"No…
Don't… DON'T!!"
Watching the two vials of violet serum pushed fully into their veins,
watching the single horn grow from Tanjiro's temple,
watching black lightning surge violently across Zenitsu's body—
the final taut string in Inosuke's mind snapped.
He collapsed to his knees, both hands clawing into the sand of the courtyard.
His fingernails shattered. Blood poured freely.
"You bastards… you absolute bastards…"
His voice was hoarse and broken, like it was grinding gravel.
"Who told you to use it?! Who gave you permission?!"
"That was for survival…
That was the lifeline I left you in case one day I couldn't protect you anymore…"
"I'm the big brother…
I'm the one who should be wronged, the one who should be doubted!"
"So why…
Why would you turn yourselves into monsters for someone like me?!"
He wailed openly.
All his pride, all his ambition—
shattered the moment he saw his brothers destroy themselves just to prove his innocence.
But for those who had engraved *slaying demons* into their bones,
this sight was nothing but blasphemy.
"That's demonic aura!!"
Sanemi Shinazugawa's pupils shrank violently, killing intent overwhelming reason.
The memory of personally beheading his demonized mother surged back in an instant.
"So that's it!
So you *are* all in it together!!"
"Turning into demons right here—
is this a declaration of war?!"
*Clang!*
His Nichirin blade left its sheath.
"Die!!"
Wind Breathing exploded into motion, sand and dust spiraling as he charged, blade aimed straight for Tanjiro and Zenitsu's throats.
"SANEMI! STOP!!"
Giyu Tomioka and Rengoku Kyojuro shouted at the same time, reaching for their swords—but Sanemi was too close. Too fast.
No one could react in time—
except the boy whose sanity finally shattered under that blade.
*Humm—*
The world turned transparent.
Sanemi's muscle contractions, blood flow, the arc of his swing—
even the opening and closing of every pore became crystal clear.
**Mark—Activated.**
**Transparent World—Proto-Form Opened.**
"TRY TOUCHING THEM AGAIN!!!"
**CLANG—!!!**
Sanemi's killing strike stopped dead.
A brand-new blade smashed violently into the side of his sword,
the sheer hatred behind it sending his Nichirin blade flying from his hand.
"Wha—?!"
Sanemi's grip tore open.
Before he could react, a body slammed into his chest.
Inosuke threw his sword aside.
Like a street thug—like a madman—
he tackled Sanemi to the ground, straddling him.
**BAM!**
A fist like forged iron smashed into Sanemi's scarred face.
"Trying to kill them?!"
**BAM!**
"You really trying to kill them?!"
**BAM!**
"WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!"
Inosuke abandoned all technique—
this was raw, primal violence.
Each punch sent blood spraying, teeth loosening.
"I'VE PUT UP WITH YOU FOR A LONG TIME!!"
He beat him while crying, spit and blood splattering Sanemi's face.
"From the moment we walked in, you were looking for trouble!
You think we're easy targets?!"
"I didn't fight back because I gave you face!
Because I thought you were good people!"
"But WHY did you draw your blade?!"
"They're my brothers!!
They're idiots who gave up being human just to prove my innocence!!"
"What more do you WANT from us?!"
Inosuke grabbed Sanemi by the collar, yanked him up like a dead dog, and slammed him back down.
"Do you want me to tear out my heart and show you?!
Do you want my life?!"
"You take advantage and still act righteous—
Huh?!"
"So what if I was raised by Doma?!
Did I eat your rice?!"
"I fought on the Mugen Train!
I killed the Upper Rank!
I SAVED YOUR LIVES!!"
"All the suffering, all the beatings I took growing up in the Everlasting Paradise—
they don't even compare to what I suffered HERE today!!"
His roar echoed through the courtyard, every word soaked in blood and tears.
The Hashira fell silent.
They had never seen Inosuke like this.
They had never seen Sanemi like this.
"I'm telling you Demon Slayer bastards—"
Inosuke raised his blood-soaked fist.
"If…
If Zenitsu and Tanjiro can't turn back…"
"If something happens to them because of this cursed drug…"
"You'd better remember this."
Sanemi was dazed—but he was a man who had crawled out of piles of corpses.
Humiliation ignited his rage.
He kicked Inosuke away and staggered to his feet.
"BASTARD!!"
His face was drenched in blood, one eye swollen shut, looking terrifying.
"What nonsense are you spouting?!
Are you threatening me?!"
"You demon-raised freak!!"
He reached for his fallen sword.
He was going to fight again.
Even if it killed him, he would never allow demons to run wild within the Demon Slayer Corps.
That was his line.
Paid for with his mother's death.
"STOP IT!!
BROTHER!!!"
A heart-rending cry tore through the air.
Genya—who had been firmly restrained by two Kakushi—somehow broke free.
He rushed forward and dropped to his knees before Sanemi, clinging to his leg with both arms.
"Please… brother… stop…"
Tears streamed down Genya's face, his voice shaking.
"You know that pain…
You KNOW it!!"
He looked up at his violent, fiercely loving brother—
at the scar Sanemi bore for protecting his family.
"When Mom turned into a demon…
you killed her to protect me…"
"And I misunderstood you…
called you a murderer…"
"You said it was justice—but I know…
I KNOW how much that hurt you!"
"The pain of being misunderstood by your own family…
of being treated like a monster…"
"You understand that better than anyone!!"
"INOSUKE IS THE SAME!!"
Genya pointed at Inosuke, who was ready to throw himself back into the fight.
"He's protecting everyone too!
If he were evil, why would he give so much?!"
"Why are we treating him like this?!
Why are we becoming the same people who judge without seeing the truth?!"
"Brother…
weren't we supposed to wield our blades to protect?!"
"If we kill even those who want to protect us—
then what's the difference between us and demons?!"
Sanemi's grip on his sword froze.
He looked at his sobbing brother,
at Inosuke covered in blood and tears,
at Tanjiro and Zenitsu who had turned into demons for their brother's sake.
The most painful memories of his life flooded back—
himself covered in blood,
his brother pointing at him and calling him a murderer.
*Clang.*
The Nichirin blade slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.
Sanemi stood there, unmoving.
Two lines of tears mixed with blood streamed down his face.
The courtyard filled with sobs.
Mitsuri Kanroji crouched down, covering her face.
"It's too cruel…
These three… it's just too cruel…
What are we even doing…?"
Gyomei Himejima clasped his hands, tears pouring endlessly.
"Nam… Amida… Butsu…"
Rengoku tilted his head back, refusing to let his tears fall.
Tokito Muichiro stared at Inosuke—
at the boy who had helped him recover his memories—
his heart twisting as if reliving the day he lost his brother.
"You people…"
The demonized Tanjiro breathed heavily, stepping in front of Inosuke.
"Is this proof enough?!"
He pointed at the horn on his head, at the lightning around Zenitsu.
"Is turning ourselves into demons proof enough?!
Did we hurt anyone?! Did we eat anyone?!"
"If all of this—
is denied just because of Inosuke's birth…"
"Because of a father he never chose…"
Tanjiro looked straight at the Master, eyes blazing.
"Then how is the Demon Slayer Corps any different from Muzan?!"
His hoarse voice shook the air.
"I, Kamado Tanjiro, joined the Demon Slayer Corps to kill demons and save people—
not to be interrogated like a criminal!"
"I never received kindness from the Corps!
My life was saved by Inosuke!
My money came from Inosuke!
My sister survived because Inosuke protected her!"
"If this is what the Demon Slayer Corps is—"
Tanjiro tore off his black uniform and slammed it onto the ground.
"I QUIT!!"
"I QUIT TOO!!"
Half-demon Zenitsu screamed through tears, black lightning crackling wildly.
He was no longer a coward.
At this moment, he was braver than anyone.
"What gives you the right to look down on us?!
Are you all blind to everything Inosuke has done?!"
Zenitsu pointed at each Hashira, accusing them one by one.
"Who saved Uzui-san's wives?!
Who helped Obanai-san and Mitsuri-san get together?!
Who protected the swordsmiths and their village?!"
"Who here hasn't benefited from Inosuke?!
You take his help, then turn around and judge his birth—
do you have ANY shame?!"
He roared.
"If this is the so-called Demon Slayer Corps—
I'd rather be a useless nobody forever than sink into the same filth as you!!"
The box on Tanjiro's back opened.
Nezuko crawled out.
Wearing the beautiful New Year kimono Doma had given her,
she looked painfully out of place in this killing-filled courtyard.
She ran to Tanjiro and Zenitsu, tiptoed to wipe their tears with her sleeves,
then ran over and hugged Inosuke tightly.
"Mm!
Mm!!
Mm!!!"
She turned around, spread her small arms wide,
standing in front of the three boys like a chick protecting her brood.
In the east, the sky began to pale.
The first ray of sunlight was about to pierce the clouds.
Inosuke jolted awake.
Time—
time was almost up!
If sunlight hit them, demonized Tanjiro and Zenitsu would turn to ash!
"IDIOTS!!"
Inosuke cried out.
Both hands slammed against Tanjiro and Zenitsu's backs.
"GET IN!!
GET INTO THE SHADOWS—NOW!!"
Like herding ducks, he roughly shoved the two demonized boys—along with Nezuko—deep into the shade.
He stood there, gasping, facing the courtyard.
His face was streaked with tears, utterly disheveled.
But in his multicolored eyes burned a pride long unseen.
The pride of the **Young Lord of the Everlasting Paradise**.
"Listen carefully.
"Half-demonification lasts five minutes.
"If after five minutes…
they don't turn back—"
Inosuke slowly drew the ancient blade Kotetsu had given him.
The tip rested on the ground, cold light reflecting across his face.
"Then I want nothing.
"No ending. No future. No Demon Slayer Corps.
To hell with all of it."
He raised his head, blade sweeping across every face.
"Remember this well.
"The one standing before you—
is first the Young Lord of the Everlasting Paradise.
"And only then…
the Demon Slayer, Hashibira Inosuke."
Seconds crawled by.
Each one felt endless.
All eyes locked onto the shadows.
Shinobu's hands trembled.
Rengoku held his breath.
The Master's fingers dug into the floor.
Finally—
two dull thuds sounded from the darkness.
Then Zenitsu's familiar whimper:
"W-wah… I feel so hollow… am I gonna die…?"
And Tanjiro's weak voice:
"I—I'm back… the horn's gone…"
Perhaps because of Inosuke's relentless supervision of Hinokami Kagura.
Perhaps because Tamayo miscalculated the usage limit.
They endured.
A miracle happened.
"Enough."
The long-silent Ubuyashiki Kagaya suddenly clapped his hands.
The sound echoed clearly through the deathly quiet courtyard.
His face was soaked in tears, yet he smiled in relief.
"This is enough.
"Inosuke. Tanjiro. Zenitsu.
"You used your lives… to prove your loyalty.
"No words could be stronger than this."
The Master extended his hand toward Inosuke, his tone sincere—almost humble.
"The Demon Slayer Corps… welcomes you.
"From this day forth, no one will ever doubt you again.
"You are the pride of the Demon Slayer Corps."
But—
facing the Master's outstretched hand,
facing the Hashira's apologetic gazes—
Inosuke did not move.
He simply looked at them, eyes empty with a calm deeper than despair.
He turned to Shinobu—
the sister he had once admired so much.
"I'm sorry,"
Inosuke said softly.
"I will atone for my father's sins… to you.
"No matter the method…
even if it costs my life…
I will atone."
Shinobu's heart clenched violently.
She opened her mouth to speak—
but Inosuke had already looked away.
He raised his gaze to the Master—
the godlike figure who ruled over everything.
"I proved my loyalty,"
Inosuke said calmly.
So calm it was terrifying.
"But…
the Demon Slayer Corps cannot prove *its* loyalty."
He reached into his robes—
and pulled out a large handful of heavy gold ingots.
*Clatter—!!*
With a flick of his arm, the glittering ingots rained down onto the sand.
"This is the pay you gave the three of us—
our blood money. I'm returning it."
"The extra…
consider it compensation for the Nichirin blades I broke."
Then—
*Clang! Clang!*
Inosuke kicked aside the two brand-new Nichirin blades forged by Haganezuka.
They hadn't even been engraved yet.
"I don't want these blades either.
"As an Ice Hashira without the words 'Destroy Evil' engraved—
I truly don't deserve to remain in the Demon Slayer Corps."
Tanjiro and Zenitsu, human again but terribly weak, supported each other as they walked out.
They saw the gold scattered across the ground.
They saw the blades lying there.
They asked nothing.
They simply removed their own Nichirin swords
and placed them beside Inosuke's.
"Let's go, big bro,"
Zenitsu wiped his tears. His legs trembled, but his eyes were resolute.
"Yeah. Let's go home,"
Tanjiro said, hoisting his box and gripping Inosuke's hand.
"I realized something,"
Inosuke looked at the swords, a self-mocking smile tugging at his lips.
"That perfect ending…
"doesn't have to rely on you."
He turned to Rengoku, Giyu, Urokodaki, and Muichiro—
the ones who had been willing to die for him.
He bowed deeply.
"Big Brother Rengoku. Brother Giyu. Master Urokodaki. Muichiro.
"It was an honor…
to fight alongside you."
"Inosuke, my boy!!"
Rengoku shouted, tears bursting free.
"Inosuke…"
Muichiro reached out, trying to grasp something.
Shinobu rushed forward, clutching a corner of Inosuke's clothes.
Tears streamed down her face—
she knew that once he left, she might never see him again.
But Inosuke did not turn back.
*Rip—*
The sound of fabric tearing.
He tore the cloth free, leaving it in Shinobu's hand.
"Goodbye."
The three boys—
walked toward the rising sun in the east,
stepping over scattered gold,
and left the gates of the Demon Slayer Corps behind.
---
Deep in the mountain valley,
sunlight bathed the solitary grave.
There lay Yoriichi's beloved wife,
along with a century-old gentleness.
A Kasugai crow, a golden ring on its foot,
stood silently atop the tombstone.
It looked toward the rising sun,
then down at the empty patch of earth.
It did not move.
It was waiting for that flower—
and waiting for its master.
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