"We will win! We're called demon slayers for a reason." Tengen declared in spite of the growing dread inside of him. So what if there was poison in his system? If there was one thing he knew Shinobu and Inori could do better than what the entire corps could, it was creating antidotes and poisons made specifically to fight demons.
"You can't win!" The annoying younger sister shrieked back. "Not if the pillar you're counting on is poisoned!"
"Listen here, scallion! There may be poison in my body, but I'm still more than your equal! Even if you cut off my limbs, I'll come biting back at you! Don't underestimate us humans!" Grinning wider than ever, Tengen declared loudly, making sure the three boys who had just arrived knew what to do. "These three boys are my prized successors! They won't run! They've got guts! And I know your tricks! We just need to cut both of your heads at once and you're dead! Hah! So damn easy!"
"That 'easy' ain't going to be easily done, man. How many do you think have died trying to do that 'easy' thing?" Gyutaro grinned. "As for pillars, we've eaten plenty of them. I got fifteen and my sister got seven."
"That's right! Nobody's going to be alive by sunrise!" Daki laughed, leaping forward to attack Tengen. "The long night will always be our ally! You're all going to meet your deaths here!"
Zenitsu swiftly blocked her attacks, sending the demon flying out of the building. He was soon followed by Inosuke, who declared, "Oi, Monjuro! Girly Old Man! Leave the maggot to sleepyhead and me! You deal with the mantis!"
Tengen swiftly threw Tanjiro back as soon as Gyutaro had his sickle aimed for the slayer's neck, not even wasting a second to parry the incoming slashes. He jumped back when Daki's sashes suddenly attacked him from above.
For the first time, I envy the kid's tiny build. Tengen tried to deflect all of the sashes and sickles, getting nicked by the poisonous blades every now and then. In terms of speed, I'm the fastest. But the kid surpasses me in agility. A messy but wide attack like this, weaving through them is the kid's specialty, especially since she's small. He gritted his teeth as more and more poison entered his system. If it's her, she wouldn't have gotten a single hit from his sickles.
Tengen had fought against Inori enough times to know that while she would be at a disadvantage against opponents with strong brute strength, she wouldn't lose when it came to a game of dodging and weaving through gaps. That was, after all, how they always managed to work together without exploding or cutting each other.
No use thinking about it now. Tengen blocked the sickle aiming to pierce through his skull. I have some resistance to the poison, so I must lop his head off before my body stops functioning.
Tengen clenched his teeth as he was continuously cornered and attacked from all directions. Tanjiro had been protecting his back, but the Sound Pillar knew the boy was at his limits. They needed to finish the fight quickly.
To buy time. Tengen didn't even bother injecting the antidote Hinatsuru gave him, immediately gulping the liquid down his throat with one hand while his other swung his sword. He could immediately feel the antidote taking effect, reducing the inflammation on his skin.
"What did you drink, man? Your movements suddenly got better." Gyutaro continued to swing his sickles, grinning more and more widely by the second. "Whatever antidote you have won't work. Nothing you humans create will ever affect us upper moon demons."
Tengen internally cursed as he got nicked again. The antidote gives me better resistance, but if I get too much poison in my system, it will eventually lose effect. He was sure Hinatsuru had another dose hidden somewhere, but asking for one while he was fighting was impossible. Did I use it too early in the fight? I'll just have to finish it before it loses effect, then.
"What the hell, man?" Gyutaro clawed his face. "The poison ain't working...no wait, it's working but slower. Just what kind of antidote was that? This has never happened before. Not cool, man. Not cool at all."
"Us demon slayers got two flamboyant geniuses." Tengen grinned despite the horrible situation. "That's why you don't underestimate humans, you dumb demons!"
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Hinatsuru fumbled with the vials Inori had given her. It was blatantly obvious just how Inori adored her more than everyone in the Uzui family, so it wasn't surprising when she gave most of her supply of poison to Hinatsuru before they left to go undercover.
"Poison created from examining Upper Moon Three's blood." Hinatsuru doused her entire supply of kunai with the poison. "Please work. Please work. Even for a short while is fine. If I can incapacitate the demon for even one second, someone will surely cut its head off."
Despite her panic, Hinatsuru's fingers remained calm. "Inori, Kocho-san, this has never been tested before, but please work." She inserted the kunai into the launcher, heaving it on her shoulder as she desperately ran to the battlefield. She scaled the roof, huffing and puffing as she gritted her teeth and prepared the launcher.
Hinatsuru fired the kunai as soon as she got the chance, widening her eyes as the demon proceeded to create a dome with his slashes. Please. Just one. One kunai is enough. Please let one kunai hit him. Her entire body trembled as she saw how most of the kunai hit her husband instead.
Tengen didn't mind the kunai, not caring that it hit him. His entire focus was on the demon. He knew the kunai was laced with poison, so all he needed to do was kill the weakened demon. Swinging his swords, Tengen sliced Gyutaro's legs clean.
He's not regenerating. Hinatsuru internally cheered. But I don't know how long it'll last. Please. Please. Someone cut his head off. Hurry.
"Man, the poison actually worked. I'm not regenerating at all no matter how hard I try."
Blood Demon Art: Round Slashes of Death: Splatter Sickle
This guy...his legs still aren't regenerating, but he's slashing without moving his arm. Tengen kicked Tanjiro away from the demon, slashing his swords to block the attack at the same time.
Sound Breathing: Fourth Form: Constant Resounding Slashes
Where is he? Tengen looked around, panic written on his face as he realized where the demon's headed. "Hina—"
Hinatsuru widened her eyes as Gyutaro clamped a hand over her mouth, nearly crushing her jaw with the power of his grip. How is he still moving so quickly? His legs...they're still not regenerated. So, how is he so quick?
"You sure did a number on me, man. Just what kind of poison was that? It's not normal wisteria, is it? I'm still not regenerating." The demon snarled, tightening his grip around Hinatsuru's jaw. "I got to report it. The demon slayers can finally create a poison that could harm an upper moon demon and an antidote that worked on my poison."
Hinatsuru felt her life flash before her eyes. Ah. Am I going to die? The hand around her jaw was beginning to crush her face. I'm sorry, Tengen-sama, but a promise is a promise. No hard feelings even if the four of us aren't together. She clenched her eyes shut. Don't worry, I'm sure the stars Inori loved so much are as beautiful.
But death never came. Tanjiro combined his Water Breathing and the Hinokami Kagura, creating a stronger and faster attack to save Hinatsuru. The boy gasped and wheezed, struggling to get his breath under control. The demon lunged at him, and his sword was a little too slow.
"Kamado Tanjiro! I'm in your debt!" Tengen appeared behind Gyutaro, one sword aimed to slice his neck off. Tanjiro swung his sword too, but the demon easily blocked the two swords. In his desperate panic, Tengen thrust his other sword towards the demon's neck, mentally cursing the demon Gyutaro did a full turn of his head—literally, what the fuck?—to bite the blade.
Tengen cursed, feeling another wave of attack about to be unleashed. "Hang in there, Kamado!" Gritting his teeth, Tengen kicked the roof, bringing Gyutaro away from Tanjiro and Hinatsuru just as the demon unleashed a cyclone of bloody slashes everywhere.
"Watch out!" Hinatsuru hastily pushed Tanjiro out of the range of Gyutaro's attacks, slipping a poisoned kunai into the slayer's pockets. "Don't mind me! I'll hide! Just focus on winning!"
I did the best I could. It's up to them now. Hinatsuru ran, keeping an eye out for any civilian caught between the crossfires. Dear Gods, Buddha, stars, and all celestial beings. Please, please, please, somehow let us win without anyone dying.
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Tengen gritted his teeth as he parried Gyutaro's sickles with his own swords. The sickles are hitting me because the gaps in my attacks are too big. I need to narrow it down. Though that was easier said than done. My movements are getting slower, the antidote is already losing effect. Dammit, was it still in the experimental stage? Doesn't matter. I still need to cut this one's head off.
"It's over, man." Gyutaro suddenly appeared before his eyes, moving faster than he could dodge. The demon swung his sickle and Tengen was forced to sacrifice his arm lest he get his lungs sliced in half.
"You lost your arm." The demon cackled. "You're dead, man. Dead. A swordsman without his arm is as useless as a maggot drenched in salt. There's no choice left but to wait for you to die."
He pointed his sickle at the panting Sound Pillar. "And the antidote you took moments ago is useless. I don't know what your two geniuses did, but it's useless. You've got too much poison in you. You're going to kick the bucket soon."
You don't need to tell me that, I can already feel myself dying over here. Tengen wheezed out heavy breaths. The poison is already starting to destroy my internal organs. I'm using my breaths to slow it down, but I won't last for long. Dammit, is the score not done yet? Hurry up and finish it, before you die.
"Well, it was fun, man. Goodbye now."
Blood Demon Art: Splatter Sickle
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Tengen watched from behind the doors as Inori continued to unleash technique after technique, sweat dripping onto the dojo floor and staining the wood. It was only when she stopped did Tengen realized he had been watching her so blatantly.
"Uzui-san, if you need something, please stop being a creep and come in."
"I'm not a creep. I'm a flamboyant man." Tengen puffed out his chest, ruffling her already disheveled hair. "And I heard you faced another lower moon. That's the third time in the past four months. Are you sure you should be training with those injuries?"
"I'm fine." Though the bandages visible through her keikogi seemed to say otherwise. "There will be more demon moons coming after me in the future. I need to be more prepared."
She wiped the sweat obscuring her view. Her hair, which got loosened out of its usual braided crown due to the intensity of her training for the past few hours, was damp with sweat. Tengen stared at the dojo floor that was bleached with sweat, her own and many others, wondering when she would get it replaced. Then again, Inori trained with her shoes on, so the floor was bound to get destroyed sooner than normal.
"You know, I've always wondered why you chose this path."
"What do you mean?"
"Kibutsuji painted a target on your back, and now many demons, weak ones, former demon moons, and even current demon moons, they're all aiming to bring you to him." He sometimes pitied her even though he knew she was the last person who needed his pity. "You could've just stayed behind, you know. Be one of the medics or something instead of going to the frontlines and deliberately letting demons go after you. So, why didn't you?"
"You think Oyakata-sama didn't tell me that?" Inori chuckled, and Tengen raised an intrigued eyebrow. "Oyakata-sama explained the risks and the choices, and I grabbed the two pieces he laid in front of me. This is all just the consequences of my choice."
She pointed her finger at the wall, and Tengen looked at the large version two of shogi pieces—the silver and gold general—hung there. He had always wondered why she got shogi pieces, of all things, to decorate her dojo, but now he knew it had something to do with what Kagaya had told, or given, her when she made the choice to go down this path.
"I promised them." Inori had an unusually nostalgic smile on her face. "I promised my brothers I will go down the path I want, and I want to avenge my family and help the restless souls caused by the existence of demons to go to the stars." Lifting one of her bandaged hands that was holding her sword, her smile dropped into a line. "I'm fully aware that I can die anytime, especially since I'm Muzan's target, but I made a promise and I'll follow through it until the end."
Inori lifted her face, then she tilted her head to the side upon realizing the contemplative look on Tengen's face. "Uzui-san, what's with that face? It doesn't suit you."
"No, it's just...how do I say it? It's just a personal grudge of mine." Tengen scratched the back of his neck with a sheepish smile. "But when I first met you, I used to hate you. Not just you, but Tokito too. It kind of escalated since you kicked me on our first meeting and all."
"That was your fault."
"It's not my fault you're short," Tengen retorted, shoving her head down to ruffle her hair again. "Anyways, I first heard of you when Iguro and Tomioka came back with a report about three missing children. At first, I was scared Kibutsuji would end up conquering the sun because, well, you were ten." Eleven days. For eleven days, the pillars back then had increased the intensity of their patrols to find the missing triplets. "Those days before Shinazugawa came bounding into the Butterfly Estate with you in his arms were dreadful."
"Because you thought it's finally over for humanity?" Inori smiled as if what she had gone through wasn't that big of a deal. "Well, you're not wrong. Had my brothers not shut me up, Muzan would've been out gardening right now."
"Don't make jokes about him." Tengen lightly whacked her head. "Anyways, Shinazugawa came with a nearly dead you, and Kocho was all stressed because your health kept dropping, and we were all tense because there's a ten-year-old kid who just escaped from Kibutsuji, what the hell are we supposed to do?"
The only pillars allowed to enter the hallway where Hoshizora Inori was resting were Obanai and Sanemi, the former to confirm her identity and the latter because he was the one who found her. Every time any other pillar tried to take a look at the child who managed to escape from Kibutsuji Muzan, Shinobu would shake her head and tell them to leave, explaining that Inori was still in critical condition. The Insect Pillar didn't want to risk any outside infection or demonic curse, nor did she want to risk Inori waking up to the sight of the pillars gawking at her.
Then, a few months later, Shinobu informed them that their master had specifically asked for Hoshizora Inori to be moved into his estate. The master's estate, which even the pillars didn't have free access to, further prevented them from seeing the girl.
"Six months later, Oyakata-sama suddenly sent us a letter about how that kid managed to keep quiet, and we had a little meeting together since Oyakata-sama declined our request to meet you and all." In fact, the only one who got the chance to talk to Inori back then was Shinobu, and even she got scolded by Kagaya. "Himejima-san said that we should just be grateful and well, we are. We didn't really have much hope to begin with, but you went beyond our expectations."
"I never knew you tried to visit me, or that Oyakata-sama declined your visits."
"Oyakata-sama also gave us strict orders not to ask you any questions if we ever saw you," Tengen said, ruffling her hair again. "Well, it's peaceful after that. I didn't even know you were staying at Kocho's or started training until Oyakata-sama suddenly told us that he had just received information about Kibutsuji and the upper moon demons from that same kid."
Tengen remembered how he had rushed his mission, discarding rest for a few days just so he could hurry up and go back. Emergency Pillar Meeting wasn't common, and he could count on one hand the number of times it had happened. But with the topic of the meeting, Tengen didn't even question why it was necessary.
"Anyways, that first time I met you, I thought, 'man, this kid is flamboyant'. But then, you kicked me, and that went out of the window."
Inori couldn't hold back her laughter at that. "That still doesn't explain why you hate me, and Muichiro."
It was a stupid reason, that much he would admit. Tengen heard of her story, and his heart got filled with envy. Even though Inori thought there was nothing about her life—"All I did was dance and listen and dance and dance and dance."—he still found himself envious of her upbringing.
"Because you're way younger, but way more talented than I could ever be," Tengen admitted after a few beats of silence. "One is the descendant while the other is the disciple of the First Breathing user. One was scouted personally by Oyakata-sama and the other mastered multiple breathing styles like mastering one isn't hard enough. I was jealous of your talents and thought you were blessed with everything, so you didn't need to work for them. It was irritating and honestly, a childish jealousy."
Inori slackened her grip on her swords, now looking at Tengen with slightly wide eyes. She blinked slowly, looking as if she was trying to decipher what he had just said. "What made you change your mind?" She asked. "Or do you still hate me now?"
"I don't hate you or Tokito anymore." Tengen ruffled her hair yet again, with more roughness this time. "I guess I started seeing you differently when you asked me to train you, and when I heard how you also asked Iguro and Himejima-san for help. I realized that you didn't pass the Final Selection and became a pillar in less than five months out of talent and luck alone, you shed blood and sweat for it." He snickered when Inori swatted his hand away, complaining about her tangled hair. Ignoring her, he pushed her head down and continued to ruffle her hair.
"And well, it's not like you can defeat lower moons almost every month with just luck and talent, so you have my respect, kid."
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Tengen forced his body to move despite the poison circulating through his veins, stopping Gyutaro's sickle from killing Tanjiro. I don't know why that memory popped into my mind, but kid, you inspired me.
He swung his blades, throwing more bombs at Gyutaro. Numbness spread from his severed arm to his entire poisoned body. Still, he gritted his teeth, shifting his body into a stance.
A little girl who looked as if a breeze could knock her out endured days of torture. That little girl who said she could only dance and listen did what most people couldn't do. Whether or not she received help didn't change the fact that Inori, with her own strength and dedication, had encountered Muzan and survived.
You didn't fall into despair despite losing everything. She could've curled into a ball and cried while cursing the demons that had taken her family, but she chose to wipe her tears and pick up the sword. She chose to fight and become the protector rather than the protected. You stood up again and again no matter how many times you were knocked down. You're tiny and young, but you continuously push yourself beyond your limits. As your senior, I too, will push myself beyond my limits.
"The score is complete! We're going for the win!"
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
Hinatsuru couldn't believe it. They had won. For the first time in over a century, the demon slayers finally managed to slay an upper moon demon. But that victory didn't come without a price. Hinatsuru, as well as Makio and Suma, screamed when the demon brother's decapitated body unleashed one final attack that destroyed its entire surroundings.
"Tengen-sama!"
The attack was short-lived, but it felt eternal with how much damage it was causing. The second the attack had stopped, Hinatsuru wasted no time rushing towards her husband, Makio and Suma in tow, worry emitting out of them in panicked waves.
"Tengen-sama! Antidotes! Where are the antidotes Inori gave us?!" Hinatsuru desperately tried to stop the bleeding of Tengen's severed arm while the others treated his other injuries, growing more hopeless at the worsening state of her husband's inflamed skin.
"It's not enough!" Makio threw the last empty vial they had. "The antidotes are working, but there's not enough! The poison is still circulating! Tengen-sama has too much poison in his system!" The inflamed skin did begin to look less severe, but his life was still in danger. "We already used all three we have left! We need more antidotes! Is Inori nearby?! Where's the crow?!"
"No! Don't die, Tengen-sama!" Suma wailed. "We all managed to stay alive, and we've won! No! Please! You're too cruel, Gods! If Tengen-sama dies, I won't be praying to you guys anymore!"
"Shut up! Tengen-sama is trying to speak now!"
"Both of you, please calm down!"
"Gyah! Makio-san is bullying me, Tengen-sama!"
Are you kidding me? Am I going to die without leaving any last words? I can't go to the stars if I don't say something flamboyant before I kick the bucket. Tengen deadpanned. He loved his wives, but he really wanted to talk here. I can still talk, but I can't shout. These guys are being too loud. They won't hear me at all. Come on, be quiet and let me talk for a second. I won't be able to go to the stars at this rate. Let me talk dammit.
Nezuko suddenly appeared beside the dying Sound Pillar, placing her hand on his arm before engulfing him in flames.
"Gyah! Stop! Stop! This is too early for a cremation!" Suma dragged Nezuko away from her husband. "I will spank you! Your big sister's really angry now! How could you—"
"Hold on! What the hell just happened?" Tengen grabbed the side of his face, smiling in relief. "The poison's gone." He was immediately bombarded with his wives who were crying tears of joy.
"I think Nezuko burned the poison with her blood demon art, but I don't really know." Tanjiro patted Nezuko's head. "Your wounds are still there, so please don't move anymore. But I'm glad you're all safe."
"Is that even possible? For a blood demon art to not hurt humans?" Tengen decided he didn't care. "No, that doesn't matter. You shouldn't move either or you'll die."
"I'll go look for the demon heads. I can't rest until I confirm their deaths." Tanjiro sped off with Nezuko carrying him on her back.
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙
"I heard you fought an upper moon demon. Which was it?"
Tengen deadpanned at the Serpent Pillar. "No flamboyant greeting whatsoever even after I nearly died fighting Upper Moon Six? Is that kindness of yours only reserved for, like, five people?"
"I am being kind," Obanai retorted. "But I see...Upper Moon Six. Six, the weakest of the upper moons. The 'six' thing aside, you defeated an upper moon demon. We should actually be celebrating, the 'six' thing aside. I should praise you or something. A 'flamboyant' congratulations to you."
"I don't need that insincere and bland praise of yours."
"Yeah!" Suma yelled.
"You're pretty late," Makio commented, not even hiding her irritation.
"That's right! You...you're so late! Were you even planning on coming at all—gyah!" Suma proceeded to choke Tengen when Kaburamaru hissed at her.
"You should be grateful I'm at least around the area. The other pillars are either back at their own estates or on the other side of the country." Obanai pointed a finger at Tengen. "Anyways, what were you thinking, losing your left arm and eye? Even if it was against Upper Moon Six at best, how long do you think it will take for you to recover? Who will take your place while you're doing that?" There wasn't anybody available right now, not with the traitor in the midst. "Rengoku's recovery alone took four months and Hoshizora was the one mainly covering for him, but she's on the other side of the country until next month, so you can't rely on her."
"I'm retiring, man. I just can't fight anymore." Tengen sighed. "Oyakata-sama will probably allow me to do so as well."
"Well, screw that. I won't allow you." Obanai glared at the pillar. "Just how many youngsters do you think are dropping like flies without showing any sign of promise." One of them even turned into a goddamn traitor. The corps needed the pillars more than ever right now. "Having you disabled is better than losing you. Fight to death."
"Oh no, the young ones are definitely showing promise, alright." Tengen grinned. "For example, the youngster you absolutely despise. He's got some flamboyant promise."
"Whoa. You're kidding." Obanai's eyes widened ever so slightly. "He survived this fight? Kamado Tanjiro?"
"Sure did. He and his friends were actually the ones to slice the demon's neck off. It really was two demons in one." Tengen huffed, leaning against the rubble. His grin returned just as soon as it disappeared. "And what were you saying about a vacant spot? Let's not kid ourselves here." He snickered slightly, looking at Obanai straight in the eyes. "We both know there were supposed to be only nine spots for the pillar position. With me retired, the number will go back to normal."
"Oyakata-sama made an exception this time, so there are ten seats."
"Yeah, I know, and I can understand the exceptions." Tengen laughed despite the pain it brought him. "After all, our ninth and tenth pillars are flamboyantly weird." He held up two fingers.
"Both connected to the First Breathing user, one is his distant descendant while the other is his last living disciple." Flamboyant, if he must say so himself. "And both of them are clueless kids who are madly in love with each other. Can you just imagine how flamboyant their children will be?"
·̩̩̥͙＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚☆.｡.☆.｡.:*☆ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊·̩̩̥͙