Demon Tamer

Chapter 28: Perfecting Crafts

A few days later, you met with Haganezuka, who arrived at the master estate with a wooden box and his own knives. You smiled at his arrival and waved to him, he waved in return and snatched your swords to make sure they were in good shape, and they were. So he gave them back. That sort of behaviour wasn't any different to how he often was, so you didn't have the energy to snatch your swords back. What was surprising about his appearance was the fact he had flipped his mask up for you and there lay an eyepatch. You started to feel as if you had a curse, and the people you met lost an eye somehow. It happened with Kyojuro, it happened with Tengen and then it happened with Haganezuka. Following behind the man, you watched him go to the moon estate, where Isamu was doing stretches and awaiting his arrival.

Upon the meet, the two of them glared at each other. Haganezuka through his mask and Isamu blatantly. You thankfully brought Sanemi to watch. He reluctantly joined but he joined nonetheless. And he was the glaring master.

They began their work. Haganezuka with his knives and Isamu learning intently with his dagger. You watched with Sanemi who sat cross-legged and cross-armed.

"Why do they hate each other anyway?" Sanemi asked, though by the tone of his voice, he didn't really care.

"Isamu doesn't like the fact that he's," you pointed to Haganezuka, "my fiancé." You sighed and watched them, hunched over with your arms on your legs, supporting your head.

"He's your consort?" Sanemi looked at you with a flabbergasted look. "Since when?" He leaned forward to look you in the face.

"A few months." You shrugged and watched Haganezuka fix Isamu's form with a snappy tone, "stop trying to kill each other!" You yelled and they silenced instantly. You looked back at Sanemi.

You relaxed and watched them, "and you brought me here in case you can't hold them back?" Sanemi asked as you smiled at him and patted his head. He looked offended and slapped your hand away,

"So that someone could hold them back without killing them." You corrected and looked at the sky. That mission you went on... wasn't normal. You didn't like the feeling it gave you, when you saw yourself or when you thought of the girl. Because you didn't realise until she had gone and you were rested that she knew you, and she didn't make a sound. It was the same feeling you got when you sometimes thought about Kokushibo. A gut-wrenching sensation that you couldn't deny feeling uncomfortable about. What was it? "I appreciate that I've held you back from any missions to do this with me." You suddenly dismissed and he looked at you again.

"It's fine." He dismissed roughly, "I didn't have many. You killed that last demon that none of us could take on because of Hashira training. Which we start next week." Sanemi reminded you. With a hum, you nodded and looked forward, "apparently the demon had been a growing threat for a while." He shook his head, "I would have taken it otherwise." He leaned back and supported himself with his hands on the grass.

You nodded silently. The thought of seeing yourself and slashing through it was easy for you, and you didn't know why for a moment. But it made sense when you thought of what monster you had become. It did feel good, born human, evolved superhuman. But you knew and you were aware that you would have killed yourself in an instant if you were anyone else meeting you. Or at least you would have tried. And the memory of your dream on the train returned where you killed yourself at the death of Muzan. You got why, when you thought about it. Your whole life being a demon slayer and suddenly the demons were gone. You truly didn't serve a purpose by that point. If you killed Muzan then and there, Kagaya probably wouldn't be dying, Rengoku and Tengen wouldn't have lost limbs, Kanae would still be alive and probably with Sanemi. But you didn't really regret it either. Demons, in the most humiliating way possible, gave you worth. And they gave Giyuu worth, they gave Haganezuka a job you were pretty sure he couldn't fulfil anymore, Mitsuri would have never found herself where she was happiest. So much bad and so much good came from that day you failed. But though your mistakes there didn't bother you, the thought of dying while you were still a human straight after was... it made you wonder if it would have been worth it. Of course it wouldn't have been if demons were still around, but you weren't a human anymore, that was clear as glass. So then, where would you go?