Our Bond Can't be Severed by Anyone!

21 - Ash and Blood

Fear.

It's a terribly icy feeling that had festered in Muzan's chest for years. Fear that his mission was pointless, that he'd never meet his goal, that another like Yoriichi would rise up to kill him. That his own demons would try to revolt against their master.

He spent years trying to quench his fears. Years spent cutting the head off anyone who dare pose a threat, stomping down his foes and challengers, inciting fear, and planting certainty...

And yet... it did nothing.

He stood no longer on his pedestal, on the same playing field as gods - he stood as a lowly human, scrambling to hold on to life. That lofty height that he spent so long climbing for came crashing down around him, filling his ears with his own angered screams and desperate thoughts.

The girl's sword burned as it severed his flesh, leaving his wounds struggling to heal through the cauterized flesh. The boy's fires seemed to try and eat him alive, like some sort of retribution for the human blood he'd forced the boy to devour.

He hated it. He hated that no matter where he turned or what he did, they were there to thwart him. Everyone, everyone that he'd failed to kill was here now, making him regret it.

The poison burning in his blood was doubtlessly Tamayos. Yoriichi's students lay spread before him covered in blood and determined to slay him. The girl was leading the charge with her pink fire, using her own demonic gifts against him.

All he had failed to dispose of now rose in tandem to kill him.

Poetic, really.

As Tanjiro's flames engulfed him once again Muzan cursed his own arrogance. He'd raised the demonic child to be everything and more, and now his creation had turned to destroy him. In another time he would've mused that this was the world's karma coming to get him - but he knew that such things didn't exist.

... wait... what was that twisting his cells and curdling his blood.

As if to prove otherwise, the world deemed it time to raise the sun. Golden light streamed out of the horizon and Muzan nearly screamed.

No...

no.

Muzan writhed and snarled, lashing out as he tried to flee - he had to get away - had to survive.

He couldn't escape as he had with Yoriichi, Tamayo's poison ensured it. He had to fight his way through.

He took a step to flee and found Tanjiro's claws sinking into his legs, making him topple to the ground.

"THE SUN WILL KILL YOU, BOY!" he threatened as he tried to kick at the boy's face.

"Good."

That was the hiss that barely reached Muzan's ear and never registered. The boy burst into his blood demon art - setting his golden flames to Muzan's skin that devoured him like a pack of wolves. Nezuko hissed as she set her hands on Muzan's neck, fitting him into a chokehold as the fires of her brother left her untouched.

"NEZUKO! TANJIRO! THE SUN IS RISING - " Kyojuro tried to warn as he shakily stood and raised his sword.

"GET THE FUCK AWAY!" Sanemi yelled, his eyes flitting from the brilliant golden sphere in the sky to the two demons pinning down their fallen Lord.

"NEZUKO!" Zenitsu cried desperately.

"THE SUN WILL KILL YOU DUMBASS!" Inosuke roared charging forward.

Nezuko kept a firm grip on Muzan who thrashed and screamed in fury and desperation but could not break out of their grip. Slowly, Nezuko looked over to Tanjiro and met his eyes.