Disclaimer: Demon Slayer is not mine. This fanfic is a translation.
Enjoy Reading!
---
At Gyomei's residence.
"That's wonderful, Sayo."
Senjuro sat on the threshold, smiling as he looked at Sayo standing beside him, gazing into the distance.
"Himejima-san really is a gentle person."
"Mm." Sayo looked far off and took a deep breath. A faint smile appeared on her lips as she lowered her head.
Then she smiled at Senjuro.
"Thank you."
Senjuro froze for a moment. Slowly withdrawing his gaze, he lowered his head and gently shook it, murmuring quietly so that only he could hear himself.
"No… I should be the one thanking you."
After helping Sayo and witnessing her and Himejima crying together in each other's arms, their emotions were finally released.
Twelve-year-old Senjuro finally stepped out of the shadow left by his mother's early death and his father's despair.
Even someone like him, who couldn't become a swordsman, could still help others.
'I did it.'
His fist slowly tightened.
Now that he had truly done it, the emotions surging inside him were impossible to describe.
"Huh? Did you say something?"
Sayo tilted her head in confusion. She hadn't heard him clearly, so she leaned down slightly, her hair falling loosely beside him.
"Nothing."
Senjuro replied with a quiet smile.
After talking with Sayo for quite some time, the lingering doubts and melancholy in Gyomei's heart gradually faded.
Above the eaves, a few clouds drifted across the deep blue sky.
"Namu…"
Inside the house with his back to the doorway, Gyomei crouched on the floor. Tears ran down his cheeks as he spoke in a sorrowful voice.
"I'm sorry…"
His large hands mixed food with water, preparing a meal for the cat.
"The one who judged others by my own thoughts… was me."
He pressed his palms together, holding his prayer beads, and sat quietly in front of the cat food for quite a while.
His tears nearly soaked through his robes.
After silently repenting for the suspicion he once harbored toward the children, he turned his head slightly and called out softly.
"Kitty… dinner's ready…"
But even after calling for a while, the white cat did not appear.
Just as Gyomei looked toward the cat's nest in confusion, he froze.
Without realizing it, his Transparent World activated.
Inside the white cat's nest lay a strange cat that ordinary people couldn't see, sleeping comfortably and purring.
Meanwhile, the white cat itself was crouched timidly in the corner, staring at its own nest in confusion.
There was nothing there, but every time it approached, it would get scratched.
That was too strange!
The white cat's little brain simply couldn't understand.
Gyomei paused in surprise.
Within his transparent perception, the unfamiliar cat, Chachamaru, stood up, stretched lazily, then sniffed the ground and wandered over.
Under Gyomei's gaze, Chachamaru walked casually toward the food bowl.
Smack!
A large hand suddenly grabbed it from the ground!
"MEOW!!"
Chachamaru's eyes bulged in shock. The paper charm around its neck began glowing desperately, but nothing happened.
It was supposed to be invisible!
Only when Gyomei lifted it up and his pale eyes met the cat's did Chachamaru freeze in confusion.
"…The scent of a demon… a Blood Demon Art?"
He held Chachamaru up with both hands, carefully sensing the aura around it.
He was extremely puzzled.
'What kind of demon would use a Blood Demon Art on a cat?'
Then under Chachamaru's increasingly terrified gaze,
Gyomei reached out and tore the paper charm off its neck!
Chachamaru froze, eyes wide. It struggled desperately and let out a miserable cry for the first time.
"MEEOW—!!"
That paper was the medium. Yushiro had given it to use a Blood Demon Art.
Without it, no matter how smart Chachamaru was, it was just a normal cat.
After tearing the paper completely apart and confirming that no trace of a demon's aura remained, Gyomei finally set Chachamaru down.
The cat didn't move.
It just stared blankly at the scraps of paper scattered on the floor.
Its life as a cat was over.
"Eat."
Gyomei's large hand gently rubbed its head before he began quietly chanting sutras again.
He noticed the small bag on Chachamaru's back, but it didn't contain any demon aura.
There were only two test tubes and a piece of paper.
"Meow."
The white cat cautiously approached. After realizing Chachamaru wasn't reacting, it affectionately rubbed its head against Chachamaru's neck.
Meanwhile, regret and despair slowly filled Chachamaru's eyes.
Only a bowl of delicious cat food was placed in front of it for comfort.
"…Does Himejima-sensei have two cats?"
Sayo leaned forward curiously, peeking into the house.
She looked at Chachamaru and the white cat busily eating together.
"…Huh?" Senjuro also leaned forward and scratched his head.
He remembered last time there had only been one.
---
-Location: Butterfly Mansion
"Is this guy even human?"
"Probably."
Inosuke was still lying unconscious on the ground.
"He's pretty badly injured… even his ribs are cracked."
Several Kakushi gathered around him, whispering among themselves.
When surprised, come to their door.
THUD!
"Finally…"
Muichiro staggered slightly before collapsing stiffly onto the ground with a dull thud, his eyes rolling back.
In front of him was the large crate containing the Yoriichi Type Zero puppet, which they had finally pushed up the mountain.
"We… did it…"
Yuichiro leaned weakly against the crate, slowly raising his trembling hand to slap Muichiro's.
Smack.
Under the morning sunlight, the brothers' hands met.
They remained like that, with no energy left to move.
Their father, Soichiro, lay quietly in the cart. If his chest weren't gently rising and falling, the Kakushi might have thought he was dead.
Creak…
Since Yuichiro had stood the crate upright, the box slowly creaked open.
Revealing the puppet inside.
Six Nichirin blades were neatly attached to its arms.
The Kamado kids just came downstairs and saw the puppet.
"Whoa!"
Takeo rubbed his sleepy eyes, then pointed at the puppet in shock.
"It's Dad!"
"Really?!"
Shigeru, whose hand Takeo was holding, immediately looked up, still half-asleep.
Tanjuro, sitting on the veranda, staggered slightly.
"Dad!!"
Still groggy, Shigeru broke free from Takeo and ran toward the puppet with his arms open.
He jumped off the veranda and ran down the hallway, his trained body moving nimbly.
But the closer he got, the more awake he became.
When he got close enough to clearly see the puppet's damaged face and the seams around its neck.
"Da—WHOA!"
His expression changed instantly.
He slammed on the brakes, his face turning pale as he stared at it.
He nearly lost his balance, flailing his arms to steady himself.
The gaps between its joints… half a face with only an eyeball left…
"…Huh?"
He stepped back in disbelief, chills running down his spine.
'Is this really Dad?'
Tanjuro slowly walked over and picked up the frightened Shigeru.
He placed him on his shoulders and reassured him.
"Don't worry."
He gently patted the boy's head.
"It's just a puppet."
Shigeru blinked, realizing that it was his father's voice but still unsure.
"Dad?"
He looked back at his father and then at the puppet.
His mind was completely confused.
Takeo and Nezuko had also run over.
After hearing the explanation, they looked curiously at the puppet.
"If you look closely, it only vaguely resembles Dad. The face doesn't look like him at all."
Hanako crossed her arms and puffed up her cheeks.
"Whoever made this puppet did a terrible job!"
"Yeah!" Shigeru chimed in, trying to recover from the embarrassment of being scared earlier.
"Oh my."
Kie held Hanako's hand while examining the puppet curiously.
"Amazing."
From time to time, she glanced back at Tanjuro, seemingly comparing the two.
"It wasn't made to look like me."
Tanjuro smiled helplessly.
His gaze slowly moved to the collapsed Tokito brothers.
The Yoriichi Type Zero had been moved here.
From the new Swordsmith Village location to here would definitely take longer than a single night.
Not to mention carrying something that heavy.
After thinking for a moment, Tanjuro reached a conclusion.
'Did Michikatsu... steal it?'
"Caw! Caw!"
The morning excitement was interrupted by a Kasugai crow that flew down and landed in front of him.
"Caw! Kamado-san!"
"I am the resident crow of the Swordsmith Village. I've come to deliver a message from Tecchin-san!"
The crow then mimicked an extremely sorrowful and angry voice.
"Kamado-san! Do you remember the Yoriichi Type Zero from before?"
It gritted its beak as if furious, even tears glimmering in its eyes.
"This time someone actually stole it!"
"That's my family heirloom!"
"I questioned everyone in the village, but not a single person admitted it!"
"Kamado-san, my own strength is too weak. If you have time, please come to the Swordsmith Village."
The crow suddenly leaned closer, its voice becoming eerie.
"I will make that thief pay the price!"
Then it pulled back and returned to its normal tone.
"That is all."
"Tecchin-san misses you very much, Kamado-san."
When it finished, the courtyard fell silent.
The Kakushi, Takeo, Kie, Hanako, and Tanjuro, and even Yuichiro, are staring in bewilderment at the crow.
Tanjuro calmly signaled with his gaze at the crow to look to where he pointed. The crow followed his gaze.
When it saw the puppet, it fell silent.
---
Meanwhile, in a town far from the Butterfly Mansion.
Three girls with butterfly-shaped hair ornaments stood in a pharmacy.
At their feet lay a backpack as tall as a person.
Seeing the sword hilts faintly visible at their waists, passersby looked terrified and quickly walked around them.
"Shinobu-sama, we've gathered all the medicinal ingredients."
Aoi checked the heavy pack on her back and looked up at Shinobu with admiration.
Combine her looks with her smile, and Shinobu's appearance seemed to radiate warmth and safety in Aoi's eyes.
'As expected of Shinobu-sama!'
Even after traveling such a long distance, she didn't look tired at all!
Lowering her head, Aoi glanced at her calloused hands.
Even though Shinobu wasn't much older than her, she could effortlessly manage the entire Butterfly Mansion.
'She's amazing!'
Aoi encouraged herself silently.
One day she wanted to become someone like Lady Shinobu.
"Mm."
Shinobu watched the pedestrians passing by and nodded with a smile.
"Thank you for accompanying me all this way just for these medicines."
"N-No! Not at all!" Aoi's face turned bright red, not expecting such words of gratitude.
"This is what I should be doing!"
Noticing her flustered reaction, she quickly lowered her head and adjusted her hair.
Out of the corner of her eye, she also noticed Kanao Tsuyuri, who had been standing quietly beside them the whole time.
Aoi paused.
During the trip, she had noticed something strange about the girl.
Kanao never spoke.
When people chatted, she only smiled quietly.
She only moved when Shinobu spoke.
Aoi watched her curiously.
If Shinobu was their superior, then Kanao was... her companion?
After losing her family to demons, Aoi deeply longed for companions.
Kanao simply stood there with her side ponytail, expression calm, almost blank, waiting for Shinobu to finish her business.
A coin spun between her fingers.
Tap.
Aoi unconsciously stepped forward and gently held Kanao's hand.
Kanao looked at her in confusion.
Aoi's face slowly turned red.
'Oh no! I accidentally treated Kanao like my little sister at home!'
"S-Sorry!!" She closed her eyes and bowed deeply.
Kanao said nothing. She simply smiled.
"Hmm, that should be everything."
Shinobu smiled at the two of them and turned around lightly.
"Let's go. It's time to return to the Butterfly Mansion."
"You must both be exhausted after such a long journey."
Kanao immediately stepped forward to follow.
Unaware to the three girls, someone was watching their every move. The bald man had been walking around town in search of candidates when he saw them.
He was a recruiter, you see.
A beautiful woman… The cult leader's request might finally be fulfilled.
'Three beautiful women... The leader's request might finally be fulfilled.'
He hurried forward and held out a hand to stop Kanao.
"Little miss over there, please wait a moment."
He bent down slightly and spoke gently, trying to sound friendly.
"Would you be interested in joining our religion?"
"The Eternal Paradise Faith."
"Our doctrine is to live happily with a calm attitude. If something is painful or difficult, there's no need to force yourself."
After finishing, he clasped his hands together and smiled.
"So? Interested?"
Tap.
A hand with bulging veins landed on the man's shoulder, making him jump.
A gentle voice sounded beside his ear.
Yet it felt chilling.
"Pardon me. I didn't quite catch that."
Shinobu leaned close to his ear.
Her face was dark, but she was smiling.
Her voice was perfectly clear.
"Could you repeat the name of your religion?"
"Thank you."
Her eyes locked onto him as she spoke each word.