’s weakness, he would also be alerted.

“So, interrogating unfree demons about Kibutsuji will set his sights on you.” Nezuko murmured.

“But that’s what I was planning to do once I became a Demon Slayer…” Tanjiro shuddered.

“Well, now that we have this knowledge, you won’t have much else to want to ask demons.”

“Yes, it would be best if you keep a low profile and avoid catching Kibutsuji’s attention during your battles. Especially since you’re part of a family he targeted. And…” Urokodaki hesitated.

“And?” Giyuu pressed, not used to seeing such uncertainty from his mentor.

“When we showed Tamayo-san a drawing of Onii-chan’s earrings, which were heirlooms our family has been passing down for generations, she warned us not to let Muzan see them. She also asked to look into the name Tsugikuni.” Nezuko answered for him.

“Have you heard of such a name?” Urokodaki asked. Giyuu shook his head. It was clear that his own confusion and curiosity were increasing as well.

“I haven’t either. But somehow it feels familiar?” Tanjiro answered.

“Right? It felt kind of familiar to me, too! But I’m sure either of us would have remembered if any of our relatives mentioned it before.” Nezuko replied, pretending to have no idea.

The Twelve Kizuki’s strength does not simply come from their own merits. Muzan gives them varying concentrations of his blood depending on the rank, which brings them closer to his strength.

The high concentration of blood also allows Muzan to bestow the Upper Ranks with the ability to create new demons with their blood, but only with permission from the Demon King. Upper Ranks are also capable of communicating and giving orders to any demon below their rank telepathically whenever they wished.

“Tamayo has made another request related to this topic. She wanted to be able to study the blood of the demons’ progenitor in hopes it would bring her closer to finding a cure. But that is almost unattainable. She asks that, if possible, it would benefit her research greatly if we were able to collect blood samples from the Kizuki.”

“The higher the rank, the purer the blood.” Tanjiro muttered in contemplation.

“Remember that the Twelve Kizuki are not to be trifled with so carelessly. It has been more than a century since the Corps has taken down an Upper Rank.” Giyuu chided the boy.

“I’ll still do my best! For a cure!”

“In any case, I’ll entrust this task to you for now, Giyuu.” Urokodaki handed over the devices for blood extraction. “Should you encounter a Lower Rank while on a solo mission, you know what to do.”

Nezuko noted the way the retired slayer specified Lower Ranks for the task. He was wordlessly trying to tell his student to prioritize his life over the cure if he ever encountered an Upper Rank.

For a man that talked a lot, he sure loved to leave a lot of things unsaid.

The Hashira hid the objects in his haori and bowed his head. “I’ll do my best, Sensei…”

“Wait, why does Tomioka-san get to call you Sensei?” Nezuko pouted slightly.

“I just don’t feel like being called that by someone I can’t send to the Final Selection.”

Kibutsuji had favorites among his creations. He usually made exceptions for these demons. He usually favored demons based on how useful they were to him. Either by attitude or the nature of their abilities. As mentioned beforehand, Tamayo was one of his favorites.

Tamayo was singled out for her medical expertise and intelligence, which he believed would bring him one step closer to gaining immunity to the sun. He let her get away with wishing death on him despite his ability to read her mind.

“I can imagine he wasn’t that happy when she betrayed him.” Giyuu remarked, a subtle hint of amusement lacing his tone. 

Almost any Demon Slayer that had lost their loved ones to demons would feel a bit vindicated at the thought of the Demon King being mad that he had lost one of his favorites.

“Serves him right.” Nezuko huffed.

“Yeah! He deserves way more than just losing one of his favorites!” Tanjiro chimed in.

Another thing that Tamayo had confirmed to Urokodaki was that Muzan has developed to the point that beheading him with a Nichirin blade wasn’t enough to kill him anymore.

And given the scarcely known fact that the strongest demons are the hardest to kill with mere wisteria poison, their only real shot at killing Muzan was exposing him to the sun.

Nezuko realized that Tamayo had neglected to mention that Muzan had the ability to split himself into multiple pieces of flesh to escape. Perhaps this was something she only deemed worth bringing up for when she was openly collaborating with the Corps.

“How does she know this?” Giyuu’s pensive voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

“She was quite unclear about that part. But Muzan did keep her close for her medical knowledge. It’s possible he had her analyze his biology, or that he had gloated to her about it at one point.”

“It’s a shame that he simply couldn’t be beheaded. Engaging with a demon that strong for so long would be almost impossible to pull off.”

“You know, I’m glad you weren’t there when Kibutsuji attacked, Tomioka-san. If you managed to behead him, he would have just surprised you and then killed you.” Nezuko cut in, hoping this would lessen the black-haired man’s guilt about not arriving on time to save their family.

Giyuu’s eyes widened, firstly at Nezuko saying the Demon King’s name so casually, and then after processing what she said. But he made no move to reply.

“Yeah! Thank you so much for being there when you were. Urokodaki-san told us that a lot of other slayers wouldn’t have heard me out or even given Nezuko a chance to prove herself like you did.” Tanjiro added, genuine gratefulness lacing his every word.

“I…”

“Just accept the thanks, Giyuu.” Urokodaki told the young man. “You know how stubborn these siblings can get.”

Both Tanjiro and Nezuko ended up laughing at their mentor’s statement.

 = = = = - = = = - - = = - - - = - - - - = - - - = = - - = = = - = = = = 

Their discussion continued, moving onto Tamayo’s knowledge and guesses regarding the scope of Muzan’s strength and combat-related abilities. None of it was surprising to Nezuko, who had heard various recountings of the final battle multiple times over in the year since it had transpired.

After they had finished, Urokodaki started writing a letter that would serve as a report to the Oyakata. Giyuu also wrote his own report, using Tanjiro’s journal as a helpful reference in case he forgot any details.

Nezuko and her brother were off in a different part of the house, leaving the men alone with their tasks and their thoughts. She decided to go and sew some of Tanjiro’s clothing that had been damaged during his training with the Water Hashira.

“It’s so crazy to think that your blood can do so much stuff that even other good demons can’t.” Tanjiro remarked as he sat still and let her mend his haori.

“Yeah.. I definitely didn’t expect to hear that when I asked to look for her.”

“The possibility that you can make more demons is scary. But I like that you can break demons out of Muzan’s control! There must be others out there who don’t really like killing and eating people.” Count on Kamado Tanjiro to look on the bright side of things whenever he could.

“Tamayo-san said that she got the rest of her memories back when she broke free. Do you think that can happen with other demons too?”

“I hope it does! Then we can see if they’ll be good or not. If they will, then we can spare them.”

She hummed as she considered the possibility. That meant they had to make sure that whatever demon they freed had to be someone they could kill if they still didn’t go for redemption.

“Wait, how am I supposed to use my blood to free them anyway? Do I just have to put it into their bodies? Or do I have to do some experiment things on them like Tamayo-san did with Yushiro and herself?” She pondered out loud.

“Oh no, I don’t know how to do experiments! I hope we don’t have to!”

Nezuko thoroughly agreed with her older brother. Even when they had more than enough money to afford getting a more formal education, or after multiple checkups and conversations with the Butterfly Girls, the two remaining Kamados simply weren’t gifted enough in science and medicine to completely understand. 

They were lucky enough that Tanjiro had gained a good grasp on the human body because of his experience as a Demon Slayer.

“We can always ask Tamayo-san and Yushiro-san about it. We can write to them just like they can write to us!” She assured the older Kamado, who beamed at the thought of getting pen pals.

Nezuko didn’t let the topic sit for much longer. She doubted that they could actually free another demon apart from the man that Muzan had turned when he was found in Asakusa. It seemed like too risky a gamble. Any small mistake could lead to at least one more life lost.

The two of them were called when both Urokodaki and his oldest living student had finished with their letters.

The masked man was preparing dinner as Giyuu packed his belongings.

“Tomioka-san, are you leaving already?” Tanjiro asked as they approached, already sporting a sad and slightly disappointed look on his face.

“You should at least stay for dinner!” Nezuko exclaimed, sad to see the black-haired man leave so soon.

“I still have my duties to get back to.” Was his stoic reply.

Nezuko and Urokodaki had finished their trip faster than expected, so Giyuu must still have a lot more time off. But the man was eager to get back to trying to “make up” for the fact that he was alive and certain people weren’t.

“Please visit again when you have the time.” Tanjiro requested.

Giyuu wordlessly looked away from them and made a noise that was in between a grunt and a hum. Others would have thought that he was dismissing them coldly. But Nezuko could tell that he was being bashful.

“Go on and show those demons the might of the Water Hashira. And be careful not to let another teenage civilian with a hatchet catch you off guard again!” Urokodaki teased at the end. By the sounds of it, he had already received the explanation he had been wanting since Tanjiro let the detail slip.

The young man choked on air at the last sentence but quickly regained his composure and maintained his breathing, instead of coughing uncontrollably.

“Y-yes, Sensei…”

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The household was quick to get back to their routine after the trip. Urokodaki had left instructions for his hunter friends on Tanjiro’s current level, so they handled the clearing and replacing of the traps on the mountain for his descents, while Giyuu was in charge of everything else. So the boy’s training wasn’t impacted by the retired slayer’s absence.

Because of the successful trip to Asakusa, Urokodaki had received some tips and pointers from Tamayo about how to teach Nezuko about abilities specific to demons, and they have decided to get started on those so that she would have as much time as she could trying to master any new techniques alongside her training.

“First, let’s see what you can do so far.” They were standing outside after sunset, a little deeper into the forest so that they wouldn’t accidentally damage Urokodaki’s house and any of the equipment near it.

Nezuko nodded before she scrunched her face in concentration. She started with the easiest move, shrinking. Her size decreased until she was practically drowning in her own clothes, barely reaching the knees of the man in front of her.

“Is that as far as you can go?” He asked.

“Yes.” She answered honestly. He hummed lowly.

“Now try growing as much as you can.”

She once again focused and exerted herself. Growing in size was considerably harder than shrinking was, as the growth coincided with her body trying to draw and use more strength and energy.

She stretched her body until she found herself the same size as when she utilized her full demon form in the past. But the horn and the vine markings were nowhere to be found.

“Your clothes don’t change sizes with you.” Urokodaki remarked.

“Are they supposed to?” She asked as she pulled on the front of her stretched kimono to cover herself better with.

“It’s possible. Some demons have integrated their cells into objects, giving those objects supernatural qualities and linking them to the demons. Clothes that demons have worn are the most common type of demonic objects. Have you not noticed that you haven’t needed to mend your own clothing like you do to your brother’s?”

Having shrunken back down to her normal size, Nezuko looked herself over and found that she indeed did not have new rips or tears in her clothes despite the nights of training she had participated in.

“Ohhhh...” She felt a bit ashamed of herself. She had spent years of her life being a demon, and weeks of it while she was conscious. But she has never thought to check on the state of her clothes so that she could partake in one of her favorite hobbies, sewing.

Urokodaki cleared his throat to snap Nezuko out of her embarrassment.

“Try to think of your clothes more as an extension of your own body and blood. Claim them. That clothing is yours and yours only. It IS you.” He suggested.

“When you’re ready, try changing your size with them again.”

She nodded and concentrated once again. She tried picturing her clothes as her blood, remembering the time she had manipulated her blood in the fight against Upper 6. 

Nezuko tried not to think of the pain that came with being cut up by the ribbons and the anger she felt from sensing a lot of Muzan’s blood in Daki, combined with the smell of human blood everywhere. Back when she thought that Muzan had murdered her family all over again.

A stray thought crossed her mind that she should probably practice manipulating her own blood as well. It might come in handy one day to have higher mastery and more ideas on how to utilize the ability.

When she shrank once again to the size of a toddler, she was no longer standing in a pool of her own outfit. It now suited her current proportions just as perfectly as it did when she was in her default state.

“Onii-chan can fit more stuff into the basket now!” Nezuko beamed as she started growing and shrinking repeatedly just to watch her clothes change sizes with her.

“...That’s what you’re happy about?”

“What was that, Urokodaki-san?” She turned to look at him, currently in her biggest form.

“It’s nothing.”

Nezuko went back to marveling at how making sure her clothes morphed with her started getting easier to do the more she did it, already planning on gushing to her older brother about what she had just learned to do.

“You shouldn’t be satisfied with just that. You should work on pushing your limits in size, on speeding up the process of transforming, and of course, learning how to use this ability effectively in many situations, not just for ease of transport.”

“I know. But every little win is still a win!”

Urokodaki proceeded to guide her and give her ideas on how she was meant to improve in the fields that he had mentioned. He wasn’t expecting immediate results, so he didn’t linger on the topic too long.

Along the way, he elaborated a bit on the concept of demonic objects, which interested her quite a bit. In the past, she never really made use of such things when she was a demon. All she could think of was when she used the Pleasure clone’s fan against him in the fight against Upper 4.

She wondered how useful it would be if she tried making and using her own objects. But her Blood Demon Art didn’t sound like it would mesh well with objects she could utilize. But perhaps she simply was not thinking hard enough.

She decided to ask others about it later. It was tempting to write a letter to Tamayo and Yushiro right then and there with the question, but she wanted to save it until she had multiple queries ready for them.

There wasn’t much room for her to ponder much as Urokodaki decided to make training a bit more interesting, where they would partake in the familiar exercise of having the masked man propel Nezuko far away so that she could practice ways to either reduce the distance she would gain from the ‘battle’, or the time it would take her to get back up and ready.

The twist was that she had to manipulate her size every time she was propelled away from the clearing he was in. Her challenge was determining through trial and error which changes she should make to optimize her chances.

What she determined so far was that smaller meant lighter and bigger meant heavier. She never truly paid attention to her weight when she was a demon and had always assumed she was just unusually light, at least light enough for her brother to carry her on his back without running out of breath.

When she shrank, she found that she flew further away. But she was also weaker and didn’t much force on whatever impact she made midair. So there was a point where she was able to grab onto a tree, and she didn’t end up slicing through the trunk with her claws.

When she grew, she didn’t cover much distance, but she fell and hit things harder because of the added weight. That presented multiple problems if not managed properly.

By hitting a tree or the ground too hard, she would wind up getting hurt more. And that would result in her losing more stamina and needing sleep sooner. Not to mention, it would hurt and be quite unpleasant.

There was also the possible scenario of being in a place with people around. She distinctly remembered how she herself kicked Daki through structures in the Entertainment District, which had wounded at least a couple of its residents. Nezuko would like to cause less pain this time around.

At one point, she grew her body mid-flight, causing her trajectory to get to the ground sooner. She spun in the air so that she could dig her feet and her claws, if necessary, into the dirt below when she made contact. And she immediately shrank as she slid backwards, slowing down a large amount thanks to the sudden decrease in weight.

When she kicked back off the ground into the direction of the clearing she was just in, getting back in record time, she could tell that her mentor was pleased.

Knowing that she had pleased such a strict teacher filled her heart with pride and joy.

But when she decided to grow in size right as Urokodaki went to throw her again, taking him back by surprise because of the somewhat dirty move, he gave one of his rare, genuine laughs. And Nezuko was happier with that achievement than with all of the little wins she got during that training session.

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(A little bonus scene)

When they got back to the house, they spotted Tanjiro petting a familiar male calico. Nezuko almost forgot about her exhaustion upon seeing Chachamaru and ran over to her older brother.

“You’re back!” Tanjiro beamed when he finally noticed them. “This little guy is Chachamaru, Tamayo-san’s cat!”

“Did she have something to say so soon?” She asked, wondering if Tamayo had forgotten to tell them something, and immediately sent the cat.

“No. She just had him follow you guys so that he would know the way to Mt. Sagiri. And she wanted to know if you two got back safely.” The older Kamado explained.

“She sent a letter to explain this?” Urokodaki asked, looking closely at Yushiro’s talisman.

“Oh, no, no! Chachamaru told me himself! He also said that it was really hard following you since your footsteps were so silent. And you two were moving really fast. That’s why it took him so long to get here.”

The retired Hashira stared at Tanjiro for a few moments, his mask making it easy for him to not show how baffled he was at what he had just heard.

“We forgot to tell you that Onii-chan can understand some animals, oops.” Nezuko laughed sheepishly.

Urokodaki Sakonji just sighed deeply and shook his head as he made his way back inside his home, muttering about how he was too old and tired to question this strange quirk for tonight.

Nezuko decided then and there to try even harder to prevent the masked man specifically from finding out about ghosts existing.

Chapter Text

Tanjiro, being Tanjiro, wrote an introductory letter to Tamayo and Yushiro, thanking them for being gracious to his mentor and little sister, for giving such valuable information, and for agreeing to help make a cure for demons.

Naturally, he also made the letter significantly longer by writing about other details, like how cute and well-behaved their cat was and how surprised he was when Urokodaki told him that male calicos were quite rare. Nezuko could tell it would be an entertaining read for her fellow good demons.

Training continued in the days that followed. They moved on to having Tanjiro make his descents while holding a katana, and having Nezuko partake in her own training while in different sizes. Sometimes, she was forced to go an entire night in one size. Other times, she had to switch between exercises. And then, eventually, she was encouraged to actively morph as constantly as she possibly could.

Urokodaki reasoned that it would be beneficial for her to grasp the differences in perspective and feel of the environment and the actions she was doing in different sizes. And she agreed, but it didn’t make it less tiring.

She discovered that she generally moved faster when she was smaller. She had to take more steps for the same distance, yes, but she was generally more agile. In their throwdown sessions, she found that it was better to use that form for dodging trees while she was midair and while she was running through the forest. 

Now she knew more clearly how she so easily dodged Kanao’s strikes back on their first meeting on Mt. Natagumo.

Logically, she was also slower when she was larger. Back when she unlocked her true fighting form against Daki, it wouldn’t have mattered too much, but it was much more noticeable now that her body was back before it evolved so much. 

She tired easily in her largest state as well. Urokodaki explained to her that it was because she was exerting more strength. Her mind thought that bigger was stronger, so it made her body automatically use more force in almost everything she did.

Learning how to not think that way was quite difficult for her to manage. She could tell herself over and over, but some part of her mind was still struggling to change some of the preconceptions she had about how she should modify her body.

When she had to go back and forth, it was basically torture. Energy constantly expended nonstop. Her mind forced to multitask as she focused on shrinking and growing while partaking in the exercises. Dizziness clung onto her like her own clothing as the consecutive changes in perspective while in motion messed with her sense of balance and her own vision. 

Soon, the repeated shapeshifting had started to burn the same way exercises did. She felt like she was being stretched apart and being squeezed to a pulp at the same time.

When she completely lost focus and control and ended up drowning in her own outfit once again when she shrank, the session was finally stopped. Urokodaki caught her as she collapsed in an exhausted heap of limp, short limbs and loose clothes.

Her body didn’t even try correcting its own size or her outfit, too worn out for another attempt at transformation. Tucked away in her mentor’s arms, she was quickly lulled into the slumber she so desperately needed.

When Nezuko woke up the next night, she was fussed over by Tanjiro, who was immensely worried when she slept for far longer than usual. 

He neglected to rest much after his own training because of his worrying, and was eventually scolded by their mentor for hovering around her too much, even when she was now awake.

She had to reason with her older brother that she was pushing her limits and tiring herself out like this in order to build up her stamina so that she could last longer in fights against demons in the future.

There was no denying that protectiveness was natural for Tanjiro, but what was even more natural for him was the trust he put in Nezuko whenever she was determined to do something, so he decided to dismiss the thought of asking Urokodaki to lighten up a bit on her training.

Surely enough, her next training session wasn’t toned down to account for yesterday’s collapse. But Urokodaki did give her a tip that was simple enough but made a huge difference.

Constantly changing her size while training became much more manageable if she wasn’t doing it so quickly. Though she wasn’t used to slowing down her shapeshifting, it wasn’t as taxing on her body anymore.

Of course, there were times when she was made to speed it up in short bursts, especially in the throwdown session.

But she ended the night without passing out before getting to the house and settling in the dark room she shared with her older brother.

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As the days passed by, Nezuko gradually improved not only with the decision-making regarding her size-changing, but also the limits with which she could shift.

When Urokodaki announced that they would be moving on to another facet of demonic training, she and Tanjiro decided to see how far she had come along.

At her smallest, she could easily fit in her older brother’s palm. He remarked that she looked like the little dolls that he saw in the market. She wondered if she could get even smaller in the future.

At her largest, she was twice the height of a grown man. Her brother was positively unnerved at the sight. It creeped him out even more when she dropped her normal proportions and became a more muscular, hulking figure. She ended up laughing at his reaction before shrinking back down to normal size.

Given their different schedules, it was harder for her to spend time with her brother, so each moment they had with each other, where neither of them was too tired, became more and more precious.

She knew that was part of the reason why Tanjiro was reluctant about her training under Urokodaki as well. But she couldn’t handle only helping with the chores when she was given so much extra time by not falling into a coma again.

After she was done with the starting exercises, Urokodaki led her to a training area that wasn’t too far away from his house. From what she could recall, this was where her brother’s throwdown training was meant to occur since it was less destructive than hers was.

“Tonight, we’ll focus on improving your senses.” Her mentor announced.

Nezuko was slightly surprised by this. Though it did make perfect sense why he would want her to improve in this area, she had a hard time guessing how this was meant to come after messing with her size. She thought they would be moving on to practicing other kinds of demonic body manipulation.

“First things first, close your eyes and concentrate. Try to take note of everything you can perceive around you without seeing.”

“Okay!” She responded before doing as she was told.

With her eyes squeezed shut and her mouth pressed in a firm line, she tried to focus all of her thoughts on what her senses were picking up.

She was immediately able to note the soft breeze brushing against her and rustling up the leaves of the nearby trees. The cries and scuttling of the forest wildlife were not lost on her either. But she had a hard time trying to pick up anything related to sound or touch when it came to Urokodaki.

But another sense was blaring. She could feel his presence just right in front of her. She had already been aware of how her demonic self had the ability to sense the presence of other living beings around her, but she had chosen not to give it too much thought.

But there was another presence nearby. It wasn’t her brother’s. It was small, and weak, but it wasn’t the crickets or ants or any of the other animals that they would normally encounter in the wild. Pinpointing how close it was and the exact direction was hard. And it was watching. Watching them.

She quickly opened her eyes and looked in the direction of the line of trees to her right. And through the leaves, hidden under the darkness of night, was a crow. Its beady eyes narrowed as it seemed to realize it had been caught. Nezuko wouldn’t have been able to see it if not for the enhanced vision demons had in the dark.

“I did mention that we were being monitored.” Urokodaki’s voice snapped her gaze off the bird and back to him.

“Oh, right. You did. So that was a Kasugai crow?”

“Yes. The leader of the Corps trains and names each of them personally. They are quite intelligent and are typically not targeted by demons.”

Nezuko didn’t bother asking if he had one. She had asked him once before, after the war. Retired slayers usually returned their Kasugai crows after quitting so that those crows may assist other slayers. Some crows would choose to retire with their respective slayer and stay with them.

Urokodaki’s crow retired with him, but had died of old age since then. The man was retired for far longer than most crows could live, after all.

“So, anything else of note?” He then inquired. She couldn’t tell if she was meant to be able to detect anything or anyone else.

“I could barely hear you, but I can detect your presence. And…I couldn’t sense my brother.” She answered truthfully.

“I see. So my estimation was correct. Your current range doesn’t reach the house from here.”

“Is that good? Bad? Normal?” She asked, genuinely unsure about how her range compared to other demons.

“It’s good. Quite remarkable for how long you’ve been a demon.” He answered, making her feel relieved.

“But of course you shouldn’t settle for that. We’ll be working on not only increasing your range of perception but also improving the efficiency. Tamayo and Yushiro are not the only demons capable of concealing themselves.”

She knew that he brought up their demon allies specifically because even his own honed senses as a former Hashira and his enhanced sense of smell were unable to locate them when Yushiro’s Blood Demon Art was still concealing them. He was thinking of having Nezuko train so that she could find what her brother’s nose could not.

“Demons and slayers alike develop the ability to sense the presence of others through experience. But demons naturally have the advantage, given how easily they could modify their bodies and evolve.” Urokodaki explained.

“As things are, you can’t hope to gain much experience while you and your brother are staying here, much less memorize the presence of multiple people and demons of various strengths.”

Urokodaki proceeded to teach her about the art of meditation and using it to open her senses and tune into her surroundings better. 

Nezuko had some trouble with it at first. She couldn’t help but feel a little self-conscious knowing that someone was watching her attempts to meditate.

But with a little guidance, she was eventually able to achieve the focus that she needed. When she reached that state, it felt like she could perceive everything around her just a little bit more clearly. She was still unable to sense her brother’s presence from her spot, but she was reminded that she wasn’t expected to get the hang of it on the first try.

Then came the physical training to go with the demonic. Sessions that centered on honing her instincts and reflexes for defense. Nezuko was supposed to stay in a spot with her eyes closed. Then Urokodaki would dash off into the woods, running circles around her and periodically throwing pebbles or sticks her way.

She was supposed to be able to anticipate his attacks and defend herself in any way she could. She could dodge, parry, or catch any of the projectiles.

She did pretty decently on the first try. She only failed to respond to a small portion of the projectiles, and it didn’t hurt much whenever she got hit because of her demonic body. 

However, the rounds after that were when things got dicey. Urokodaki made her try defending herself while meditating at the same time.

When he ran around her, he muted his presence in intervals, making her danger sense blare whenever he brought himself back into her mental radar and breaking her out of her concentration.

She had a much better time keeping track of everything while she was in a meditative state, but whenever he startled her out of it, she’d be disoriented and panicked, making it harder for her to react accordingly to whatever he threw at her.

After they finished, she had been nicked and hit by almost every single projectile he pelted at her. All of those injuries healed quickly enough with barely any energy spent on each one, but as the training went on, the more the spending accumulated.

She was reminded of all of the times she was mildly hurt in her box whenever her older brother went tumbling through combat. She was never truly at full energy whenever she came out of that box during or right after one of his harder fights.

While walking back to the house with Urokodaki to rest for the night, she idly wondered if she could figure something out about the constant head bumping in the box.

She decided to experiment in her free time and see if she could change her outfit size separately from her body, as a reverse to changing her body and leaving the clothes behind, so that her clothing could fill the box up and cushion her.

But that night, she just wanted to fall into a deep slumber and wake up in the afternoon as she always did.

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Nezuko’s training mostly stayed the same for that time. Improvement was gradual and barely noticeable until Urokodaki pointed it out to her. Tanjiro had since started being taught how to slash properly with a katana. And she watched eagerly whenever he would show off what he had learned to her.

During those nights, she found out that they weren’t being watched by just a single Kasugai crow. There were at least two crows keeping tabs on them; the other was just watching her brother whenever they were too far apart. And they regularly switched with a different pair so they would be able to report back to their master, Ubuyashiki Kagaya. How she wished she could borrow the Ubuyashikis’ intellect and be able to plan ahead as meticulously as they could.

But as her range and strength of perception slowly got better, she didn’t expect to be startled by another presence since she first discovered the birds monitoring her and her brother. 

As she meditated one night, getting herself ready for the first round of defense training with Urokodaki for that session, she suddenly caught the faint, yet familiar traces of a slayer. It lingered just at the edge of her range, watching the duo just like the Kasugai crow on duty was for that day.

‘Were they assigning active demon slayers to watch me as well?’ Echoed through her mind as she almost broke her concentration.

Nezuko opened her eyes and craned her neck to look in the direction of the faraway presence she had detected. When she did this, the slayer immediately left her range and hid where her enhanced eyesight couldn’t find them.

“So you can sense him now.” Urokodaki remarked, seeming a bit amused for a reason that she had no knowledge of.

“Him? Urokodaki-san, was that slayer sent to keep an eye on us like the crows? Do you know him?” She asked. The thought of being watched all this time by human strangers felt different to her than with very intelligent birds.

“You’ll find that you and your brother know him as well. He has only been here since last night, and has been trying to check up on both of your progress as sneakily as he possibly can.” The old man’s words only confused her even more. Was this a joke?

“But the only active slayer Onii-chan and I know is Tomioka-san..”

And before the pieces could completely click into place, a newer, much weaker presence entered her range. This one was of a crow, but it wasn’t like any of the ones sent to replace the bird that was on duty. This one felt shaky. The movement she was picking up from it gave off the feeling of being tired and confused.

“Kanzaburou!” She exclaimed before turning to look at her mentor, eyes gleaming with excitement. “So that means-”

Urokodaki needed just one nod to confirm her suspicions. Giyuu was sneakily checking up on the Kamados’ training. She felt touched that the Water Hashira was so concerned about them this early on. 

It seemed that the short time he had spent with them had led to him getting attached to them earlier than he did in the original sequence of events. 

She’ll have to thank Tanjiro for that one day. It was obvious that it was specifically the time he spent mentoring the boy in Urokodaki’s place that would have more of an impact on him than a couple of conversations with her.

“May I go say hi?” Nezuko looked up at the masked man with a pleading look in her eyes.

“That boy will just run away the moment you try getting closer. ” Urokodaki huffed. “But I am curious to see how long he’s willing to leave that old crow of his where we can sense it.”

She took that as a suggestion to concentrate and ‘watch’ the elderly bird that stubbornly kept working despite his age so obviously impacting his performance.

She assumed that the masked man wanted to see if Giyuu would be so hesitant to pop back in where she could detect him, that he would let Kanzaburou wander over to where Nezuko and Urokodaki were and couldn’t deny it was him anymore.

As the little elderly crow weakly hobbled around in her range, she had to fight the urge to run over and scoop it up into her arms. If Kanzaburou himself hadn’t been so insistent on watching over the blue-eyed Water Breath user, she would have asked to keep him.

And then, that same presence she sensed earlier, the one she now knew belonged to Tomioka Giyuu, swiftly but gently lifted the weak Kasugai crow’s presence up and vanished back out of her range.

This broke her concentration, and she doubled over where she sat, having to cover her mouth to help herself stop from bursting out laughing. There was something so strangely comedic to her about the way the elderly bird’s weak, little presence was just so unceremoniously picked up by Giyuu’s much larger and stronger aura.

One glance at Urokodaki’s tense shoulders and she could immediately tell that he himself was also stopping himself from outwardly expressing amusement from the awkward actions of his oldest living student.

The two took a short break so that they could get their minds back on track, Nezuko being the one who needed it more. And before long, they finally started the defense training for the night.

During the session, there were times when her range would flicker in its distance just enough to allow her to detect a hint of the current Water Hashira watching them, and she fought to keep herself focused on the task of defending herself from the object Urokodaki threw at her.

It was obvious to her mentor when these moments were, and at one point, he decided to throw a millipede in her direction. She barely even registered its presence, so it took her completely by surprise.

“HYYYYYYIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEE!!!!!!!” The shriek she let out when it hit her square in the face and started crawling was loud enough to alert her older brother resting back at the house. She sounded like a high-pitched version of Zenitsu when he was freaking out about demons.

And that’s when Urokodaki decided to openly chuckle at her embarrassment as they both sensed the older Kamado rushing over to check out what was happening.

There’s no way Giyuu didn’t hear that either. And now Nezuko so deeply wanted to become a mole and hide so good that not even the ghosts of her family could find her.

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Even more days passed by. Along the way, Urokodaki gave Nezuko some pointers on how to conceal her own presence. Although in the end, it also depended on overall experience and her own evolution as a demon.

Tanjiro started the throwdown sessions. And as Nezuko’s stamina was slowly built up, she was able to watch and laugh and cheer him on from under the shade as their mentor threw her older brother repeatedly to the ground or into the air.

The next part of her training was the one that she looked forward to the most: Total Concentration Breathing.

At first, she wondered why she couldn’t have started with that immediately. But during one of her talks with her brother, he pointed out that the prior lessons might have been Urokodaki priming her for it. She gave it some thought.

Concentration was in the name of the technique, and that was what she needed to hone for the presence training. And she supposed the size alteration had more to do with her getting used to manipulating her body.

“As you should know by now, demons don’t need to breathe in order to live, nor do they need to use air to energize their own blood.” Urokodaki started explaining as he and Nezuko reached their training spot.

“Whenever you’re in combat, the strength you have is mainly drawn from your blood. That’s why most demons, you included, can be seen with bulging veins whenever you exert yourself in any way.”

She nodded to show that she understood. And she did. She had heard many accounts from Tanjiro about what she looked like when she fought alongside him. And she still had her own memories of the demons she herself had seen.

“When you use Total Concentration Breathing as a demon, you forcefully expand your lungs and use the air you breathe in to push your blood and your muscles even further than you already do with your evolved biology. It acts as a supplement to your main source of strength, rather than as a replacement.”

Unfortunately, but not unexpectedly, Tamayo wasn’t able to give much insight or tips about learning this technique as a demon. Neither she nor Yushiro had ever been Breath users. So Urokodaki had decided to teach it as best he could with the understanding he had of the technique itself as a former Hashira, and with his current understanding of the workings of demons’ bodies.

Nezuko’s first attempt was disastrous. When she inhaled deeply, she let her human habits take over, and she ended up standing there with puffed-up cheeks. And the big breath that she took in was unceremoniously knocked out of her by her mentor, smacking her where her diaphragm would be and reprimanding her.

Next, she accidentally let a lot of the air go into her stomach. She was smacked for that as well. And then she inflated her lungs a bit too much and forgot to send the air to the rest of her body. Next, she ended up simply inflating her body instead of actually using the oxygen to stimulate her blood vessels.

She was starting to get what her older brother meant when his entry in the journal described it as being clobbered to a pulp.

When she finally got it, she felt invigorated. Her blood and her muscles felt like they were singing in her body. Everything felt so much more intense. It made her feel like she could accidentally jump over the tallest trees on the mountain.

It didn’t last too long, though. The air was knocked out of her again, as this time she was made to try to replicate what she had just done while making sure to brace herself for impact, as she was expected to use this in chaotic, messy combat.

Naturally, one success wasn’t enough. She tried breathing the right way and then trying to keep her breathing steady whenever she was hit over and over throughout the night. But she didn’t tire as quickly as she usually did, thanks to the benefits of the breathing technique.

When she got back home and rambled to Tanjiro about the experience, she could see the wonder in his eyes. It was obvious that he felt even more motivated after hearing how awesome the technique seemed to be.

When he remarked that it sounded familiar to him, she felt a bit proud of herself for giving the older Kamado a push in the right direction.

The next days or so were spent with her trying to incorporate Total Concentration Breathing into her warmup exercises. Urokodaki had brought back some of her prior training, encouraging her to try to use the breathing technique whenever she saw fit.

Total Concentration Breathing used during the defense training heightened her sensitivity to almost everything around her. But it did not have any bearing on her range. Because of the boost, she successfully dodged all of the surprise bugs her mentor sometimes threw her way.

At one point, she had once again sensed the presence of Tomioka Giyuu lingering nearby. He must have had some free time and came by to check on them again. She knew that Urokodaki was also aware of the slayer watching them, so she decided not to point it out.

On the days that they needed more firewood, Nezuko was ordered to use the breathing technique and slash increasingly thicker trees, and then drag them across the forest where she was also expected the chop the tree into smaller pieces.

The mischievous retired Hashira somehow knew how to find the biggest trees with the longest and most complicated paths back to his place of residence. By the time she was done for the night, she was huffing and puffing like she actually needed the air that she was breathing in.

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More days flew by, and Urokodaki finally started teaching Tanjiro breathing techniques and the Water Breathing forms. When Nezuko woke up one afternoon to the sound of her brother being clobbered for not bracing himself properly, her mind was buzzing with excitement at getting closer to having an excuse to relate their family’s traditional dance to a Breathing Style.

She herself was at the stage of learning how to focus on enhancing just certain parts of her body. Urokodaki had mentioned to her that the visualization that she would hone could also help her redirect and focus her regenerative abilities to specific parts of her body if the situation called for it.

But then, multiple things happened one after the other.

First, when Tanjiro and Nezuko went on a supply run, their temporary reconnection with the world outside Mt. Sagiri reminded them that Tanjiro’s birthday was near. It was just over a week away.

She couldn’t recall him ever mentioning if he celebrated any of his birthdays on the years he has been training to become a Demon Slayer. She could only guess he chose not to just to focus more on the goal of curing her.

She decided that she didn’t like that and that if he tried to refuse any of her gifts for his birthday, she would glare at him throughout his training again.

Then, when they got back to the mountain, they found Urokodaki preparing to start writing a letter while a familiar old crow hobbled inside the house.

Giyuu had sent them a sample of blood he had gotten from Lower Moon 4, along with apologies for having taken so long since other encounters he had with lower Kizuki have been with a fellow Hashira.

And finally, Nezuko was able to convince their mentor to perform the Water Breathing forms himself to show her older brother how they were done by a master.

The moves were mesmerizing. Urokodaki’s forms were so perfected that she swore she saw water coming out of his sword. But she shouldn’t let herself be distracted any more.

“These moves. They’re kind of like a ritual dance.” She pointed out after letting her brother sit there in awe for a bit. This snapped Tanjiro out of his gawking, and he turned to look at Nezuko with surprise.

“When you put it like that, they kinda do! Water Breathing’s so graceful.”

“This is the first time I’ve heard someone compare Water Breathing to a ritual dance.” Urokodaki remarked after properly storing his sword where it belonged.

“It reminds me vaguely of our family’s kagura. There’s a really big difference but…” Tanjiro scrunched his face in thought.

”Oh, right! Speaking of our family’s kagura, we never got around to deciding when you would perform it. How about we have a belated ceremony on your birthday, Onii-chan?” Nezuko suggested.

“Oh? And when is your birthday, Tanjiro?” Urokodaki asked, seemingly a bit offended he hadn’t been informed of the date.

“It’s a little over a week from now. Ah, but we don’t really have to make it a big celebration-!”

“But it sounds like the perfect time to do it!” She butted in. “My birthday won’t be until next winter. That’s such a long wait! Besides, didn’t we promise Urokodaki-san and Tomioka-san that we’d let them watch?”

“I do recall being invited to watch this tradition of yours, yes.” Urokodaki suddenly spoke.

“D-do you still want to come watch, Urokodaki-san?” Tanjiro asked with an expectant look in his eyes. “I promise I’ll do my best to make up for the days of training that I’ll miss!”

“Of course.” He answered.

And Nezuko couldn’t be more glad that they were able to find an excuse to force Tanjiro to celebrate his own birthday, AND show the dance derived from Sun Breathing to both the former Water Hashira and the current Water Hashira.