Leaving that mountain valley behind,
the three of them traveled through the night, heading straight for the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters.
"Big bro! When you become the Ice Hashira, does that mean you'll get a huge house?"
Zenitsu said with a goofy grin, his pack slung over his back.
"I'm calling dibs on a south-facing room! And I want a really warm quilt!"
"Obviously!"
Inosuke walked at the front, chin raised, gazing up at the star-filled sky, the smile on his lips refusing to fade.
"Not just a big house—this young master is gonna turn the Hashira Meeting into the Inosuke Praise Conference.
Anyone who doesn't compliment me gets punched!"
Tanjiro smiled gently beside him, watching the high-spirited Inosuke.
"That's wonderful… really wonderful.
If it's Inosuke-kun, I'm sure you can lead us to that perfect ending."
Hearing their laughter behind him, Inosuke felt warmth spread through his chest.
This—this was what he wanted to protect with everything he had.
The road ahead was still long, but as long as he could see these idiots smiling,
the future felt bright beyond measure.
"Hey! You up there with the mohawk!"
Inosuke suddenly stopped, pointing at a tall figure at the crossroads ahead.
Genya Shinazugawa.
He had just returned from a mission, wounds still on his body, Nichirin blade and shotgun in hand.
When Genya saw Inosuke, his expression stiffened.
The news of Inosuke killing an Upper Rank and being promoted to Hashira had already spread through the Corps.
Awkward as it was, hierarchy in the Demon Slayer Corps was absolute.
Genya clenched his teeth, then stiffly bent at the waist in an extremely perfunctory bow.
"Hah! That's more like it!"
Inosuke instantly flashed in front of him and slung an arm around his neck.
"So? Mohawk-head! Heard things aren't going too well for you lately.
Wanna be this young master's underling? Just say yes, and you'll eat and drink well for the rest of your life. I'll cover you!"
"Let go! Who wants to be your underling?!"
Genya struggled, face red.
"And I'm not Mohawk-head! My name is Shinazugawa Genya!"
"Got it. Rooster-head."
Inosuke didn't listen at all.
Tanjiro stepped forward, sniffing lightly.
Though this boy looked fierce and carried a strange scent,
Tanjiro could smell that his heart wasn't bad.
"Let's go together, Genya-kun. We're heading the same way."
The four of them set off together.
Along the way, Inosuke bragged nonstop, Zenitsu eagerly played along,
Genya awkwardly retorted, and Tanjiro mediated with gentle smiles.
But as the gates of the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters drew closer,
Genya grew quieter and quieter.
His body trembled faintly, his eyes filled with an inexplicable fear and unease.
The three exchanged glances.
"Don't be scared,"
Inosuke said, patting Genya on the back.
"With this young master here, nobody's bullying you."
Genya looked up at him, hesitated as if wanting to say something,
then lowered his head again with a soft sigh.
Demon Slayer Corps Headquarters
The moment the four stepped through the gate—
it was quiet.
No, too quiet.
So quiet it felt suffocating.
The courtyard was filled with people.
Stone Hashira. Wind Hashira. Water Hashira. Insect Hashira. Serpent Hashira. Love Hashira. Sound Hashira. Mist Hashira. Flame Hashira.
All nine Hashira were present.
Even Sakonji Urokodaki, long retired, stood off to the side.
At that moment, every gaze converged on Inosuke.
There was no welcome.
No smiles.
Only complicated expressions.
"Yo! Everyone's here!"
Inosuke didn't notice anything amiss; he couldn't be bothered to read their emotions.
"Such a big lineup—what, are you throwing us a belated New Year's feast? I wanna eat—"
Whoosh!
A green gale struck without warning.
Too fast. Far too fast.
Inosuke had never put his guard up around these people.
BAM!!
Before he could finish speaking, a crushing blow slammed into his abdomen.
It was a punch wrapped in Wind Breathing—
Shinazugawa Sanemi.
Inosuke was sent flying, smashing hard into the sandy ground of the courtyard, bile spilling from his mouth.
"Cough… cough…"
Clutching his stomach, Inosuke looked up in disbelief.
"Y-you crazy mutt…! You wanna fight?!"
"Inosuke!!"
Tanjiro and Zenitsu exploded instantly, both reaching for their swords on reflex.
"Restrain them!"
A cold command rang out.
Clatter—
Obanai Iguro appeared behind Tanjiro, white snake coiling as he knocked Tanjiro's sword away.
Uzui Tengen, regret written on his face, pressed a hand down on Zenitsu's shoulder.
"Sorry, flamboyant boy. Don't move."
Gyomei Himejima swung his prayer beads, blocking off all retreat.
Even Genya was swiftly pulled away by two Kakushi members, separated from the three.
"What the hell are you doing?!"
Inosuke got back to his feet, wiping the sour liquid from his mouth, his eyes turning savage.
"You bastards—what is this?! A mutiny?!"
"Enough."
A gentle yet authoritative voice came from the corridor.
Supported by his two daughters, Ubuyashiki Kagaya slowly emerged.
His face was paler than ever, and sorrow lingered in his blind eyes.
"Sanemi, do not attack Inosuke again,"
the Master said softly.
Sanemi hesitated, then stepped back half a pace—
but his hand remained on his sword, eyes locked onto Inosuke.
Standing in the center of the courtyard, Inosuke looked at these companions he had once fought beside.
His heart sank.
What… is this?
Did I do something wrong?
"Inosuke,"
Ubuyashiki Kagaya's voice was gentle.
"I have four questions for you.
Please… answer them honestly."
Inosuke took a deep breath and straightened his back.
"Ask."
"First question: are you… human, or demon?"
Dead silence fell over the courtyard.
Inosuke clenched his fists.
So it had been exposed after all.
"I have a heartbeat. I have body heat. I stand under the sun,"
he said slowly.
"But I am… half-human, half-demon."
"Second question: what is your relationship with Upper Rank Two and Upper Rank Three?"
Inosuke gritted his teeth and told the truth.
"Doma is my father.
Akaza… is my uncle."
Boom!
The words detonated like a bomb.
Shinobu's smile vanished.
Sanemi's veins bulged—without Gyomei restraining him, he would have drawn his blade already.
"Raised by demons… what kind of joke is that?!"
"Third question: why did you join the Demon Slayer Corps?"
Inosuke lifted his head, meeting the Master's blind gaze.
"To change things.
To save those who shouldn't have to die.
To create a perfect ending where everyone can live."
"Fourth question: everything you've done so far—saving people, killing demons—
was it all a performance, planned in advance with Muzan or the Upper Ranks?"
Inosuke froze.
His pupils contracted violently.
A performance?
Was risking his life to save Rengoku on the train an act?
Was burning away his own lifespan in the Swordsmith Village an act?
"N-no…"
His voice trembled.
"It wasn't an act.
Everything I've done… was real.
I wanted to save you all… that was real too."
He was honest.
He answered everything.
Yet the atmosphere did not soften.
"Really?"
A gentle voice spoke up.
Shinobu Kocho stepped forward.
Her violet eyes held no trace of their usual smile—
only bottomless hatred and sorrow.
"Inosuke-kun…
how are we supposed to believe you?"
Each word was like a poisoned needle.
"You're not the same as Nezuko.
She's a demon, yes, but she has the mind of a child. She can't scheme; she protects humans by instinct.
"But you're different."
Shinobu pointed at Inosuke, her finger trembling.
"You're too smart. You think. You plan.
You became a Hashira at this age.
"And more than that… you were raised by Upper Rank Two.
A child raised by that monster…"
Her voice suddenly rose as all her grief and doubt burst forth.
"You say you want to create a perfect ending where no one dies—
then what about my sister?!
Who takes responsibility for her ending?!
What if all this kindness and passion you show
is just to earn our trust, to make us turn our backs to you—
and then, in the final battle, you stab the Demon Slayer Corps in the back, fulfilling Muzan's plan?!"
Inosuke stood there, stunned.
He looked at Shinobu—
the gentle woman who had bandaged his wounds, who always smiled at him.
Now she looked at him as if he were the most despicable liar alive.
"Why…"
Inosuke murmured.
"I've tried so hard to change things…"
"I saved Rengoku…
I saved the Sound Hashira's wives…
I stopped so many tragedies…
"I even tried to shoulder everything myself so no one would have to burn their life away awakening marks…"
"WHY?!"
He suddenly raised his head, eyes bloodshot, voice hoarse with a roar:
"Just because I didn't tell you who I was at the beginning?!
Just because of that idiot father of mine?!"
"I'm sorry!
I'll atone for his sins!!
But I really… really just wanted everyone to live!!"
"That's enough!!"
Sanemi roared.
"Shut up, you liar! You can't trust a single punctuation mark from a demon's mouth!"
Inosuke looked around.
Mitsuri covered her mouth, crying, but didn't dare step forward.
Obanai turned his head away.
Muichiro looked worried, yet was blocked behind the Stone Hashira.
"And you!"
Inosuke pointed at Tanjiro and Zenitsu, who were being restrained.
"Let them go!!
They know nothing! They're just idiots!!
This has nothing to do with them!!"
"Let me go!!"
Tanjiro struggled on the ground, veins bulging on his forehead.
"Inosuke isn't lying!!
My nose can smell it! He isn't lying—he's been saving people all along!!
Why won't you believe him?! Why?!"
Zenitsu screamed through tears.
"Big bro isn't a bad guy!! You bastards!
How much blood has he shed for you—are you blind?!
If he were a traitor, you'd have died hundreds of times already!!"
But no one answered.
Once the seed of doubt is planted, trust collapses.
"I believe him."
A voice like blazing fire shattered the silence.
Rengoku Kyojuro strode forward and stood in front of Inosuke.
He knelt before the Master and slammed his forehead into the ground.
"Master!
On the night of the Mugen Train, without young Inosuke, I would already be dead—so would the two hundred passengers!
If he were a spy, he could've watched me die! But he didn't—he fought desperately to save me!"
Rengoku lifted his head, eyes blazing.
"I swear on the name of the Flame Hashira—and on my life—
If Inosuke is a traitor, if he harms even a single person…
I, Rengoku Kyojuro, will commit seppuku in apology and die with him!"
"…Me too."
Giyu Tomioka walked forward silently and knelt beside Rengoku.
"Inosuke and Tanjiro are my juniors.
If they are agents of demons…
I, Tomioka Giyu, will commit seppuku."
"So will I."
Urokodaki Sakonji stepped forward, voice deep.
"I watched these children grow for a time.
If I misjudged them, this old life is forfeit to the Demon Slayer Corps."
"And me!"
Tokito Muichiro broke free from the Stone Hashira and ran to Inosuke's side, grabbing his hand.
"It was Inosuke who helped me regain my memories.
If it's them… I'm willing to believe."
Four vows—
like four pillars trying to hold up a collapsing sky.
Tears streamed from Ubuyashiki Kagaya's blind eyes.
He wanted to nod.
He wanted to say:
Alright. I believe you.
But—
he was the Master.
He bore the souls of every swordsman who had died over a thousand years,
the fate of all humanity.
Faced with someone backed by Upper Ranks, terrifyingly strong, possibly a piece on Muzan's board—
Emotion could not be the basis of judgment.
"…Thank you,"
the Master said, voice trembling.
"But… Rengoku, Giyu—this is not enough.
Inosuke's situation is more complex, more dangerous than Nezuko's.
This concerns the survival of the Demon Slayer Corps."
He turned to Inosuke, his tone pained and helpless.
"Inosuke…
do you have… stronger proof?
Proof that you truly wish to change everything?"
Inosuke fell silent.
He looked at the Master.
At those willing to die for him.
Proof?
Aren't the scars on my body proof?
Aren't the lives I saved proof?
So in the end…
as long as demon blood flows in your veins, nothing you do is enough?
He didn't want to explain anymore.
He was tired.
Just as Inosuke was about to give up—
"Give it back to me!!!"
A furious roar shook everyone's ears.
Bang!
The Serpent Hashira restraining Tanjiro was blasted away by brute force.
Like an enraged beast, Tanjiro rushed to Inosuke's side and snatched the box from his back.
"Tanjiro?!"
Everyone cried out in shock.
Clutching the box, Tanjiro stood beside Inosuke.
Those gentle dark-red eyes were now bloodshot, burning with a rage never seen before.
"Proof… you want proof, is that it?"
He looked at the Master, at all the Hashira.
"Inosuke gave me a second life! He gave Nezuko a second life!
Who do you think you are, standing so high above us, judging and doubting him?!
What do you think all our sacrifices were?!"
"He's been atoning—for everyone—for his father's sins! Are you blind?!
If you think this is a sin…"
Tanjiro yanked a syringe from the box.
"Then watch closely!!
Anyone can become a sinner!"
Thrust!
Without hesitation,
Tanjiro drove the purple injector straight into his neck.
"NO! TANJIRO!!"
Inosuke screamed in horror.
"Me too!!"
Zenitsu tore free from the Sound Hashira's grip.
He was crying—but more resolute than ever.
He pulled out another injector and stabbed it into his vein.
"If it's for big bro…
then even hell—I'll go with you!!"
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