Deep in the forest of Mt. Natagumo, the Hashira Shinobu and Giyuu stood among dead Demon Slayers.
"Were you acquainted with any of them? There don't seem to be any survivors here. We were advised that several rookie Mizunoto joined the battle, but they might be dead now, don't you think?" Shinobu suggested.
"Let's go." Giyuu walked away.
Shinobu giggled and ran to catch up with him.
"Isn't the moon lovely? Since we've been given this joint mission, let's try to get along." Shinobu smiled.
"I'm only here to slay demons." Giyuu said.
"How callous of you! All right, then, let's split up here. I shall proceed from the west."
"Agreed."
The split up in a fork in the pathway.
When Nezuko attacked Father, her blade got stuck in his thick arm.
"It's no good! The blade won't go through!" Nezuko cried.
"Urahh... Urah!" Father cried.
He aimed a punch at Nezuko.
"Ah..!" Nezuko squinted her eyes.
"Urahhh!" Inosuke yelled, coming in to help Nezuko.
He used one of his blades to slice down on Father's other arm.
"So hard!" Inosuke exclaimed.
"Ggrrrahh!" Father screamed.
Father flicked his arms and the two slayers were sent flying.
"I can't slash him even if I use an attack! What should I do?! What do I do?!" Nezuko panicked.
"Grrr... don't come near my family!" Father scolded.
Father aimed a punch at Nezuko.
"Grrr!" Father growled.
"What are you looking at? I'm over here!! Fuck you!!" Inosuke yelled.
Inosuke jumped up and aimed an aerial attack. That didn't work, Father ended up punching Inosuke with barely any force.
"Urk! Ouch! All that force with one swipe of his arm!! It's not good. I'm not at full power! Not the mention, the bleeding is making me stumble!!" Inosuke said.
Father charges for Inosuke.
"Grrraahhh!!" Father growled.
"Dammit!!" Inosuke cursed.
Nezuko and Inosuke run away from Father.
"Water Breathing, Second Form, Improved... Lateral Water Wheel!" Nezuko aimed for a tree.
She landed the hit and cut down the tree successfully.
"Ah!" Inosuke gasped.
The felled tree lands on Father, leaving him trapped.
"Ahhh!" Father screamed.
"What was that? What the hell is going on!?" Inosuke panicked.
"Inosuke! Are you okay!?" Nezuko cried.
"Ah..." Insouke sighed, 'She did that? That was some move, Dammit!'
They looked over at Father to see him trapped underwater.
'All right! I should be able to cut that brute's neck now! Water Breathing... the final and most powerful move!' Nezuko thought.
She breathed in.
"Ah..." Inosuke gasped, 'she's got a totally different air about her now. She's about to do something totally mind-blowing!!'
'Now to finish him off! Total Concentration! Water Breathing! Tenth Form!' Nezuko thought.
She leapt up in the air to prepare her attack but Father breaks through the tree.
"Uraahhh!!" Father roared.
"Ah.!" Nezuko gasped, redirecting her attack.
She landed on the tree she had cut down.
"Graaahhh!!" Father growled.
"Ah!" Nezuko gasped.
"Look out!" Inosuke warned.
"Grrr!" Father growled.
He grabbed the tree and swung it, sending Nezuko flying.
"Ahh!!" Nezuko screamed.
"Nezumi!!" Inosuke shouted.
"I-Inosuke! Please don't die until I get back!! That might be one of the Twelve Kizuki! Please don't die! Please don't die! Whatever you do, do not die!!" Nezuko instructed.
"Ah..." Inosuke muttered.
Inosuke turned to see Father looming over him.
"Ah..!" Inosuke gasped.
"Grrr...!" Father growled.
"Oh, shit!"
On the hut Zenitsu landed on, he laid there, slowly fighting the poison in his body.
'It's getting really hard to breathe now. I can't feel my arms or legs. Tanjiro... I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you...' Zenitsu thoguht.
He closed his eyes.
"Don't give up! Don't give up! Don't give up!" Kuwjima's voice boomed in Zenitsu's head.
"Don't... give up...." Zenitsu strained.
He opened his eyes and calmed his now-ragged breathing. A woman wearing a butterfly haori glided next to him. She landed gracefully and stood over Zenitsu.
'Who is this?' Zenitsu thought, looking up at her helplessly.
"Yoo-hoo! Are you all right?" She asked him.
With Nezuko, she is currently flying in the air, she found a spot to land and stuck to it.
"Water Breathing! Second Form! Water Wheel!" Nezuko announced.
She preformed the move and crashed into a tree, she used her leg to bounce off of it onto the ground.
"Phew! Glad I managed to land!" Nezuko sighed.
"Ahhh!!" A girl screamed.
"Ah..!" Nezuko ran over to the scene.
The figure screaming seemed to be the Sister Spider from earlier. Rui stood over her.
"I beg of you! Please Stop! Ahh!!" Sister screamed.
As Nezuko moved closer, she noticed that Sister was bleeding.
"Ah..!" Nezuko gasped, she immediately clamped a hand over her mouth.
"What are you looking at? This isn't some show, you know." Rui spoke.
"Wh... What are you doing? Aren't you two allies?" Nezuko asked.
"Allies? Don't put us in the category of something so flimsy. We're family. We're joined by a powerful bond." Rui replied, "besides, this is between me and my sister. Don't interfere... or I'll carve you up."
"You're wrong. Whether you're family or an ally, if you have a strong bond between you, then either one of you should be that precious! Calling it flimsy if you aren't related by blood... that's not true at all! Not only that, but those who have a strong bond give off the scent of trust! But all I'm picking up from you two is the scent of terror, hatred, and repulsion! That's not what you call a bond! It's forged! It's counterfeit!" Nezuko yelled.
"Ah!" Sister gasped.
"Ah..." Rui gasped, "you..."
A surviving Demon Slayer walked upon the scene.
"Hey, look at that. A demon that's just the right size. Even I can take down a kid demon like this one." The slayer laughed.
"Hold up a second!" Nezuko said.
"Back off! I want to take the safe route up the ladder. Once you move up, you get more money from the top guys! My unit's practically been wiped out, but I'll slay myself a decent-sized demon and head down the mountain! Take this!" The slayer chuckled.
He started running towards Rui.
"Don't do it! Stop!" Nezuko cursed.
Rui flicked their hand back. Threads attached to their hand sliced through the Demon Slayer in seconds. The threads didn't seem to have an issue cutting through the Slayer's uniform either.
'Shattered to pieces in an instant! How did they...' Nezuko thought.
"Hey, what did you say?" Rui asked.
"Ah! Ngh..." Nezuko froze.
"Look, you... What was it you just said?" They asked.
"Ngh..!" Nezuko strained, 'Just look at the intimidation factor! The air just got heavy and denser! Inosuke, I'm sorry! Hang in there, okay? Just a little longer! I'll be there as soon as I can defeat this demon! I'll come save you! No matter what!'
"Hey you... what you just said now... let's hear you say it again."
"Sure! I'll repeat it as many times as you want! Your bond is forged!"
Where Inosuke is, he's breathing heavily while hiding behind a tree. Father looked for Inosuke and eventually saw a trail of blood leading behind a tree. He started to follow the long trail.
"Urah!" Father roared.
'Oh shit!' Inosuke yelled in his thoughts.
Father drew closer and closer to Inosuke.
'Dammit! Hiding myself in a place like this... how pathetic am I? Still, I gotta come up with a way. How do you slash someone who's sword proof? What should I do? What should I do? Just how the hell do I slash it?! Think! Think! Think! Think! Think—' Inosuke's thoughts were cut off.
A sudden punch from Father broke the tree Inosuke hid behind.
"Urahh!" Father roared.
"Woah!" Inosuke exclaimed.
He started running away to think of a plan.
"This is bad! This is really bad! Until... Until she gets back, I gotta somehow...! What the hell kind of attitude is that?!" Inosuke exclaimed.
Inosuke stopped and turned to Father. Inosuke ran towards Father.
"Don't mess around with me, dammit!! Grr!" Inosuke growled.
He leapt up and stuck one of his blades into Father's arm. When his blade didn't go through, he began striking the wound with his other blade.
"Fuck you! Looks like I got infected by Nezumi's germs! Messing around like that... that was way too close a call! Using my head? That's not me at all!" Inosuke exclaimed.
After a bit of striking, Father's arm was freed from his body.
"Uraahhh!" Father cried.
"All right! Slashed you! It's really easy. If you can' slash something with one sword, all you gotta do it pound it with another sword! I mean, look! I have two swords! Hahahhahaha! I'm the almighty!!" Inosuke laughed.
"Ngh!" Father groaned.
Father ran away quickly.
"Huh?" Insouke questioned.
Inosuke quickly started to run after Father.
"Are you running away from me?! Hey, you! Come back here, Dammit!!" Inosuke shouted.
With Nezuko, she and Rui had faced off a bit. This resulted in a few cuts and bruises. Nezuko breathed heavily.
"I just want you to know... I won't kill you in a single blow. After ripping you to shreds, I'll carve you up. But... if you take back what you said, I'll do you a favor and kill you at once." Rui compromised.
"I won't take it back! What I said was the truth! The one who isn't making sense is you!" Nezuko shouted.
"Ahh..." Sister gasped.
"You're the one who's mistaken!" Nezuko scolded.
With Inosuke, he continued to chase Father.
"Damn! That bastard... where the hell did he go, dammit! Gah..!" Inosuke exclaimed.
Insouke doubled over, skidding in his tracks.
"I'm telling ya, this doesn't hurt! What doesn't hurt doesn't hurt!"
He stood back up straight.
"Now that it's come to this... I'll sniff it out for sure!"
Inosuke concentrated on the feeling and vibrations of the ground below him.
"Ah.. so there you are!" Inosuke yelled.
He caught Father hiding in a tree.
"Urahh..." Father mumbled.
"You idiot piece of shit! How high did you climb up?! Damn you! So you're plotting to make me use my head again, huh?! In your dreams!!" Inosuke screamed.
"Urahh.." Father groaned.
Father's body started to clench.
"What the... oh, I get it! He's trembling in fear and dread at the sight of me, huh? Hahahaha! Well, it's a little too late for that!" Inosuke laughed.
"Grrrr..." Father growled.
Father's body began to transform. The skin he originally wore was the same colour as his head and was tougher, he also grew spikes out of his arms.
"What the... now what?! Did it just shed its skin?!" Inosuke exclaimed.
"Urah!" Father roared.
Father jumped down in front of Inosuke. He was much taller than before.
'Jeez. Come on, that's bulking up way too much! This is looking pretty bad for me! I've never sensed this much force from and opponent before! I'll just get crushed by his force!' Inosuke thought.
"Uraahhh!" Father roared.
'It's no good. I can't win.' Inosuke thought, hanging his head low.
He let his arms fall to his sides.
"Urahhh..." Father looked at him in confusion.
'I'm gonna die. I'm gonna get killed.' Inosuke thoguht, clenching his fists tighter around his blades.
"Please don't die!" Nezuko's voice rang.
"Huh?" Inosuke thought aloud.
"Please don't die until I get back!!"
"Always live your lives with great pride. I wish you luck in battle." Hisa's voice rang.
"Ngh..! I'm not gonna lose! No way I'm gonna lose! I'm Inosuke Hashibira of the Demon Slayer Corps! Just bring it on, you fucking dirtbag!!" Inosuke screamed.
"Urah!" Father moved swiftly.
Father quickly moved and sent Inosuke flying.
'So fast! I can't see it!' Inosuke thought.
Inosuke's back thudded against a tree. Father punched him again.
"Urah!" Father roared.
"Ah!" Inosuke exclaimed.
Inosuke jumped up above the demon and prepared for an attack.
"Beast Breathing... Fang Three. Devour!" Inosuke called.
He aimed for Father's head, but the instant his blades made contact with Father's skin, his swords broke.
"They snapped!" Inosuke exclaimed.
"Graahhh!" Father growled.
Father punched Inosuke into a tree. At the contact of the tree, Inosuke fell to the ground.
"Urgh!" Inosuke groaned, 'oh, shit! I failed to go defensive with my breath attack!'
"Ngh..." Father growled.
He walked over to Inosuke and picked him up by his head.
"Don't come near my family!" Father exclaimed, his voice raspy.
He began to squeeze Inosuke's head.
"I'm... not gonna die!" Inosuke exclaimed, 'Beast Breathing, Fang One... Take this! Pierce!'
Inosuke jabbed his blades into the soft flesh of Father's neck. Though, Father didn't move an inch.
'They're in! They're in but... what the hell?! This thing isn't even flinching!' Inosuke thought.
In response to this, Father lifted him further away and squeezed even tighter.
"Ngh...! Ack!" Inosuke groaned.
Suddenly, Inosuke got flashbacks of someone he thought to be his mother.
"I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry, Inosuke. I at least want you to survive." His mother smiled weakly as she dropped little Inosuke into a river.
'Who... are you?' Inosuke thought, "Gah..."
Blood started to pour from Inosuke's mask. Footsteps from nearby revealed the Hashira, Giyuu Tomioka. Tomioka sprinted at Father and sliced through his arm effortlessly. Father dropped Inosuke abruptly.
"Urahhh!" Father cried.
"Gah..." Inosuke groaned, 'What was that? Did he slash it? That guy? Who is that? Who on earth...'
"Graahhh! Urahhh!" Father screamed.
Father renew his arm in seconds and began attacking Tomioka.
'He's fast!' Inosuke thought.
'Water Breathing, Fourth Form... Striking Tide!' Tomioka thought.
This attacked resulted in Father's head slicing clean off.
'Holy shit! I've never seen anyone... as incredible as this guy!' Inosuke marveled.
Nezuko and Rui continued to face off.
'Got it! The acrid oder is starting to fade, so now I can detect the scent of the threads! I can take them on now!' Nezuko thought, gripping her sword's handle tighter.
'Hmm. She's smarter than I thought. She doesn't flinch back in fear. Well, not that it matters anyway." Rui rolled their eyes.
Nezuko charged towards Rui, they whipped a thread at her in response.
'Water Breathing, First Form! Water Surface Slash!' Nezuko thoguht.
She sliced for the thread, but as soon as her blade touched the thread, her sword's blade completely snapped off.
"Huh...?" Nezuko gasped.