Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"CAW! HINOTO SHINOBU! HINOTO SHINOBU!" An otherwise peaceful morning was disrupted by the raspy, yet distinctly feminine, voice of a Kasugai crow. The large bird's wings fluttered, having just perched herself in the windowsill. The crow's head snapped every which-a-way, quickly taking in her surroundings. She stopped - head sideways as she used solely her left eye to look at the lone bed in the room. Rather, to look at the occupant of the bed. With another flutter of her wings, she glided from the windowsill to the nightstand next to the bed. Upon landing, she hopped to the edge of the nightstand. "CAW! HINOTO SHINOBU! CAW!"

From the bed, a young woman's brow furrowed, her throat rumbling in a groan as she was roused from her slumber. Gradient purple, pupil-less, eyes fluttered open. Shinobu Kocho stared at the ceiling. Blinking rapidly, as if to force the sleep from returning to her eyes, she gained a sense of her surroundings. She noted the ember hue of her room and, upon turning her head to the left, looked out the window to confirm that the sun had begun to breach the top of the woodline in the distance. 'A few more minutes and the sun would have woken me up anyways.' Shinobu mused internally, still looking out the window. Her vision was suddenly blocked by the entire body of her crow, its head craned to regard her with its right eye this time.

"Hinoto Shinobu!" Seeing her demon slayer was adequately perceptive, the crow opted to use more of an 'indoor' voice. "South! Southwest! Suspected demon presence at village! Riverside village!" Even so, it was still quite loud juxtaposed to the dead silence of dawn only minutes prior.

Despite herself, Shinobu sat up, her short bangs coming to rest just above her cheekbones. She turned, swinging her legs over the side of the bed, and stood up quickly. Stretching as she moved, Shinobu walked towards the map hung up on the wall above her desk. Finding her current location, the Butterfly Mansion, she traced the direction her crow had just relayed to her. Her finger came to a stop on a small village. Riverside and incredibly isolated, it would certainly appear to be the ideal location for a fledgling demon to try and grab a human or two. Shinobu measured the distance and discovered it to be around forty-eight kilometers away, however. Assuming she had a solid pace, Shinobu estimated she could arrive before nightfall. She turned back to look at her crow. "Alone?" Shinobu asked. "There isn't anyone closer?"

"Nearest Slayers are Hinoto Shinobu and Kinoe Kanae! Both will leave immediately! CAW!" And with that, her crow's message was complete. With a mighty flap of her wings, the crow flew out of the bedroom, leaving a couple of long, ebony, feathers on the floor.

Shinobu rubbed her eyes with another groan, fighting the urge to yawn. At least Kanae would be with her. They didn't always get to go off together due to their rank disparity. Despite entering the corps at the same time, it came to no surprise to see Kanae rank up ahead of her. A smile graced her lips, her eyes sparkling in silent admiration. 'That's my nee-sama for you.'

As if suddenly invigorated, Shinobu straightened up and quickly began to get ready. Slipping out of her sleepwear, Shinobu quickly donned her Demon Slayer Uniform. Pulling her top together and fastening the glistening silver buttons, she grabbed her boots and put them on, tucking the legs of her trousers into them before fastening them completely. Shinobu took a couple steps over and looked at herself in the mirror. Piercing purple eyes stared back at her as she fastened her hair with her ornament of choice - a multi-colored butterfly hairpin that held her hair in place.

Fully dressed stood Kocho Shinobu, proud hinoto of the Demon Slayer Corps. Her lavender eyes matched the tips of her bangs and completed her look. While still only fourteen, she was regarded as an image of beauty and professionalism among peers of her age and even those several years her senior. With a determined furrow to her brow, Shinobu nodded to herself in the mirror and spun sharply. Grabbing her katana, she left her bedroom.

Making her way downstairs, she stopped by their mess hall. Shinobu made sure to grab herself a couple of rice balls; a handful were usually prepared and stored safely just for circumstances like this. It was going to be a day of continuous movement to the village, and she would need to leave now to beat the danger of nightfall. With a continued spring in her step, the young teen left the mansion. Immediately her eyes fell upon another demon slayer already fully equipped and waiting for her.

"Nee-sama!" Shinobu called, grabbing the attention of the older teen.

Garbed in her own purple Demon Slayer Uniform, the slightly older, yet no less spitting image of Shinobu, turned around. Long, black, hair cascaded down her back stopping just below her waist. Two long trails of hair, one on either side of her head, fell down to the front of her body. They were both quite animate with every motion she made. Two short bangs framed the sides of her face, stopping at her cheekbones much like Shinobu's. Much like her younger sister, her hair ornament, or rather ornaments, of choice were two beautiful butterfly hairpins on the sides of her head. At passing glance, you would almost call them twins. The only difference between the two sisters other than height was their eyes. While Shinobu's was a sea of purple without a point of focus, Kanae's eyes practically sparkled, two dark pupils contrasting lighter purple iris.

"My, you took a while to get ready. Sluggish morning, Shinobu-tan?" Kocho Kanae asked with a hand raised to pat her sister's head, a playful mirth to her tone. With Shinobu being regarded as the more serious of the pair of sisters, Kanae had long been hailed as the more aloof of the two, yet no less beautiful and elegant in her posture and mannerisms.

Shinobu slapped the offending hand away, a tick mark appearing on the back of her head. "I was asleep all of five minutes ago-" She explained, grumbling at both the circumstance of her not being asleep right now as well as her older sister's coddling. "-before I got the dispatch orders." She finished, regaining her composure. Shinobu straightened up immediately as Kanae turned to depart. She took a couple of elongated steps to catch up and walk alongside her sister. "I'm only aware of the direction and the isolation of the village," Shinobu stated, prompting Kanae to explain further if she was given any more information being the higher rank of the dispatch.

"They believe that one demon has been lingering in the vicinity of the village and adopted it as a hunting ground," she started, humming as if in thought. "Three innocents have lost their lives already, spread out over the past couple of nights."

Shinobu's brow furrowed. "That's odd." Since the time she and her sister first took up arms to train for Final Selection, they were taught demons were very nomadic creatures. If you received word that there had been a demon attack, odds are it was far too late to do anything unless you were proficient at tracking and managed to get to the site of the attack within a few hours. Her assumption for this assignment was they were going to perform a patrol of the village and surrounding area for any signs of direction the demon could've gone. At best, they could determine the direction of the demon and receive orders to follow and exterminate. At worst, there'd be no sign and the most they could do would be a patrol of the area to try and put the locals at ease.

"I agree." Kanae nodded her head. "A sedentary demon. How vexing," she hummed cutely, as if in thought.

"Shouldn't this be handled by a Hashira?" Shinobu questioned. Kanae shook her head.

"While we're told it's rare, it does happen. I hear some demons do adopt territories from time to time. At least, that's what I've heard from the older kinoe." Kanae had only been promoted to the rank of kinoe a couple weeks prior, but Shinobu already knew that Kanae was being looked at as a Hashira candidate already. This was their first mission together since her promotion and, despite the circumstances, Shinobu was happy to be with her sister for this. Kanae looked to her left at Shinobu, a smile adorning her lovely features. "Come now, Shinobu-tan, if there wasn't complete faith in our abilities, we wouldn't have been dispatched, would we?"

Shinobu's shoulders relaxed slightly, however the furrow in her brow remained. With a sigh, she closed her eyes. "No, nee-sama. I'm confident in our abilities." Kanae's smile widened affectionately, to which Shinobu could only smile back.

Looking forward, Shinobu's thoughts compounded on the matter. Despite her words, she still shouldered quite a large amount of caution to the whole situation. She spared a glance back towards her sister, who appeared more than relaxed, a tiny smile gracing her features naturally as she hummed quietly to herself. Shinobu felt put at ease further just from her sister's very presence and returned her gaze forward.

Still, there was a distinct feeling in the pit of her stomach. Trying to push her thoughts to the back of her mind, she increased her stride as Kanae did the same. They had a lot of ground to cover.

For the past thousand years, with the world changing more and more every day, there had been two constants. First, demons were a threat that roamed the country sowing fear into the hearts of citizens who would believe the tales. And second, there was a Demon Slayer Corp united to defend the people and slay demons wherever they could. To the citizens who believed in demons, or had experienced their cold and callous brutality firsthand, Demon Slayers were often viewed as beacons of hope. When you looked out your window and saw a Demon Slayer patrolling the street, you felt your shoulders could relax for at least the night.

While Demon Slayers lived solely for the one purpose of exterminating demons, demons lived solely for one purpose as well. As taught by the Demon Slayer Corps principles, a demon's only goal was to devour humans. Demons devoured humans to gain not only physical strength, but strengthen their Blood Arts, all to further that one instinct of devouring more humans. Thousands of families had been torn apart over the past thousand years and despite the Demon Slayer Corps best efforts to be a deterrent, in the end it seems as there was nothing that could truly be done to curb the slaughter of innocents. To many Demon Slayers, thinking big picture was lost on them; if they could save just one person with the sweat and blood of their brow, that was all they needed to keep going.

Knowledge of demons and their behavior beyond the instinct to devour humans was minuscule. Most of the guidelines taught by the Demon Slayer Corps are little more than observed patterns and behaviors. Over the course of the past few hundred years, this is what every new demon slayer was taught:

First, a demon can only hunt safely at night, for exposure to the sun is one of two confirmed ways of killing it. If you can't find the opportunity to best your opponent in combat, then drawing the fight out into the sunlight is a perfectly valid strategy.
Second, demons are incredibly resilient and all but immortal. However, a kill can be guaranteed by decapitating them with a nichirin sword.
Third, demons will hunt and kill humans of any age and sex for sustenance to grow stronger. There has been extremely little variance in humans eaten to suggest certain types of humans are more ideal than others.
Fourth, demons are almost always moving. It was incredibly uncommon to find a demon who had appeared to settle into a territory. This was the most intriguing of the facts taught about demons. After all, if a demon were to find itself a nice little, isolated, village to safely prey upon humans then why wouldn't it stay? Some speculate it's the fear of being discovered by a demon slayer. Demons, by instinct, want to preserve their life and grow stronger. Leaving before being exposed, lest they find themselves executed, makes perfect sense purely in the thought of self-preservation. However, observations have shown that even demons that possessed unnatural amounts of strength still kept moving. There had been reports of demons killing demon slayers and, still, moving on afterwards.

Perhaps it was an instinct of their previous life to migrate somewhere more comfortable, always somewhere else yet always slightly out of reach. If you asked some of the older Demon Slayers, some would say they might be searching for something other than a meal.

"Shinobu-tan." Shinobu started slightly as Kanae broke her out of her musings. Kanae, noticing she had grabbed her sister's attention, continued. "If I recall correctly, the village should be on the other side of this hill." She gestured towards the sharp incline in the road just ahead.

Shinobu blinked. Had she really been that lost in thought? Looking upward at the sky, she answered her own question. While still plenty bright, the sun was late in its arc of the day. It would probably be an hour, an hour and a half at the most, before darkness enveloped the land. They had made good time. "What's the plan, nee-sama?" She asked seriously, focusing on the task at hand.

"Hmmm~." Kanae put a finger to her chin, appearing deep in thought as she looked to the side. A tick mark appeared on Shinobu's temple as Kanae's hum was drawn out by several seconds. "You tell me, Shinobu-tan."

With a sigh, Shinobu tempered her agitation. Her aloof behavior aside, she only knew Kanae wanted to use this as an opportunity for her to become more comfortable making decisions. "We'll get a survey of the village's size when we get to the top of the hill, but for now I can say we'll need to find ourselves a bar or some other such public gathering space where we can get information. We need to figure out if these attacks have a pattern. Age or sex of victims, time of night, location." She finished; brow furrowed in thought. It was probably the only standard operating procedure for staking out an area that a demon was suspected to be operating in.

Kanae nodded. "I agree completely. Prepare to have a rather large area to search, though. For its isolation, I imagine the village would need to be large enough to sustain itself through its own industry."

Shinobu nodded. It made sense. Plus, the more inhabitants, the easier it would be for a demon to snatch away a lone human and be gone before anyone was the wiser until far too late. This, of course, only brought her previous musings up again. She shook her head. That line of thought would need to be shelved for the moment.

At the top of the hill, Kanae's theory was proven correct. The village's boundaries extended to what they estimated to be one kilometer from the river itself and then stretch along the river-line for an additional half of a kilometer in both directions. In short, they had their work cut out for them.

"My, best we get started in the daylight, yes?" And with that, they both descended the hill into the village. It was very early in the evening and the usual bustle of traffic was most likely beginning to die down. Even so, there were still plenty of people out and about. Shinobu had expected a tiny, quiet, village based on its description when they had first set out, but this was a lot more active. It would only make finding the demon that much more troublesome.

The smell of fish, both fresh and slightly off, filled their nostrils. Unsurprisingly, fishing seemed to be the village's major export as well as its own internal economy. They walked past dozens of market stalls of fishermen attempting to sell their catches from the morning. At this time of day, however, more than half were already closed. Those still open were just reaching the point of running out of stock, trying to get every last bit of money for their time as possible.

"I imagine there's an inn we can investigate for a lead," Shinobu mused. Kanae nodded. "Depending on how long we might end up staying, securing a room might also not be a bad idea."

"I agree. Even for a couple of hours, respite in a bed sounds lovely," Kanae voiced, smiling.

"I'll ask for directions," Shinobu volunteered, her eyes searching for a couple of seconds before her lavender gaze rested on somebody in front of one of the last few open fish stalls. By the stature and height, Shinobu determined it to be a man. He was dressed in a motsuke koromo - an outfit usually seen worn by travelling monks. The distinct difference was the pants were a dark black, while his top was a very bright orange. A sharp contrast, if she'd ever seen one. Atop his head was a rounded straw hat, extending evenly out in a perfect, dipped, circle. Though with the local industry being focused on manual labor outside, that didn't seem at all unusual. Sure enough, most of the working adults she had spotted so far wore some manner of sun protection on them. The only oddity was a couple of bells that seemed to be attached by a piece of string at the front, just to the right of where you would assume one's normal point of focus to be. He was slightly hunched over the stall, no doubt perusing the last available catches of the day. Behind the stall, the owner was getting a couple of kinks out of a hung-up fishing net and was otherwise occupied. "Excuse me, sir."

The man's body turned slightly, the bells jingling ever so slightly, just enough for Shinobu to recognize he was acknowledging her, though his face was unseen past the brim of his hat. "Yes, young lady?" Was the polite invitation for her to continue.

With a smile she doubted he could even see, Shinobu asked, "Is there an inn my sister and I might see to about lodging for the night?"

The man 'hmm'ed a low, throaty sound that indicated he had not spoken for a while. He cleared his throat before answering. "Yes, ma'am. All you gotta do is follow this road. You'll almost come out the other side of the village, but you'll find one. It'll be on the right."

"Thank you very much, sir. Please, have a good day." Kanae thanked the man in Shinobu's stead, flashing a brilliant smile.

"Excuse me, young ladies." The stall owner spoke up now. It seemed he had turned away from his task just in time to catch them. He leaned forward and placed his palms on his stall, regarding them with a tired, but relieved, smile. "You two wouldn't happen to be... Demon Slayers, would you?" The answer seemed obvious, given their uniformed appearance. Not to mention the presence of their nichirin katanas strapped to their waist.

The jingle of a bell signaled the other gentleman had returned his attention to looking at the fish on display.

"Yes, sir. That is correct." Shinobu answered politely.

"Oh, bless you both. Thank you both for your hard work in keeping people such as myself and my family safe." The man was getting up there in age, most likely in his late forties, but his physical appearance was still of someone who woke up every morning and made his living off his hard work. A graying beard jutted from his chin to his chest, a full head of hair splayed out messily and covered his ears.

"Thank you for your kind words, sir." Kanae smiled pleasantly, closing her eyes and tilting her head slightly at the fisherman. "We do our best for everyone we meet."

Shinobu adopted a more serious demeanor, however. "If you have any information, please do not hesitate to share with us. It is our goal to make sure everyone here is safe."

The man seemed slightly taken aback for some odd reason that Shinobu couldn't readily discern. A few seconds of silence passed, before the older man sighed, shaking his head. "I don't think I know anything that could be of help to you both. I'm hardly here as it is lately with the fishing season coming to a close."

Despite his inability to help, Kanae smiled widely. "Thank you very much, regardless, sir. Please be assured, we're here to help."

The fisherman seemed put at ease by her smile, as noted by his own smile and the slump to his tense shoulders. Shinobu glanced left at her sister in silent admiration, envious of her ability to soothe and reassure those in need. She looked back at the stall owner and said, "We'll let you go about your evening, sir. Thank you again."

Without any form of lead, the two women could only leave in the direction the first man had directed towards the inn. The fisherman watched them leave, before turning his tired gaze to his one and only potential customer. "Sir, if you're not going to buy anything I'm going to close up."

"Of course, apologies; I'll take these." The man with the straw hat gestured to the last row of fish out on display. The fisherman blinked. That was the last of the day's stock. What a stroke of luck.

"Certainly, let me tie those up for you." He knelt down behind his stall to find some rope.

Standing up completely, the man turned his body slightly, facing the direction Shinobu and Kanae had departed seconds prior. He raised a hand to the tip of his straw hat and adjusted it just enough to view the shrinking outlines of the sisters, the two glistening silver bells ringing with each movement.

A toothy grin surfaced on his face, exposing one of his canines. His eyes, blue as the sky, twinkled ever so slightly.

The two demon slayers had kept a watchful eye on their surroundings as they made their way down the road. They tried to look for anything at all that could help with their investigation. Perhaps they would overhear discussion of the attacks? If they were lucky, they could get a location of where someone died and investigate the site. Although, after several minutes of walking both sisters noted something incredibly odd. Everyone seemed very at ease and relaxed for the most part, not at all what you'd expect of an isolated community plagued with the death of innocents at the hands of a demon that would no doubt be somewhere in the dark - resting and strengthening itself for the next hunt.

Nevertheless, people went about the end of their day without a care in the world. Children played in the street, adults greeted each other in passing with wistful smiles, and the atmosphere was eerily tranquil. Observations aside, Shinobu found it prudent to find the inn they had been directed to. Having a clear center to start their search from would make it easier to track and record their own movement, after all. Which led them both to their current situation, having flagged down an older lady to ask for directions once more.

"I'm sorry, may you repeat that young lady?" An older woman asked Shinobu, hunched over her cane.

"Please, we're looking for the inn. We were given directions to this part of town, but we haven't found any indication on where it is exactly." Shinobu repeated her question. They had followed the road, as they were told, and they were almost out of the village. The forest was only a couple hundred meters away at this point. The last bit of sunlight waned in the sky and nightfall was imminent.

The older woman appeared apologetic, much to Shinobu and Kanae's confusion. "I'm sorry, young lady, but I'm not sure who you got your directions from. There's only one inn and it's on the other side of the village. If you came over the hill from the north, you would have walked right past it."

Kanae raised a thin eyebrow, her smile dipping slightly. Shinobu's response was less subtle. A vein bulged in her temple and several tick marks appeared as she grinded her teeth in pure frustration. 'So that fool gave us directions in the complete OPPOSITE DIRECTION?!'

Sensing her sister's ire, Kanae spoke up. "Thank you for your clarification. One more thing, if we may, ma'am?"

The older woman seemed to glance up at the sky for a moment before returning her stare back to Kanae, motioning her to continue. "Yes?"

"I understand the subject is still fresh in your mind and possibly painful to discuss, but are you able to provide us information on the demon attacks from the past couple of nights?" The response only served to completely confuse the two women.

"Demon attacks? Excuse me? I don't get out much anymore in my age, but I haven't heard of any demon attacks here in years." The old woman began to turn, repositioning her cane to assist her balance. "I'll ask you two to not go around asking questions like that without cause, lest you start a panic. Good evening." The lady departed.

Kanae and Shinobu both stared silently as the old woman slowly walked off, her body trembling with each step she took. It was a solid two minutes before she finally rounded a corner out of their line of sight. Finally, the two girls looked at each other, their expressions completely neutral. At least, until-

"What/What?!"

A half hour passed before the two finally arrived at the inn on the other side of the town. Shinobu's face was beet red in frustration and embarrassment. They had both walked right past this building on their way in and hadn't spared it a second glance, but at night it was obvious given the bustling patronage coming from inside.

They had been lied to by some jerk, causing them both to waste precious time in discerning just what was going on. If Shinobu managed to recognize that man again - someone who most likely had far too much time on his hands to play such a stupid prank - she'd give him an earful. Maybe more, if Kanae didn't put a stop to it.

Kanae, while inwardly agitated at the situation, kept her outward composure. Instead of thinking about the man who had, apparently, intentionally duped them both earlier, her thoughts were on the village and their mission. She recalled the orders her crow had given. 'Three lives lost over three nights at isolated village. Depart immediately and prepare for combat.' Were they given false information? By a Kasugai Crow? Her crow was not the type at all to play a joke anywhere near as dangerous as that. Was the crow's source of information faulty? So many questions circled in her head.

"I swear, if I see him again, I'm going to-"

"Shinobu." Kanae addressed her sister suddenly and without her usual playfulness. Shinobu snapped back to the situation. "We'll acquire a room for the night. After we do so, we'll question the innkeeper as well as a few patrons. We need information right now. Our goal is to either confirm or deny that woman's claims - something that will be easy enough to do after questioning only a couple of the locals. If it is true, then we will do a courtesy patrol of the village until daybreak while I send for more information from the corps. If not, then our original mission stands."

"Hai, nee-sama." Shinobu vocalized her affirmative sharply.

Luckily for them, there was still lodging to accommodate both of them. The main source of business was obviously the bar on the ground floor. Pocketing the key to their rented lodging, Kanae and Shinobu began to question a few of the locals. From the barkeep to a few of the patrons, sober or otherwise, the consensus was unanimous.

"Demon attacks? Here?"

"A bit too much to drink, eh?"

"You look like you haven't had enough to drink. Care to join me?"

Kanae's brow furrowed. Unless something was seriously wrong with the villagers' perception of reality, all seemed well. The only information about a demon attack at all was one that happened a couple of years ago, but even then, Demon Slayers had apparently been dispatched to investigate. The whole situation was uncomfortably vexing.

"I've heard nothing to discredit what we were told earlier, nee-sama. Everyone is in agreement; there hasn't been a demon issue here for a couple of years." Shinobu broke Kanae of her thoughts.

"That is what I've determined as well." Kanae nodded. She allowed a soft smile to grace her features, but she was still concerned. "I'll send word back for an explanation. I shudder to think we were sent to the wrong village." It sounded like a silly mistake, but a lethal one. And mistakes happen from time to time. "For now, we'll do a patrol of the village and ensure all is quiet."

"Should we split up?" Shinobu asked, following her sister as they made for the exit.

"Hmm." Kanae hummed. "We'll stay together for now."

"Hai."

(Midnight)

That night was especially dark. The moon's current position left it barely visible, hardly any light provided to the world beneath. On top of that, an overcast had appeared to set in. It was already humid being so close to the ocean, but it was noticeable in the air that it would no doubt be raining by daybreak. All in all - it was a dreary, dark, and quiet night for the isolated village. The perfect killing ground.

"Hehehee~. A feast has been set out for me tonight~. Yes, indeed~." Atop one of the tallest trees in the surrounding forest sat a shadowy figure, perfectly balanced on one foot as his eyes hungrily took in the sight of the village. Dotted randomly throughout the streets and alleys were faintly glowing lamps, moving slowly to indicate several humans out of their homes walking the dark streets. Alone or in pairs was yet to be determined. "How could I possibly search on an empty stomach~? So many little lambs giving themselves up to the wolf~. Hehehee~."

Jumping from its perch, the demon landed on the grass below silently. Standing to its full height of two meters, the demon licked its lips - the elongated appendage wetting its dry lips efficiently. The demon was pointedly male. Its skin a dirty gray, arms disproportionately long compared to its torso as its fingertips stopped past its knees, almost to its shin. Its exposed muscles rippled with each movement, veins looking near to burst. Unkempt, jet black, hair stopped at its shoulders - parted slightly from the piercing horns that protruded from its temples. Finally, its eyes; blood red sclera with piercing black pupils, shrunk to the absolute limit as they helped themselves to the view ahead of them.

Engraved on its left eye was the kanji for 'Lower Moon Four', signifying this demon's position as the 10th strongest demon currently alive. Its smile became unnaturally wide, seconds before it disappeared completely from view.

(With Kanae and Shinobu)

"What are you thinking, nee-sama?" Shinobu's question broke the silence of the night. The two women walked in unison with each other side by side. The night had been calm thus far, but the occasional gusts of wind were becoming more frequent as the weather set in. They'd been out patrolling the streets for a few hours now with the only other signs of life being the occasional night owl that passed them, dipping their heads respectfully as they passed holding their lamps to light their way.

"I think I would very much like to try the tempura the bar was serving when we return for the night." Kanae remarked with a smile, practically beaming at her younger sister. Shinobu's brow twitched.

"Nee-sama..." She trailed off, exasperated. Sometimes it really did feel as if Kanae was immune to being stressed or anxious.

"Hehehe~." Kanae giggled at her sister's expense, but answered Shinobu's actual question, nonetheless. "Unfortunately, there is little more to be done at the moment. I am waiting to hear back from my crow with an update. Until then, all we can do is be vigilant, yes?"

Shinobu turned and stared at her sister's smiling face and was, once again, put at ease. 'She's right. I'm letting myself get too distracted with my thoughts. The most we can do right now is stay calm and wait for further orders.'

"Besides, if this really is a misunderstanding, then think of the whole thing as an opportunity to stretch your legs. We had been cooped up in the mansion for a while, hadn't we?" Kanae continued.

"Ever since you got promoted," Shinobu noted, nodding her head. With a cough, a light red dusting her cheeks, she said, "Um... perhaps I had been hoping this mission would be... more eventful; to give you the chance to show you have what it takes to be promoted to Hashira." Shinobu took great pride in being Kanae's sister, so much so that the idea of Kanae reaching the rank of Hashira almost felt as her own achievement, let alone Kanae's. Shinobu would truly relish the opportunity to be her nee-sama's tsuguko.

Kanae laughed at Shinobu's statement, which only served to brighten the girl's blush further. "How lucky I am to have such a considerate imouto cheering for me."

"Kanae-nee..." Shinobu groaned out, averting her eyes back to the road. Again, Kanae giggled, hiding her smile behind her hand as her eyes peaked at Shinobu.

"That said, I'm not ready to walk alongside the Hashira. Perhaps someday, but I've a long way to go," she stated truthfully, lowering her hand back to her side. Kanae seemed completely unbothered by her own words, as if she had accepted it as just another inconvenience to overcome.

"A lot of the younger demon slayers really respect you. I think your promotion would be welcomed by many," Shinobu stated as a matter of fact with a curt nod of her head.

"Then all I can do is ensure I do not let them down. I will step up into a position as needed of me when I am fully capable of doing so." The statement was just as, perhaps more, matter of fact than Shinobu's had been. "You'll promise me, Shinobu, that if the opportunity arises for you to become a tsuguko, you'll strongly consider it? Even if, perhaps, it is not your preference?"

Shinobu was silent for a few moments. She knew Kanae was just trying to keep an eye on her sister's personal and professional growth. Having the chance to be taught as an apprentice by one of the Hashira was one of the greatest honors a young demon slayer could earn. It, quite literally, meant one of the strongest human swordsmen alive saw the potential in you to take their place. For a corps steeped in tradition and principle, it would probably be viewed as a great disrespect to deny a Hashira's request to grant their tutelage. That being said, Shinobu couldn't picture herself training under anyone other than Kanae. It didn't stop her from saying, "Of course, nee-sama. I promise to view an invitation practically over emotionally."

Kanae seemed satisfied with the response and opened her mouth to say more.

"AHHHHH!"

A shrill scream pierced through the quiet night. Kanae and Shinobu were immediately put on alert. They both had simultaneously put a hand on their katana's grip, though kept them sheathed.

"This way!" Kanae ordered quickly, jumping to a rooftop and rapidly setting off in the direction of the scream. Shinobu followed behind her sister as she took the lead. Hardly a hundred meters away was the source of the disturbance. From a rooftop, one could look down into one of the alleys and see two figures. One stood up, hunched to the point where its abnormally long arms allowed its fingertips to brush against the dirt. The other was on the ground, desperately crawling away.

"Hehehee~. Don't scream, little one~. Existence is behind you now~," the demon drawled out in its deceptively sing-song voice. It took a couple of menacing steps forward and, with the intent to kill, brought its arm down on the woman. Its hand was open completely as if to smash the human like she was an annoying bug.

The demon's playtime was interrupted, however. A sharp pain filled his senses, and he was forced to take a large leap back from his position. Landing silently, hunched down on the soles of his feet. He looked at his hand and saw the entire upper half of it was gone, sliced cleanly through and leaving but half of his thumb remaining attached. Looking back ahead, his teeth grinded.

Kanae stood in the middle of the road, regarding the demon with a relaxed poise. Her nichirin katana was currently sheathed, though her dominant hand lay rested on its hilt. Behind her, Shinobu could be seen helping the demon's prey to her feet.

"You miserable meat sacks!" the demon hissed sharply, its body vibrating rapidly as its breathing picked up to an inhuman level. It was beyond furious at having its meal interrupted.

"My, my~," Kanae started, purposefully inciting more of the demon's ire. "Did we interrupt something?"

'What are the odds?! How?!' The demon didn't reply verbally, still inhaling and exhaling rapidly as if in some sort of technique to calm its blood rage. 'No one could have known I was coming! This pathetic maggot nest should be at the back of everyone's mind! Was my hunch just these pathetic little girls?!' Question after question swirled in the demon's mind. It stopped suddenly, as if a switch had been flipped in its head. Its long smile returned after a couple of seconds. "Hehehee~. How appropriate~. A pair of demon slayers offering themselves up as sustenance, as it should be~."

The demon had taken a couple of seconds to analyze the situation. These two girls were much smaller than him. They also had a distinct lack of attire that would otherwise suggest they were Hashira. As far as the demon was concerned, this could only mean his meal was about to get much more nutritious.

By now, Shinobu had led the woman to safety, having opened the door to a house nearby and placed the terrified woman inside. She didn't particularly care if the house belonged to her or not. She was out of immediate danger and appeared uninjured otherwise. "Kanae-nee, I'm here." She announced, landing back down at her sister's side.

Kanae nodded, bring a foot forward to adopt a more ready stance. Shinobu placed herself a couple paces back, offset her sister, her own weapon drawn finally. It was clear by their position Kanae would lead the attack. Shinobu's role was to watch for openings and capitalize on them. More often than not, a demon slayer could find themselves working alone. It added a great deal of additional security adding just one partner alongside you. And the two sisters were especially dangerous as a unit.

Without further words spoken between the two, Kanae moved forward ready to make the first strike. "Flower Breathing, First Form: The Thorn Wounds!" Heavily inspired by the samurai's laijutsu, Kanae attempted to end the confrontation swiftly. From her sheath, Kanae unleashed a single sword slash at her opponent aimed right at the demon's neck. Despite the demon's size, he moved out of reach easily. Using its long arms, it followed up its dodge with a wide swipe at Kanae. The graceful woman jumped up, however, dodging the strike. "Sixth Form, Whirling Peach!" Using both gravity and twisting her body, Kanae rapidly spun and unleashed another slash at her opponent.

The demon retracted its long arms into itself to defend. Its forearms guarded its neck, with one placed over the other in a very tight 'x'. Its front arm was cut through, but Kanae's momentum had been stopped by his second arm, her blade lodged halfway into its meaty forearm. Before it could use the opportunity, however, Kanae suddenly displaced herself a few steps backward.

"Insect Breathing, Butterfly Dance: Caprice!" The demon barely had time to dodge as Shinobu attempted to strike from above. It had leapt back a great deal, landing and sliding on the ground several feet before its momentum stopped. Shinobu 'tch'ed as she assumed another ready stance.

"Almost, Shinobu-tan!" Kanae commended, readying to continue the engagement. "It gets better every time I see it!"

'Not good enough, though.' Shaking her head, Shinobu focused on the battle. The time for self-criticism would come later.

"Hehehee~. Entertain me more~." The demon spoke again, smiling widely. Its arm and hand had just finished reforming. Kanae noted the speed in which its limbs replaced themselves. They weren't dealing with a demon of notable strength, it would seem. She estimated it took the demon a full ten seconds before any lost limbs would be restored. That was an incredible amount of time in the heat of battle to be allowed to strike. Even alone, this demon would have been a quick and efficient kill.

"My, what a playful individual~," Kanae noted with a giggle. "I have no choice but to oblige."

The demon attacked this time, jumping forward and bringing its arms into the air. It was telegraphing its next strike very loudly and, easily enough, both Kanae and Shinobu dodged as it landed and smashed the ground where they had been standing. From both sides, the sisters encircled and brought their weapons down with the intent if dismembering the demon again.

Suddenly, the demon moved - standing on its two hands. Spinning quickly, its legs lashed out to strike at the two violently. Kanae and Shinobu both had to bring their weapons up in defense. Kanae was knocked back several feet, bracing herself on the ground to steady herself. Shinobu, however, was knocked back into a wooden wall. It was Shinobu the demon decided to followthrough on. Lurching forward, the demon landed on its feet again, swinging its massive arms up and over its body to bring down on Shinobu.

With barely a second to react, Shinobu rapidly sidestepped and was pushed back from the sheer force as the demon completely demolished the wall, kicking up debris and dust everywhere. When Shinobu attempted to pierce her sword forward to inject the demon, she was completely taken by surprise when it fell to the ground, its body completely flat.

The demon gripped the earth with its large hand, the ground cracking as it did so, and launched itself forward. Its other hand, completely open, completely took up Shinobu's line of sight, the hand mere inches from her face. Shinobu gasped, her eyes widening, unable to react in time before her head would be crushed the demon's grip.

The demon howled in both pain and anger as it was relieved of its outstretched arm. "Please do not neglect me~." Kanae taunted with her usual sing-song voice. With a roar of frustration, their opponent let go of the earth and landed back on its feet. It spun its body rapidly and tried to kick Kanae. Kanae ducked underneath the kick but was forced to bring her guard up. The demon continued his spin and used it as momentum to slam his other foot into Kanae's chest. Luckily, the flat of her blade cushioned and otherwise deflected the majority of the momentum but it was enough to force her back. With visible relief, she saw Shinobu had used the moment to gain some ground between herself and the monster again. 'Seven... eight... nine...' The demons missing arm was again replaced and it clenched its fist dangerously as if to flex menacingly at the woman. 'Nine seconds. It's a brute, but it has strength and it's surprisingly limber for its stature. I'll have to create an opening for Shinobu. If I can cut both of its arms off at once, that should be all she needs.'

Shinobu joined Kanae's side once again. "It's slow to regenerate, nee-sama."

"We have a nine second window after relieving the offending limbs to finish this." Kanae confirmed. "Its arms are quite thick, and it has used them to defend itself multiple times - it also seems to favor the use of its arms for mobility in a tight spot over its legs." She noted to Shinobu, who nodded and compiled everything her sister was saying. "I'll remove both its arms at once, you will do the rest, yes?" Kanae suggested with a smile.

"Right!" Shinobu affirmed sharply, preparing her stance once again to capitalize on whatever opening she was presented with. With that, Kanae dashed back in to exchange blows with their assailant.

Her sister and the demon exchanged strikes rapidly, but Shinobu's eyes managed to follow their movements with practiced precision. The demon did its best to haphazardly swap between fighting with its hands and its feet, performing wildly lashing strikes, extending its reach impressively each time it sought to fight atop while balanced on its hands. Kanae seemed calm, her expression focused and parrying each strike fluidly. It was little wonder why Flower Breathing derived from Water Breathing, given how efficiently Kanae moved herself to meet the demon's onslaught.

The demon's arms shot out to his side, stretched completely, before swinging forward quickly almost as if he wanted to hug his opponent. It was slow, however, notably more than previous attacks. Regardless, Kanae took the opening. "Third Form: Bloom." Her katana flickered several times in the span of a couple of seconds as she leapt back. She landed, steadying herself, before lunging forward to strike again. The demon prepared itself again but stopped and widened its eyes. His hands were mutilated. Starting from the web of skin between his fingers almost down to his wrist, large cuts appeared. Without skin and muscle connecting them, his hands fell apart, the bits of finger-tipped flesh dangling uselessly. "Fourth Form, Crimson Flower!" With an elegant strike that seemed to leave a streak in the air of her sword's path, both of the demon's arms were lopped off, easy targets as extended as they were from the demon's body.

Shinobu had read her sister's intentions and had already positioned herself to strike before Kanae had even unleashed her final attack. Already airborne, she saw the demon's arms get cut off once more. 'One... two...' With her blade poised like a stinger, she descended quickly, preparing to inject the demon with a healthy dose of her wisteria poison to end the conflict. 'Three... four...' The demon's eyes were wide, sweat dripping down its head as it seemed to realize it was entirely unable to defend itself. 'Five...' The demon's eyes narrowed with glee, a wide grin appearing on its face.

"Hehehee~." Its arms sprout out suddenly, completely restored. Shinobu's eyes widened and she tried to maneuver herself back, but she was well within range of the demon's massive arm-span. Faster than either Kanae or Shinobu had seen it do of yet, the demon swung its arms in. Its left arm struck Shinobu's legs, its right arm - her shoulders.

Shinobu's body did only two complete rotations mid-air before the demon slapped her body down violently into the ground.

"Shinobu!" Kanae cried out, her eyes wide and her calm battle facade dropping. A rare moment of righteous fury overcame her as she watched her little sister get smashed into the ground and she leapt forward to try another attack. "Fifth Form: Peonies of-!"

"Flicker." The demon vanished from Kanae's sight. Her eyes widened.

'Blood Demon Arts? But it shouldn't be strong enough to-.' "Agh!" Kanae let out a cry of pain as she felt a punch strike her from behind, striking her shoulder so hard it forced the bone out of its socket. She jumped to the side, both to get distance from her opponent and to try and drag the fight away from Shinobu's body. She appeared to still be conscious, if only breathing raggedly and with wide yes, sweat dripping down her face.

The demon responded to her movement by disappearing again. Kanae's instincts screamed at her and she only just barely managed to block another powerful blow from the monster. Her reaction had been enough for her nichirin to bear the majority of the force, but the remainder transferred through to her and sent her backwards into the thick wooden wall. She had clipped the corner of the building and her right arm tried to continue without her, eventually breaking backwards. Her eyes widened and several globs of saliva were forced from her mouth as she struck the building, creating creaks in the wood, before falling down to the ground.

"Hehehee~. I don't get to toy with demon slayers too often~. I had to drag it out~." The demon returned to its normal behavior, its voice becoming singsong, condescending the fallen Flower Breathing user. Kanae grunted as she tried to bring herself to stand up again, looking up at the demon with a glare as her shaky hands tried to push herself up. The demon knelt down, balancing on its heels again. Its long arm slowly came to its own face, opening its eyelid for further inspection and smiling wildly.

Kanae gasped softly. The kanji for Lower Four stared at her, almost mockingly. "Lower Four." She breathed out, trying to regain her breath.

"You could never win~. Your dancing only served to whet my appetite~." The demon's expression was maniacal, its smile somehow managing to get wider and wider. Its breath was ragged, but obviously not from exhaustion. If anything, it seemed to be deriving pleasure from the situation. Kanae's glare only served to entice it further. "Such disdain~. Your hatred is beautiful, Little Flower~."

From the ground behind them, Shinobu stared through the demon's legs at her sister. She could feel her broken ribs and right arm. Shinobu looked at said arm, covered in its sleeve, and noticed that something was trying to poke out from the sleeve. A compound fracture. It flared her entire body with raw pain as she tried to move it. She was completely helpless to do anything.

The demon raised his arms up, planning on smashing Kanae into paste. Frantically trying to move, her entire body screaming in defiance, Shinobu's eyes returned to her sister, and she gasped to realize Kanae was staring at her. While Shinobu couldn't hear, she could make out her older sister's words as she silently mouthed, "I'm sorry", accompanied with a smile. Kanae had closed her eyes while Shinobu silently screamed out her sister's name.

Jingle.

The demon stopped as it heard the distinct sound of bells jingling together. With a curious gaze, it slowly turned its body and looked at the source of the interrupt. Standing not but a few feet away from them was a man; clad in a black and orange mostuke koromo. A curious straw hat rested atop his head, despite there being no practical reason to wear one. It was night after all.

Kanae opened her eyes as well and looked over, inspecting the man who had interrupted her imminent death. 'When did...?' She coughed a couple of times, before trying to gesture with her unbroken arm. "Sir, please evacuate! Ngh!" Of course, her unbroken arm was the one that been punched out of its socket not even a couple minutes prior. Shinobu could do nothing but stare, her body still trembling as she furiously tried to stand.

The demon, curiously enough, had yet to move since landing his eyes on the anonymous individual. 'I didn't sense... how... and why am...?' It felt as if every single nerve in his body was alight in rage. It felt itself growing furious, as if he was seeing red. "Who~?" It still managed to speak in its usual tone of condescending indifference, but its jaw was clenched tightly, exposing its rows of razor-sharp teeth.

Without a word, but with a jingle of his hat, the man suddenly stepped to Shinobu. He leaned down on one knee and craned forward so Shinobu could see him without having to move her head. He adjusted his hat enough to reveal his face. Shinobu was greeted by the sight of a pair of beautiful cerulean orbs staring at her softly, a sad grin on his face. She didn't even register the six whisker marks on his cheeks, three on each side. "What a relief... you're alive." He breathed a sigh of relief, closing his eyes as if thankful for the circumstances. He opened them again after a moment and spoke again. "You both did your best. I'm sorry." Shinobu had no idea who this man was, where he came from, or why on Earth he was apologizing to her with such a solemn expression on his face. All Shinobu knew was she felt a calm overtake her like nothing had ever before. It made her want to try and direct him away from the danger, to stand up and protect him like a Demon Slayer should to an innocent, to do ANYTHING other than lie on the ground in a broken mess before him. With several groans, she attempted to bring herself back up

"Shh." The man placed a hand on her head, gently pushing her back down to rest. She looked back up to try and see his face again, vying for any form of explanation. Her breath hitched as he smiled warmly, his eyes softening further as if he were regarding a long, lost, family member. He stroked her hair, matted as it was in dirt and grime. "It's time to rest." Just like that, Shinobu felt placated. She couldn't even begin to describe the overwhelming feeling of comfort she was experiencing. Being in the presence of Ubuyashiki-sama was the only comparable experience, and even then she wanted nothing more right now than to go to sleep with a smile on her face.

Shinobu did as she was instructed and stopped struggling.

The man stood up and turned to the demon, his straw hat back down again to obscure his face. The demon, interestingly enough, had yet to move a muscle.

As the man walked away to face the demon, Shinobu wanted desperately to grab at his pants, his sandals, his hands, ANYTHING to keep him from leaving. 'Stop! Don't!' She couldn't bear to see someone who seemed so at peace face their death. Not for her.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to cease and desist." The tone was patronizing, stated almost in a joking manner, but held a warning that anyone with even a semi-decent grasp of their survival instincts could easily pick up on. 'You are seconds from death.'

The demon clenched its fist and faced the man fully. "You will join these two as a puddle of flesh to stain the earth!" It roared, anger overtaking it completely.

"He's incredibly strong, but also incredibly fast! His speed makes it seem as though he is teleporting!" Despite the futility of the situation, Kanae felt obligated to warn the man of the demon's abilities. If nothing could be said to sway his position of helping them, the least she could do is help him understand the threat.

"Teleport, huh? How exciting! Let's see it, then." The man made a 'welcome' gesture with a hand, casually inviting the demon to display its abilities. The demon's anger spiked further.

"Flicker!" He disappeared from sight.

"RUN!" Shinobu finally managed to muster up enough strength to scream at the man, right before the unthinkable happened. The man stepped to the side casually, his arm extended back over his shoulder. With an open palm, he caught the clenched fist of the Lower Four. Kanae and Shinobu's jaw dropped. Firmly grasping the demon's fist, the man swung the entire demon over his body and slammed it into the ground.

The second action he made confused Kanae and Shinobu greatly, until their eyes widened even further. The man jumped forward and seemed to kick the air in front of him. Instead of a quiet 'woosh' to accompany, the distinct sound of a sandalled foot meeting flesh was heard. The dirt in front of him was disturbed, as if something was being dragged through it, before it stopped several feet away from him.

After a moment, a second demon appeared, picking itself up off of the ground. "How did you-?"

"You aren't that fast, are you?" The man interrupted. You could tell by his tone he was speaking through a grin. "Lemme guess, you can use your Blood Arts to create a clone of yourself? You also seem very proficient in using your Arts to conceal yourself." He turned slightly, keeping an eye on the two threats to his front and back - one a demon, the other revealed to be a clone. "You can extend that shroud over yourself or a target of your choice, but you can only completely mask one thing at a time, right? You're not teleporting, you're just using sleight of hand to make it seem like you are, when really there's two of you." All the while, the demon's veins were near to bursting on its forehead at being seen through so easily. The clone, for its part, did not appear angry in the slightest, signaling it being merely a simulacrum of the Lower Four. The man continued. "Not bad, not bad. You could have ended this before it started if you'd been less interested in toying with your victims. Or perhaps you can't perform a lethal attack while concealed? No matter. That mistake will cost you your life."

"So, you've discovered the extent of my abilities?! It changes nothing! You'll be able to tell the rest of the filth in the afterlife how you died!" The demon roared, both it and the clone sprinting towards the man.

Easily enough, the man leapt over the true demon, landing on the other side. Now, both of them were in front of him rather than his flanks. They chased after him, away from the two wounded demon slayers on the ground. Replicating its previous style, the front demon balanced itself on its hands again, both his arms bent to allow him to rest close to the ground, its legs serving as its weapons. Simultaneously, the clone sought to use its extensive reach to fill the offensive gaps the original couldn't with its legs. In other words, a merciless onslaught of attacks given with the intent to kill.

In an impressive display of physical conditioning and flexibility, the straw-hatted man either blocked or deflected each strike easily. With a mixture of his feet, knees, or elbows, he kept himself out of harm's way. Their movement was almost a blur to Kanae and Shinobu, which made the next action seem that much more sudden. The man's position suddenly 'snapped', and he held his arm outstretched, palming the stomach of the first demon viciously and doubling it over in agony. The clone behind the original attempted to step over its host and continue its assault. The man's response was much more violent.

He grabbed the clone's fist and punched its elbow with his other hand, breaking the limb in on itself. The clone gave no sign of discomfort, instead merely trying to use his other fist to attack. At least, it tried to. With a jump and a spin of his body the man shouted, "Leaf Whirlwind!" His right leg, strengthened by inertia with the full rotation of his body, kicked the clone right in the temple. The action severed the head cleanly from the rest of the body.

'He doesn't wear the uniform, nor is he fighting with a nichirin blade. He can't be a demon slayer. Then, how...' The clone's head landed and rolled for a few seconds before coming to a stop. The man stood back up straight, returning to a relaxed stance casually. 'How is he able to fight a demon of this caliber?!' Shinobu yelled mentally. She glanced over to her sister and saw that she, too, was watching with complete shock at the events unfolding before them.

The clone's head, and body, dissolved into blood. The viscous substance plopped onto the ground and slowly began to lose its viscosity as the dirt soaked it up greedily. The original, and now sole, demon was just as taken aback as the demon slayers were. "Who are you?!" It demanded fiercely, eyes boring its hatred into his prey.

The man sighed. "Let's wrap this up. My friends need medical attention." He spoke, completely disregarding the demon's query. It only served to further the demon's rage. It turned suddenly, changing tactics, towards Shinobu. He made to grab her head with one of his large hands.

In response, the man blurred. He reappeared in between the two, his back to Shinobu. In his hand, he held the demon's wrist. Struggle as it might, the limb would not be moving unless it was willed by this stranger. The demon made to move but then, it saw.

In the sharp and sudden movement, the man had neglected to brace his straw hat and it now hung down his back, dangling loosely in the breeze. It revealed the face of a young man, who looked naught a day over 20, his piercing blue gaze boring into the demon's crimson. His short, blonde, hair rustled in the wind. At this proximity, you could tell the whiskers on his face were not tattoos or a form of mascara, yet shallow indentations in his flesh.

The demon trembled violently, yet not as if trying to pry himself away. "I-I-I..." To Shinobu and Kanae's confusion, the demon stuttered, tongue-tied and flustered. Their confusion multiplied over what happened next. "I FOUND HIM! MASTER! HE'S HERE! MASTER!" The demon frantically shouted and screamed to the sky, its eyes glancing around frantically, as if something primordial had awakened in it. It tore its arm at the elbow, escaping the blonde's grasp, and turned around as if to flee.

Without warning, the now revealed blonde blurred, appearing ahead of the demon crouched over. The tell-tale sound of a sword being returned to its sheath followed. The demons body slumped to its knees and toppled over, its head bouncing off his own torso and rolling away. Fully expecting nothing to come of it, Shinobu and Kanae found themselves flabbergasted once more as the demon's body began to deteriorate, indicating he had been decapitated by a nichirin sword.

Sighing, the blond stood up and approached Kanae, who was the more readily able to speak of the two. "Who... are you?" She questioned, her eyes wide and staring at his features.

Rather than answering her question, he knelt down in front of her and grabbed her left arm, the one that had been dislocated. Kanae hissed sharply, prompting him to be a tad gentler. "I can reset this." He offered softly. "It will bring you relief sooner than later." Much like Shinobu had experienced earlier, Kanae was soothed by his words, her posture slumping slightly.

The thought confused her greatly, yet she was taken aback by the overwhelming sensation of trust she felt she could place into this man. With a grimace, pursing her lips, she nodded. "Mhm." At his direction, she laid down slowly, her arm outstretched completely at her side. The man grabbed her wrist with one hand and placed his other near the top of her bicep. Feeling his way, he aligned the bone with the socket. With both hands, he gave her arm a few short pumps, each one agitating Kanae greatly and causing her discomfort. The final one was accompanied by a snap. She sucked in a large amount of oxygen to keep herself from exclaiming the pain.

"Use your uniform as a sling." The blonde ordered. "You can walk. Your partner can't and needs more immediate medical attention." Kanae gasped.

'Shinobu.' She made to stand up, the action sending a jolt of pain through her body in defiance.

"Slowly. She will live, but she needs her wounds tended to immediately." The blonde assured her, helping her to her feet slowly.

"My sister." Kanae groaned out. The blonde looked between the two briefly. He could immediately see the resemblance.

"I'll show you both to the doctor's." The blonde assured Kanae. Despite everything that had transpired the past half hour, the woman allowed a playful smile to grace her beautiful face.

"Like you showed us to the inn?" She asked innocently, her eyes closed as she smiled. A chuckle of genuine amusement followed, the man scratching the back of his neck as a sheepish tick. He led her over to Shinobu and he knelt down by the smaller girl.

"I'm going to mind your injuries as best I can, but I need to get you moved somewhere safe before the adrenaline wears off. Okay?" He explained calmly. Shinobu looked between her and Kanae, before nodding her affirmative. Without another word, the blonde began positioning her for transport. Placing Shinobu on her back, he scooped her up in a bridal carry, ensuring her broken arm was at least on the outside and not pressed between their bodies. Kanae made sure to secure Shinobu's weapon as well.

"I... did it..." The blonde stood up, jostling Shinobu lightly who could only groan in indignation. He turned around and stared down at the head solemnly. By now, the body had disappeared. Its head seemed near completely faded away, its mouth the only remaining piece. He said nothing, only watching the head slowly disappear before him. It was a sight he was no stranger to. Not by any stretch of the imagination. It said nothing for a few seconds, before, "Kaa-san... I... couldn't find... any friends... so I made one up... kaa-san... I'm not alone... now."

Kanae studied the man's expression and noted the blonde's reaction to the mouth's final words. He seemed almost... sad? "Quickly. This way." He said abruptly, turning and taking long strides to leave the area behind them. Kanae followed him, matching his urgency through her own injuries.

Shinobu's eyes grew heavy as she was transported, taking in the unnatural, soothing, aura of the man's body. "Ano... what's your name...?" She managed.

The blonde looked down at the woman cradled in his arms. Flashing a grin at her, he gave his answer. "Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto."

"Naruto..." Shinobu mumbled, seconds before sleep claimed her.

Chapter Text

Pant. Pant. Pant.

Approaching the precipice of hyper-ventilation, a demon kneeled. Her head was held low, her gaze just barely looking upon the dress shoes of the man - no, the demon - standing in front of her. Her eyes were wide - impossibly so - tears threatening to spill over any second. Mukago was a tiny thing, standing at five foot, four inches and weighing barely more than a hundred and twenty pounds. She was garbed in a red kimono. Black and white fur lined the collar and almost seemed to provide cover for her head, as if it was just another means to hide her face. Her robe was completed by a large, dark purple, bow tied at her back.

"Lower Moon Five."

There they were. When the demon lord's smooth, venomous, voice broke the quiet, the tears flowed freely down Mukago's face. They spilled down over the red, horizontal, pair of stripes that adorned both of her cheeks and dripped onto the tatami mat below. She did not know where she was; the unknown number of twisting and turning corridors and rooms seemed to go on infinitely.

She was alone. Mukago kneeled dead center on the platform just below the ancient demon that had just addressed her coldly - the demon lord gave zero thought to disguise his utter contempt at the creature kneeling before him - by rank. Was this it? Was this her end? Not but a couple of minutes prior, she had been stalking the quiet countryside for any far, out of the way, cottage in search of her next meal. Next thing she knew, the distinct sound of a biwa struck harshly in her mind and she found herself here. Waiting for her was none other than her master, staring down at her. Those slitted pupils of his focusing so much murderous intent at her that Mukago felt she was seconds from suffocation.

"Master." To her credit, Mukago did not stutter, nor did she make any unnecessary sounds. Every survival instinct she possessed screamed at her, crossing over themselves and drowning out any sense or rationale in her mind. She was here to obey or die.

"What is your first purpose?"

"My first purpose, Master-" Bump. Bump. "-is to devour humans-" Bump. Bump. "-and become stronger-" Mukago's heartrate quickened, thumping violently in her chest, beads of sweat trickling down her forehead, mixing with her tears that spilled freely. "-so as to serve you more efficiently."

"What is your second purpose?"

Mukago's ears were ringing, her heart threatened to burst from her chest, and the tremble of her shoulders had started to set in. Despite all this, she answered autonomously. "My second purpose is to search for the Ibutsu(Relic)." Mukago didn't know how she knew the answer, nor any iota of information pertaining to exactly what, or who, that was. All she knew - all any demon knew - was that if asked that question by their master, that was their answer. Any other answer but those words verbatim would be met with a swift and horrific end.

No sooner than the words appeared in her mind, did they disappear.

The pure killing intent hadn't let up, but neither did it elevate. Like a suffocating blanket, it hung over her being. Seconds passed by in silence and with each passing moment did Mukago's anxiety climb higher and higher. Were she human, her heart would have failed multiple times over in its attempt at keeping her blood flowing to fuel the overwhelming fight-or-flight instinct. After what felt as if an eternity had passed, something stirred.

Mukago felt a prick against her neck and all the girl knew was excruciating pain. She broke form, toppling over and writhing on the ground like a worm that had been punished for daring to leave the safety of the cold earth it crawled from. The transparent tears stopped, replaced with crimson. Every orifice on her head gushed crimson as her body desperately tried to acclimate to Muzan's blood. It hadn't been a small amount either. Unnoticed to her, the kanji on her eye contorted and rearranged itself.

"You acclimated adequately, Lower Moon Four." Muzan's cold monotone could barely be interpreted by the girl. "My will be done; fail and I will have your wretched existence torn asunder and spread across this country for you to suffer my wrath until the stars in the sky die out."

Twang!

With an unceremonious thud, Mukago found herself back in the grass field she had been plucked from. For another couple of minutes, she writhed on the ground in agony until finally the pain began to subside. She propped herself up on all fours. Her breath was utterly ragged - hair disheveled - and the blood trails on her face had begun to dry in the cold breeze.

Mukago retched, expelling anything she had eaten in the past day on the ground. She continued to puke and heave, until her throat was thrashed by her coughs and the regurgitated acids from her stomach. Screaming at her from the pit of her existence, a malicious presence had been imprinted on to her. It gave her a direction. Images of a riverside village flashed in her mind, but that was it. Just like that, as naturally as one knows to steady their inhales and exhales, Mukago knew she had to go to this village and search. 'Search for what? SEARCH FOR WHO?' No clarity was given. Mukago leaned back to rest on her knees and she stared up at the cloudy night sky, her hair - white as the moon above - parted and cleared her vision.

Search. This direction. Kill. Devour.
Search. That direction. Kill Devour.
Search Search Hide Kill SeArCH kILL
HiDe rUn flEe S-u-R-v-i-V-E
"MUKAGO!"

Her vision spider-webbed like broken glass.

Holding her head in her hands, Mukago screamed, tears flowing down her face freely.

No one heard, for she was alone. As she always had been.

Kanae regarded her sleeping sister with a gentle gaze, the corners of her mouth turned up ever so lightly. She sat beside Shinobu's bed, her posture relaxed. Her sheathed blade lay over her lap, her hands coming to rest atop the weapon. There was little reason to be on guard. It was almost noon and Kanae had been awake since before dawn; she had hardly got five hours of sleep before she stirred. Kanae had quickly placed herself beside her sister after that, unable to fall back asleep. It didn't particularly concern Kanae that Shinobu was still asleep, however. Her little sister was going to be alright, so who was she to deny her sleep after the events of the previous night?

Her smile dipped slightly as the events of the previous night came rushing through her mind again, which it had done multiple times since waking. She was alive. Shinobu was alive. The woman who had first cried out was alive. The demon was not. Ask any veteran demon slayer and they would all say the same thing; you won. Kanae would be inclined to agree. Without context, it really was that simple. In reality, it was anything but.

What if that stranger, Naruto - as he had introduced himself - did not appear when he had? Kanae did not like mulling over 'what ifs'. You could 'what if' all day. 'Unfortunately-' She closed her eyes. '-the answer is simple, for once. I would have died. Shinobu...' Kanae opened her eyes and looked back at her sister, '...would have died.'

Let alone her and Shinobu, that innocent woman, no, untold number of innocents could have also died. Kanae clenched her sheath tightly. Her knuckles popped and turned white from the strain. Several seconds passed before she snapped back to her senses with a start. Blinking once. Twice. Her smile returned. "My, my... how out of character for me to pout," she said aloud softly.

She was alive. Shinobu was alive. The demon was dead. Those were the facts as they presented themselves and, as far as the beautiful Flower Breather was concerned, that was cause for celebration. Her sister breathing softly on the bed in front of her did well to ground her back in reality.

''A lot of the younger demon slayers really respect you. I think your promotion would be welcomed by many." Shinobu's words from the night prior resurfaced in Kanae's mind.

'I knew I wasn't ready for the responsibilities of promotion. I've been a kinoe hardly a fortnight,' Kanae told herself. She mulled her thoughts over for a few seconds, before her expression resolved again. 'I only need to get stronger, don't I? And I have a beautiful imouto to get stronger with me.'

"Nee-sama." Kanae's attention went back to her sister, who appeared to be stirring from her rest. Shinobu's expression contorted as she regained her consciousness, no doubt her body still sore. Her eyes fluttered and Shinobu stared up at the ceiling for a couple of seconds as her vision focused. She didn't recognize the ceiling. She also didn't recognize the sheets on top of her. Her eyes widened and she tried to sit up. "Nee-sama!"

"None of that now, Shinobu-tan." Kanae's hand came to rest on Shinobu's shoulder, and she guided her younger sister to lay back on the bed. Kanae was relieved to see her sister awake, despite knowing for a fact she had no life-threatening injuries. Shinobu had a much more visible reaction as Kanae comforted her. Her tense muscles relaxed against her sister's placation, and she allowed herself to be guided back to her pillow without resistance. "Good morning to you as well."

Shinobu smiled tiredly back at Kanae, but her eyes betrayed her caution as they glanced around the room. It was a small room with naught but a bed - the one she rested on - a table in the corner, and a chair that Kanae had claimed at her bedside. The one window on the wall to her right allowed her the view of the rain outside. Seemed as if the clouds finally decided to give. "What happened?" She asked, returning her lavender gaze back to Kanae.

"What is the last thing you remember?" Kanae responded with her own query. Shinobu 'hmm'ed as she thought.

Her brow furrowed. Slowly, it came back to her. "We were sent to track a demon. Except there wasn't a demon, but then there was..." Shinobu groaned, her mind was still hazy and none of it made sense to her. Kanae, despite the situation, covered her mouth with a delicate hand as she giggled. "We fought and... lost." When Shinobu's expression turned solemn, so too did Kanae's. "It made short work of me. I was hardly of any help, nee-sama. A hindrance at best."

Kanae sighed softly, knowing full well where her sister was coming from. "I don't believe you had a chance to see, or maybe you have yet to remember, but that demon was the Lower Four." Shinobu's eyes widened slightly at the revelation. She had not seen the demon's eyes at the end of the confrontation, unlike Kanae. "Given our position, we are most fortunate to be alive." Kanae stated firmly.

Shinobu nodded once. "I understand. If it wasn't for..." She trailed off, but then the significance of what she was about to say hit her. "Wait, where is he? Who-?" What had he said his name was? She remembered. "Where is Uzumaki-san?" Shinobu's brain was going a mile a minute as that last bit of post-sleep haze cleared her mind.

Kanae shook her head. "I'm afraid this Uzumaki-san did not find it prudent to stay, nor were we given any indication of how to find him after we woke." She frowned, brow furrowing. It was a rare look for Kanae, Shinobu noted. Very little let her cheery disposition slip.

Many questions swirled in both of their minds. Where had he trained? The man possessed the ability to kill a demon with a nichirin blade, so there was the distinct possibility of him being a demon slayer. Possibly dispatched in response to her crow's message to investigate with them? Doubtful. They had been the closest dispatchable slayers when the original orders were given - so they had been told - and Kanae highly doubted someone other than one of the Hashira could have made it to them in so little time.

Ex-demon slayer? That sounded more likely, but even still it seemed far from the answer either of them sought. Unfortunately, ex-demon slayers were not the type to continue to put themselves in harm way. You left this profession one of three ways. Dead, broken, or disgraced. Rare exceptions existed, of course, but they were few and far between. Given his possession of a nichirin blade, the third option was probably the most likely. Kanae doubted it was that simple, however.

Shinobu had just as many questions as Kanae, but regarding other observations. 'When he apologized... why did he look at me like that?' Shinobu pursed her lips. When he had confirmed her health upon his arrival, he had regarded her with such a soft gaze and smile. Like he was trying to stomach disappointment. Her brow furrowed at that, and the hint of a sneer marred her features. Disappointed? In her?

It had been the Lower Four. It had toyed with them. Shinobu had been unable to do anything and was caught completely off guard. If only she had been faster, if her first strike had landed, Kanae wouldn't have had to almost die trying to defend her. Her fists clenched the sheets. Who was this man that seemed to share in her own loathing?

'You both did your best.' Her breath hitched as he smiled warmly at her, stroking her hair, matted as it was in dirt and grime.

Yet, she remembered how... gentle his gaze had been; how soft his touch was - the touch that gently urged her to lay back down. Shinobu had done so, without hesitation. Why?

"The demon recognized him." Kanae's sudden statement wrenched Shinobu from her thoughts. She blinked in confusion. Kanae continued. "When the demon saw his face, it began to behave in a manner I've never seen nor heard a demon behaving."

"... I remember. It screamed and tried to retreat. That was when Uzumaki-san killed it." Shinobu recalled.

"'I found him, Master'." Kanae repeated the words the demon had all but manically screamed into the sky. Thinking back on it sent a shiver up her spine. It also raised that many more questions.

"What does it mean?" Shinobu asked, turning her head and seeking any answer she could from Kanae. The older woman only shook her head.

"I don't know, Shinobu-tan. What I do know is this is an anomaly unlike anything I've ever heard, one that needs reporting."

"Did you ever receive word back from your crow?" Shinobu asked.

"No. I was hoping to receive an update this morning." Kanae looked out the window, lips turning into a frown. "I hope he's alright."

"Perhaps he got his head stuck in the feeder again," Shinobu joked, trying to dispel the tense atmosphere. To her credit, Kanae giggled, covering her mouth with a petite hand.

"How characteristic." With the tension dispelled, both of the girls sighed, but were content with the silence for a while. Shinobu had even allowed her eyes to close again for a few moments. She opened her eyes again and asked,

"I assume this is the hospital?"

"If asked, I would say we're but a humble clinic, demon slayer-sama." The sisters' conversation was interrupted as someone spoke from the doorway. Both turned their gaze at the arrival and Kanae smiled.

"Isao-san, good morning," she greeted politely. The aged man, Isao as it was revealed, gave a hearty smile. He appeared to be in his late fifties, as evidenced by the grey in his beard and the growing wrinkles adorning his face. His posture had a noticeable hunch, with both of his hands clasped behind his back. He wore a simple, brown, robe and sandals.

"Good morning. How are we today?" He asked, stepping further into the room. Kanae stood up as to politely address her elder but returned to her seat when the man gave a jovial wave of his hand. "Sit. Rest. Kami knows you two need it."

"We are well, Isao-san. Shinobu-tan just returned to us," Kanae answered for the two of them.

"Nee-sama." Shinobu groaned, her face flushing ever so slightly as her sister gave no issue referring to her in such a childish way in front of a stranger. She sat up slowly this time, Kanae guiding her to sit tenderly. Isao only chuckled.

"I'm glad to hear it. Do you mind?" He gestured towards her right arm, which Shinobu presented. Isao gave it a quick once over and appeared satisfied. "Well, I'll be..." He laughed. Both of the women appeared confused at the reaction and Isao only shook his head. "Forgive me; thinking out loud. It gladdens me immensely to see you both returned to health."

Shinobu looked down at the arm Isao had just inspected. Her brow furrowed and suspicion flashed across her features. Hadn't this arm...? The events of the night prior replayed in her head as if she were there witnessing it all over again in person. She was downed and she distinctly remembered seeing signs of a compound fracture on her arm. Maybe her uniform was ruffled in a way that made it appear so? That didn't explain the pain she felt.

Then, more clearly, Shinobu remembered watching Kanae getting thrown against a wall and having her arm break backwards. With a soft gasp, she tore her gaze from her arm to instead look at Kanae's. The older demon slayer sat comfortably, both hands still clasped over each other atop her sword sheath. Once you mastered breathing, you could slow your heart rate, reduce hemorrhaging, clot open wounds, and expedite the recovery process of the body. A bone sticking out of your body, or having your arm wrenched impossibly backwards, however, was something that still required weeks of treatment. Not to mention the physical therapy afterwards to ensure your bones had actually healed properly. The look Kanae gave her when their eyes met again signaled she had similar thoughts. It was Kanae who voiced their line of thought.

"Isao-san, is it prudent to assume you are responsible for our swift recovery?" She asked simply.

"Ah..." Isao grumbled, stroking his beard as if he was weighing something in his mind. Kanae's tone was light and the smile on her face was normally meant to disarm those she spoke to; however, her gaze suggested otherwise. She expected an answer that contained the truth and only the truth. Isao chuckled, albeit slightly nervous. "I suppose it can't be helped. If anyone but demon slayer-sama were to ask, I'd deflect." He shrugged his shoulders, resigning himself to explain. "I didn't heal your injuries. Or, more specifically, I didn't fix your arms. That was done for me. I only had to see to some minor lacerations."

While not necessarily obvious, Kanae still made the following correct assumption. "Then it was Uzumaki-san."

"Aye, Uzumaki-kun." Isao confirmed with both a nod and sigh. "You succumbed to your exhaustion very shortly after arriving, demon slayer-sama." He looked at Kanae as he spoke. "So, I doubt you were aware. Uzumaki-kun made sure your arms were in fighting shape again before he left you in my care. Again, I only had to stitch a couple of nasty cuts and ensure they were clean."

"How?" Kanae asked simply, keeping her gaze levelled on the older man.

"Isn't that the question." Isao mumbled under his breath. "I don't have an answer for you, demon slayer-sama. I sincerely doubt I would understand were it explained to me. I've seen it done before and I've just come to appreciate his talent. This wouldn't be the first time Uzumaki-kun has woken me in the middle of the night with someone over his shoulder. Or, in your case, demon slayer-sama," Isao looked at Shinobu, "in his arms."

Shinobu's face flushed a deep scarlet. Her? A hinoto of the Demon Slayer Corps carried bridal by some man as if she were a precious butterfly? How utterly embarrassing. Kanae's soft giggle at her side did absolutely nothing to abate the humiliation either. Despite her profession, she was still a teenage girl and wanted nothing more than to bury her face in her pillow until the topic changed.

"So, I take it Uzumaki-san lives here?" Kanae spared her sister, which Shinobu was grateful for. Isao stroked his beard again in thought.

"He has... a residence here." He seemed to be choosing his words vaguely. Although, Kanae's expression prompted further explanation. With a sigh, Isao continued. "He comes and goes. I don't know how the man earns his living, but I know I've gone weeks at a time without seeing him. Perhaps he's a fisherman and stays out at sea during the fishing seasons?" Well, now, wasn't that equal parts vague and intriguing? Kanae hummed, turning to look back at Shinobu. The two sisters seemed to be having a silent conversation with naught but their gaze. Isao coughed into his hand again. "I will fetch his address?"

"Ara, that would be lovely, Isao-san."

Shinobu secured the buttons of her uniform and straightened out the creases as best she could. Expertly doing her hair up with its ornament, she was satisfied with her appearance and left the room, weapon secured at her hip. She went downstairs and joined her sister as she stood at the front desk, Isao behind the counter.

"Here it is." Isao slid a piece of paper over the counter. While messy, the hastily drawn map could still be made out, guiding a path from their current location to elsewhere in the village. "I understand your inclination to investigate, however please allow me to say: Uzumaki-kun is a kind young man with charisma beyond his years. Please treat him fairly."

"You misunderstand, Isao-san." Kanae dismissed the older man's plea with a polite wave. "I, for one, only wish to thank our rescuer." It wasn't entirely a lie. While getting a full understanding of the situation was ideal, Kanae also had the inclination to respect the privacy of someone - especially if they were neither demon nor demon slayer. Uzumaki-san opted to not be present when they awoke, nor did he leave any indication behind of wanting to be sought out or thanked for his actions. In fact, judging by Isao's words, it sounded as if he wanted the opposite. Regardless, it'd be irresponsible to leave the matter as it was.

"I see." Isao regarded Kanae and Shinobu passively, it not being obvious if he did or did not believe them. Kanae changed the subject.

"What is the fee for your clinic's hospitality?"

"Think nothing of it. I am merely repaying demon slayer-sama's bravery. Thank you both for your service." Isao affirmed, letting a tired smile appear.

"Ara, thank you for your kind words, Isao-san. In that case, we will do our best to not require your generosity in the future." Kanae replied with a giggle. Paper in hand, she turned and Shinobu followed readily behind. Isao watched them leave and when he knew they were both out of earshot he let out another tired sigh, clasping his hands behind his back firmly again.

"I hope I have not complicated your life too much, Uzumaki-kun, but I'd do well to spare me the ire of two young ladies such as those." He apologized aloud, grimacing. Turning on his heels, Isao proceeded about the rest of his day.

Knock, knock, knock.

A delicate, curled, fist wrapped its knuckles on the door of a small cottage. While a two-story cottage, it was small in overall size. There was little chance of this abode containing anything more than the basic essentials for living. Perhaps less.

Knock, knock.

Shinobu knocked on the door again, albeit slightly more forceful. Another few seconds passed without a stir, only the rain audible. The two perceptive warriors would no doubt be able to hear any indication of someone being home. Therefore, Shinobu declared, "not home," looking back over her shoulder.

"Or perhaps he doesn't want to be disturbed?" Kanae hummed, her eyes twinkling in doing so.

"Or that." Shinobu grumbled, not entirely sure what to make of her sister's demeanor. She didn't have time to question her behavior, as Kanae's attention was grabbed by a woman who had stepped out of her house to the left.

"Excuse me~!" Kanae called out, briefly startling the woman at being addressed so out of the blue. The woman's gaze flickered to the sword sheathed at Kanae's side and she fidgeted.

"Ah, yes?" She replied. Shinobu stepped back from the cottage and stood alongside her sister.

"Would you happen to know where I could find Uzumaki-san at this time of day?" Kanae asked bluntly, practically beaming at the woman.

"Uzumaki-san?" The woman blinked. "Our neighbor? The strange blonde fellow with the straw hat on at all times of the day?" She listed off casually.

"Yes~." Kanae confirmed with a nod. The woman adopted a thinking pose, glancing up in thought.

"Um... I believe my husband said he's usually around the market this time of day. People watches, then buys up a couple of stall's leftover wares before they close." Kanae arched a delicate brow. Shinobu, too. That was an oddly specific, and shockingly helpful, answer. The woman seemed to notice their reaction and had the decency to appear sheepish. "Apologies, my husband is law enforcement so he notices weird behavior like that and vents to me about it. Uzumaki-san must have just got back in town, else I'm sure I'd have been griped to about the 'weird, skulking, straw hat'."

Kanae giggled, glancing back to Shinobu. "That sounds like our man." The woman relaxed at Kanae's cheery disposition and seemed all the more comfortable to continue speaking.

"Yes. Sometimes Uzumaki-san doesn't get back until late at night, though. I think he's been seen coming from the forest occasionally, but that's about it." Again, she appeared thoughtful. She looked back at the two and hesitantly gestured to their weapons. "Ano... Uzumaki-san isn't in any trouble, is he?"

"No, ma'am. We just have some questions for him." Shinobu answered simply, doing her best to abate the woman's concerns in a professional manner.

"I see... well, like I said, you could probably catch him at the market." She repeated her answer from earlier, but her guarded stance from the start of their conversation had returned.

"Thank you very much, ma'am. Have a good day~." Kanae dipped her head respectfully to the woman and about faced, striding out of the yard with Shinobu quickly in tow. When they had gone up the street and rounded the corner, Kanae leveled a mirthful stare at Shinobu.

"What?" Shinobu immediately saw the way Kanae was looking at her and raised an eyebrow.

"Someone needs to get better at talking to people." She giggled. A tick mark appeared on Shinobu's temple.

"Huh?!"

No less than a minute after stepping into the bustling market square did they lay their eyes on their mark. His choice of attire had not changed, still sporting the same black and orange robes with his straw hat sitting on his head. Kanae and Shinobu watched, perched in an inconspicuous corner of the market.

"Nee-sama, how do we proceed?" Shinobu asked her sister, not taking her eyes off the man for a second.

"We have time while we wait for orders. I would like to observe." Kanae replied, also not taking her gaze away from the man. It was during the day and here he was, so that tiny voice in the back of their minds suggesting he was actually a demon had evaporated quickly. That would have made less sense than him just being a nobody that just so happened to be capable of fighting a demon.

Kanae took in his stance, eyes going up and down and noting every single detail she could. From his posture, any ticks he performed with his hands, length of stride, nothing was too insignificant a detail in her mind. She got the very distinct feeling that every little action this man performed was for a purpose. And that straw hat. It couldn't have been practical. The front was dipped down so low that surely he'd be unable to see naught but a few feet in front of him. And the bells; weren't those just an odd accessory of choice?

Several minutes passed and as he moved through the market, the girls moved at pace with him keeping their distance. At first, nothing stood out to the two. In fact, it seemed as if he was behaving exactly as his neighbor had described. He was perusing stalls thoughtfully, yet never made a purchase. He would approach one, spend a couple minutes hunched over, the slightest movement of his hat indicating he was looking around, then stand up and go to the next one over.

This behavior repeated for two more stalls, before his pattern changed. Standing in front of a fish stall, he gestured casually to the wares laid out and the stall owner jumped to the order. A couple seconds later, he held a piece of rope in his left hand, wrapped through three sea bream's mouths. He didn't stop there. He actually skipped the next couple of stalls and turned left, stopping at a small stand dedicated to selling bread. Another casual point of his finger and now he had a loaf of bread wrapped up in his hands. Last but not least, his purchases ended at a small collection of greens poking out of a small basket.

'We're aggressively watching a grown man buy dinner.' Shinobu deadpanned to herself, as if the absurdity of the situation had finally caught up to her. "Nee-sama, I don't think this is getting us anywhere. We can approach him and ask our questions. I doubt he will cause a disturbance-"

Kanae held a hand out to silence Shinobu, who obeyed immediately. She glanced at her sister and noted the serious expression on her face. It seemed so out of place, yet she had been seeing it more and more these past couple of days. Shinobu looked forward again and her eyes widened.

Across the market, easily thirty meters, Naruto had turned and was looking directly at them, his right index finger pressed up to his straw hat just enough for them to make out the bemused glint in his eyes. Both Kanae and Shinobu refrained from gulping, their throats clenching at being discovered so impossibly. Sure, stealth was not exactly their forte trained as they were, but they were still more than capable of remaining out of sight and out of mind. Being at least moderately learned on that ability was almost a requirement to live long in the Demon Slayer Corps.

The next few seconds were tense as the two parties stared at each other. Naruto grasped the tip of his hat between his thumb and index finger and pulled it back down again, right before giving them a little wave of his fingers. In that next moment, as a commoner strolled past - his appearance being just large enough to block their view of Naruto as he walked between them - the blonde disappeared completely from their line of sight.

Shinobu's eyes widened and she grit her teeth. He was mocking them. An earlier, unpleasant, memory resurfaced. "All you gotta do is follow the road." He had told them, right before they wasted an hour of what daylight they had left trying to find room and board. Several tick marks appeared on the back of the young girl's head.

"Shinobu." Kanae asserted. Despite herself, Shinobu noted that her sister seemed equally agitated at how easily they had been duped.

"Hai!" With that, the two girls split up.

(With Shinobu)

Despite how easily he had lost their line of sight the first time, picking the man out of the crowd again proved simple enough. However, Shinobu guessed he knew she had caught his trail again if his pace was anything to go by. With practiced ease did he slip through the bustling crowd. His actions made it seem fluid, as if it was perfectly natural to be able to manipulate passage through such a densely populated street.

At least, in theory. "Excuse me, I'm sorry. Sorry, sorry, please excuse me." Shinobu repeatedly apologized and excused herself as she was constantly shoulder checked. Her teeth grit with each apology she mustered out. For lack of a better word, she was being thoroughly manhandled by nothing more than normal midday traffic. "Sorry!" She exclaimed, trying to forcefully squeeze herself through a couple of people standing closely to each other. When she broke through, she frantically looked around and tried to reestablish her line of sight. She looked forward, right, then-

Wham!

"Ow!" Shinobu whined as her face was greeted with a swinging basket of fish, a commoner slinging two said baskets over his shoulders connected together by a bamboo pole.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" The man - she couldn't get a good look at him - profusely apologized as he turned around sharply to face her. For her part, Shinobu tried to take it in stride. It had been an accident after all and she had been all over the place in her haste to follow Naruto.

"It's alright-pftuh!" A very un-lady like sound followed next. When the man turned abruptly to apologize, the fish basket on his other side had swung around and met her face once more.

"Kami, please forgive-!" The man stopped mid-sentence. 'Bloodlust!'

A cold glare flattened the man on the spot. Shinobu held a hand to her face to nurse the sting, but her eyes were absolutely murderous. The man could do little more than scream, before turning tail and running. Shinobu turned back around and scanned the crowd. Surely, her target was long gone by now. She had blown the pursuit-There! She caught sight of a straw-hat darting into an alley and once again, Shinobu was off.

'When I get my hands on him-!' Her mind trailed off as she furiously grit her teeth.

(With Kanae)

Kanae estimated it had been thirty minutes now. Her quarry had suddenly entered a small shack at the end of the road, away from the bustling center of the village. She had done a quick scan of the incredibly small building and noted he had gone through the only means of ingress or egress. Therefore, all she had to do now was wait for him to come out. Kanae dared not go inside. Despite his behavior from the previous night, something about his ability to easily pick her and Shinobu out had set off alarm bells in her head. She waited across the road, standing in the shadow of an alleyway.

Finding Naruto again had proved easy enough, but the behavior he exhibited confused her. Surely, he knew he was being trailed? He had spotted them after all. Yet, his actions didn't reflect that. He had walked calmly, perhaps even aloof if the sag of his shoulders were anything to go on. He favored the edge of the street, far away from the bustling center, and therefore was easy to track. Kanae had trailed from the opposite side of the street. When he rounded a corner and almost bolted into the shack, Kanae went on full alert.

So, there she skulked, the rain pouring and trailing down her face, her hair matted to her face annoyingly. Kanae dared not take her attention off the shack to adjust her position, however. She learned her lesson when she removed her gaze from him the first time. It wouldn't happen again.

Minutes passed. Another half hour. It was hard to tell the time of day, as everything was the same, monotone, grey from the overcast. The longer she waited, the more tense she became. He was in there; she knew for a fact. He was waiting her out. As soon as she displayed a hint of weakness and diverted her attention, she'd lose her chance and the advantage would go to him. Even blinking seemed dangerous right now. She hadn't even realized her knuckles had grown white gripping the hilt of her blade.

"Afternoon!" His straw hat jingling, Naruto waved at Kanae as he walked past her stake out spot.

"Good afternoon." Despite her concentration, Kanae managed to respond in kind, giving it hardly another thought. There was a silent war being waged after all, and she would not break first.

Blink. Blink.

"Urk!" Kanae sprinted, her legs groaning in protest at moving so furiously after standing there, immobile, for nearly an hour. Naruto rounded a corner and not even a second later, she did too. It was a large, empty, road yet he was nowhere in sight. A few seconds passed. A minute. A dangerous smile formed on her beautiful face, her eyes closing, a vein visibly throbbing on her temple. "I'm becoming rather cross with you, Uzumaki-san."

(Later - In front of Naruto's cottage)

From opposite sides of the street, Kanae and Shinobu walked forward. Rain streaked down their faces and they were both absolutely drenched, soaked to the bone. Thanks to their practice of breathing techniques, staying warm in the rain was child's play - even with the winter months approaching. That didn't make their uniform any less annoying to move in while soaked, nor did it do their hair any favors.

They stopped in front of each other. They regarded each other neutrally for a few seconds. Shinobu looked right, Kanae looked left. They were right in front of the cottage they had started their search at hours prior. Both sisters looked back at each other.

Shinobu looked like she had gone through a stampede. Her top was partially untucked and she had dirt patches all over her uniform. Her pupil-less eyes gave way to no emotion, but the several veins throbbing all over her face offered little help in trying to mask her true feelings.

In contrast, Kanae was clean, just completely soaked. She bore a smile on her face, but upon closer inspection you could see it was strained. Sure enough, Kanae was every bit as frustrated as Shinobu and her normally beautiful face was twitching in barely-contained ire. Both of them spoke at once.

"You look awful."

'It would appear Isao-san has thrown me to the wolves.' Naruto mused, yet not frustrated or annoyed in the least. His lips turned up into a small smile. 'He always did respect Demon Slayers. And those two have proven to be incredibly persistent. I don't blame him; wash your hands good and clean, Isao-san.' He chuckled. The past few hours of his time were spent... unproductively. That was an efficient word to describe it. Yet Naruto could not lie and say he hadn't enjoyed it.

Naruto sharpened the small knife in his hand against the whetstone in the other. A quick inspection satisfied him and he grasped the fish in front of him. Grabbing the first one, he began the delicate process of removing the scales, taking care to not cause any unsightly cuts or bruising the flesh. As they had been put on sale for consumption, the sea bream had already been bled, presumably by the fisherman that caught them. His thoughts drifted again.

Those two - he hadn't caught their names - were on him like a blood hound from the moment they first saw him in the market. Picking up their emotions, even in the crowd, was easy enough. Not only did their power make them stand out, their suspicion and disbelief swirled chaotically about their auras and made homing in on them child's play for someone who was even moderately in tune with the emotions of others.

The older one was normally a very composed young woman, Naruto had concluded by the end of the way. She was confident, held her head up high, and approached each situation presented to her calmly, if not a little hesitantly on occasion. From the moment he had first made a show of subverting them, they had split up to find him. Well, they both found him again. Or, more specifically, they found his clones.

Naruto scraped his knife along the table, gathering the excess fish bits up before dumping them into the waste bin by the table. Three filleted fish rested on the cutting board. He set the knife down and washed his hands again, before reaching to the side and grasping a pinch of seasoning between his index, middle, and thumb. He sprinkled the fish adequately, letting it rest for a few minutes before flipping them over and performing the same action to the other side. The fire was ready, having heated the cooking surface adequately and he gently placed the bodies in the center. The distinct sizzle of flesh cooking filled the silence.

He exhaled sharply through his nostrils. 'Perhaps I was a little immature today?' He had consistently led Kanae around in a tiring game of cat and mouse. Repeatedly he allowed her to come closer and closer to finally catching him. Each time he'd dance out of her grasp - one time literally as she had made to grab at him on the street - and he could pick up the all too familiar signs of a bubbling frustration as time went on.

The younger one, however? Naruto actually let a throaty chuckle escape as he recalled. That had been especially fun. Young, pure, and prideful. Yet, her pride was not directed inward. No, Naruto could tell this girl had the utmost amount of pride in her sister and it motivated her to push herself forward. Right into several sturdy objects. Looking back on it, his initial reaction was amusement, but he had recalled several distinct emotions from her as the day went on. Doubt, loathing, anxiety - all directed at herself. She held herself in such low esteem compared to her sister and Naruto was not foolish enough to believe the events of the night prior didn't compound them.

Naruto flipped the fish over and grasped a second, larger, knife. He put it to the loaf of bread and chopped it into several even pieces. Arranging the slices around each other in a bowl, he hooked it above a separate stove top, one that was hardly more than hot embers. The pieces should be nice and warm by the time the meal was ready to set. Satisfied, Naruto turned back to his cooking entrees with a smile.

'They certainly get younger every cycle, don't they?' Naruto's smile dropped and his gaze lidded slightly, reflecting a mental exhaustion one wouldn't expect to see on someone with such a youthful visage. Despite his mood swing, he was happy both of the young women were alive and able to continue walking alongside one another. It was probably the most overt action he had taken in... a while. Did he regret it? Certainly not. He'd do it again in a heartbeat. The events leading up to last night? Now, that was up for debate. 'Was I too hasty to get involved this time?' He questioned, bringing a hand up to roll through his sun-kissed hair.

Naruto had been following his usual route and knew he'd be in town within a day's time. He also knew he was being trailed. They were getting better and better as time went on; better at finding him. He doubted they understood what compelled their movement, but it was an instinct being honed through repetition. Thousands of repetitions. They had nothing but time after all. For the overwhelming majority of demon encounters, an about face accompanied by a flick of the wrist was enough to stop the trail cold for a time.

This time, however, his hunter had been a Twelve Kizuki. The first one in a long time that had managed to pick up his trail, albeit subconsciously. Naruto had decided, this time, he would try and have the situation resolved without his direct intervention.

Especially after last time.

One fabricated lie later and orders fell through the proper chain of command to dispatch a pair of demon slayers to the village, specifically from headquarters. Why from headquarters and not anyone who could be more readily available? They needed to arrive just before nightfall, else several different branching events could have played out. If they arrived too soon, they could discover that there was, in fact, no demon attack nor any indication of a coming one and risk leaving. Any later and someone could die.

It also couldn't be a Hashira, as a slayer of that caliber just happening to be there at the exactly right time would be a huge red flag. A pair of experienced slayers should have been enough, Naruto surmised. Ah, but there came that trickling feeling again.

Had he overestimated the demon slayers? Had he underestimated the demon? Should he have just dealt with it himself, despite the risks? Hindsight, hindsight, hindsight, what if, what if, what if. Naruto sighed, running a hand through his hair again. His attempt to remain on the sideline had probably been more overt than just meeting his problem head on. He didn't usually hesitate like that and the two young women outside his cottage almost lost their lives for it. What else would come of this, he wondered.

Naruto grasped three plates from a cupboard and plated them all equally; one fish, paired with some grilled greens on the side. The table was prepared, all three plates placed evenly spaced from each other. Shortly after, each plate had a set of chopsticks, napkin, and empty cup to pair with it. To complete the ensemble, the warm breadbasket was placed in the center alongside a freshly opened bottle of sake.

'Always one for theatrics, aren't I?' Naruto smiled again, then turned to face the front door.

"Ara, ara, it seems Shinobu-tan opted to instead dedicate herself to training today." Kanae giggled at her sister's disheveled appearance much to Shinobu's chagrin. Her pale face flared.

"I did no such thing, nee-sama." Shinobu started calmly, despite the ticks dotting her face. "I am simply not as learned on negotiating a crowd as I should have been." The giggling continued and Shinobu's face grew an even darker incandescent. "He led me on a chase all the way to the north of the village, near the inn. I watched him enter and tried to follow, but I couldn't get him back in my sight again after that."

Kanae raised a slender eyebrow. "Shinobu-tan, there is no shame in admitting you couldn't find him after we split. Uzumaki-san proved more than capable of evading my capture, despite repeated attempts."

Shinobu spluttered at being all but accused of lying to her sister. "Nee-sama!" She started, her posture straightening and her fists clenching indignantly. "I was back on him shortly after we split and tailed him for hours! I was expecting you to link back up with me any time but you never did!"

"Hmmm." Kanae hummed as her eyes trailed over Shinobu's person. She believed one hundred percent in what she was saying and her sister was certainly not one to smudge the truth, no matter what she stood to gain from it. "I was also in pursuit of Uzumaki-san; he led me on quite an interesting game throughout the west side of the village." She stated bluntly.

"But I-. How-?" Shinobu stuttered. Was her sister claiming that both of them were following Naruto, yet on completely different sides of the village?

The door to his cottage opened and there stood none other than the subject of their conversation. Kanae and Shinobu's head snapped to him as he stood in his doorway, Shinobu all but gaping having long lost since lost her composure. The three stared at each other, not moving a muscle, for several long moments, before,

"Hardly the weather to be having a casual conversation in, ne?" Naruto's shit-eating grin was not contained in the least. The thunder in the distance rumbled, as if to gently remind them it was pouring rain. "Why don't you come on in until the weather passes?" He stepped back from the doorway, leaving it wide open for them to accept his invitation.

Kanae and Shinobu looked back at each other, Kanae's neutral while Shinobu gaped still. Unsurprisingly, Kanae regained her composure first. She laughed at the absurdity of the situation; the events that had taken place over the last thirty six hours were the most strange thus far in her career. Shaking her head, she brought her hand up and tapped the underside of Shinobu's chin, closing her mouth for her with a wide smile. She said nothing else and simply walked towards the doorway.

Without the energy to dispute, as if in a trance, Shinobu followed. Her shoulders were slumped in utter defeat.

Inside was every bit as spartan as one would assume. Contained all on the bottom floor was his bed - made quite neatly - a quaint little kitchen, and a table set for three. Shinobu blinked. 'Had he really...?' Question after question poured into her brain and she could not, for the life of her, makes heads or tails of the man before her. He had finally discarded his straw hat, which she noted to be hung on the wall by the door.

"Mind the door, please?" His calm voice disrupted her thoughts.

"Yes." Shinobu acquiesced after a pause. She ensured the door was secured behind her and appreciated the warmth that washed over her now that the draft had been closed.

"No doubt, you both have a couple of questions for me?" Naruto sat down on the far side of the table, leaving the two closest chairs - and plates of food - available for Kanae and Shinobu to take. The invitation was obvious, despite there being no gesture on his part that he wanted them to sit and eat.

Idly, Shinobu remembered that she hadn't eaten since noon the day prior.

"Ara, Uzumaki-san, leading two young women on a chase in this weather? Then, trying to win them over with food and company?" Kanae smiled but Naruto could detect her annoyance, slight as it may be. He appeared sheepish, scratching the back of his neck again. Kanae noted she had seen him do so twice now at her jests.

"Sorry, perhaps I got a bit carried away; I must have been intimidated by the two demon slayers stalking me." He joked in return.

"We were not stalking-!" Shinobu blurted, her previous frustration returning. She stopped mid-exclamation as Naruto only arched a brow, that same infuriating grin on his face. Shinobu had the decency to flush at both her outburst and the realization that - despite the situation - yes, both her and Kanae had all but stalked down someone who seemed to want to clearly be left alone.

"Yet here we are, Uzumaki-san." Kanae pointed out. Accepting the obvious olive branch, she seated herself across from him. She was, however, unapologetic for the 'splosh' her uniform made in his chair as she sat down. They were both still soaked. "I have a distinct feeling that if you did not want this meeting to take place, you would have simply not allowed it to happen. Is that correct?"

Naruto waved her off. "Nah, you two seemed persistent enough." He pointed over to a cupboard, glancing between the two of them. "Clean rags down there if you care to dry yourselves."

"Thank you, Uzumaki-san. Shinobu?" Kanae looked back at her sister and Shinobu noticed the distinct lack of honorfic attached to her name. Kanae seemed to be of cheery disposition, but Shinobu knew better. She was on guard and that deceptive smile shined brightly.

"Hai, nee-sama." Shinobu went to fetch what was requested, following the direction of Naruto's gesture.

It had been a while since he had company and Naruto regarded them both calmly. He made a point to lean forward and rest his elbows on the table, clasping his fingers together loosely as he looked over his hands at the two women. His gaze softened. He had his fun, but there were two young slayers that were incredibly guarded before him. Suspicion. Concern. Anxiety. Those were among some of these emotions he felt radiating off of them, right through that smile the one in front of him gave off. "How are your injuries?"

Naruto knew they both knew he had healed them. The fact they were here at all meant Isao had told them what he could. That man held Demon Slayers in incredibly high esteem - which Naruto would not fault at all - after he and his own had been saved by one years ago. Who was Naruto to try and prevent him from honoring an obligation? That being said, he hoped his question would put them at ease; a way of saying 'I know you know and I am not trying to hide it'. It worked for the most part. The woman seated in front of him kept her composure well, he commended.

"Perfectly fine, as if they had never happened. I was told we have you to thank for that, Uzumaki-san." Kanae replied simply. Shinobu had returned with the rags and passed one to Kanae, seating herself beside her and looking at Naruto as passively as she could. It didn't betray the emotions that swirled around her.

"I'm glad." Naruto smiled genuinely for them and, just like last night, they felt themselves be put at ease. Idly, Naruto weighed the morality of using senjutsu to pacify those he spoke to. It wouldn't work on a bloodthirsty demon, nor even a human that truly meant malicious intent, which meant the two young things in front of him were just confused and wanted answers.

Kanae considered asking him how. THAT'S what mattered, after all. However, it was a prodding question that could serve to either put the man on guard or simply refuse to elaborate further. Instead, she opted for a more subtle approach and ask questions she already felt she knew the answer to. Confirmation didn't hurt, after all. "Are you a demon slayer? Or, rather, were you?"

"I am not, nor have I been, a demon slayer." Naruto answered truthfully. His hands shifted and they grabbed his chopsticks. Kanae was pleasantly surprised at the honesty. After wiping her face down, she grabbed her chopsticks. Shinobu glanced between the two, nervously shifting in her seat, before following suit.

Shinobu felt incredibly out of her element. She had been training most of her young adult life how to fight. She'd fought and killed demons many times before, be it alone or with her sister. Yet, seated here at the table between Kanae and Naruto, she had no idea what to do; how to present herself. Kanae appeared significantly more comfortable than her, but that went without saying. Kanae normally looked calm and composed, despite the situation. It was another facet of Kanae's strength that she so desperately wanted to emulate.

Tentatively, Shinobu used her chopsticks to slice through the tender fish meat. She grasped and paired the small bite with a green on the side and placed it in her mouth. "Mmm~." A low moan betrayed her appreciation for the meal, both in taste and the fact that she hadn't eaten in over a day. Another bite followed with less hesitation and she hummed again as she tasted. A few more seconds of this passed before she became acutely aware of the silence in the room. She looked up and saw both Kanae and Naruto were staring at her with a bemused twinkle in their eyes. Shinobu's ears burned and her face couldn't have turned redder if it were painted. "Ah, um..." She trailed off, having no defense.

Kanae's gentle laugh filled the silence and the tension dissipated. At that, Kanae followed her sister's example and ate her own meal politely. "Thank you for the meal." She thanked before helping herself. She, too, had not eaten in a day's time. Her body was very appreciative for the sustenance.

"No chef am I, but I hope it's enough." Naruto admitted, placing a head in his hand. He had already finished his meal and made himself comfortable. "Anything else?" He prompted Kanae to continue.

"You claim to not be tied to the Demon Slayer Corps, but your battle last night highly suggests otherwise." Wanting to avoid outright accusing him of lying, lest the mood change, Kanae reworded her statement into a different line of thought. "Perhaps you received training from a demon slayer?" It wouldn't be unheard of. Plenty of retired demon slayers, even active demon slayers, took in civilians who wanted to fight and had that drive to learn. They usually did well at Final Selection and were fast tracked to tsuguko, if memory served her right.

Naruto appeared to mull over his answer for a moment. "I did receive training when I was younger; back in my village, most kids were taught how to fight." It was vague, but also gave some insight into his past that wouldn't stand out too much in their minds. Naruto also made a point to not specify if he had been trained by a demon slayer or not. "We can agree that it's not an entirely bad thing, yeah?" He arched a brow.

"Yes, Uzumaki-san-"

"Naruto is fine." He dismissed her formality, but then gave them both a pointed look. Both girls looked sheepish.

"Ara, how impolite. Here we are enjoying your hospitality without yet having introduced ourselves. Kocho Kanae. This is my sister." Kanae gestured to Shinobu and allowed the girl to speak for herself.

"Kocho Shinobu."

"A pleasure, truly." Naruto acknowledged their introduction with a grin.

"As to your earlier words, Naruto-san, I agree; self-defense is an important lesson to teach our young ones. I consider it an obligation of ours." Kanae continued speaking where they left off, expressing her views bluntly. Naruto appreciated her words.

Self-defense, huh? It would take some mental gymnastics to convince him that shinobi trained for self-defense, as opposed to being tools for war and the village's prosperity. Not that he regretted it, mind you. It was just a fact that wasn't lost on Naruto anymore.

"However~," Kanae continued in a rather sing-song tone. "self-defense is all and well, Naruto-san, but rarely would that extend to the ability to battle demons. Let alone, the ability to kill them." Her eyes glinted as she accosted him. "It was a nichirin blade you used to end the confrontation, correct?"

Naruto, all the while, regarded her with that same grin. He liked this one. "Correct."

Kanae placed her chopsticks down beside her plate, taking a moment of digestion - both her food and his response. Shinobu had been following their conversation closely, her eyes darting back and forth between the two as it spoke. Her shoulders tensed when Kanae stopped eating and sat up completely. "And where, may I ask, did you come across such a weapon?"

It was a question full of branching possibilities. Perhaps he had salvaged one after witnessing the death of a demon slayer? That was the most optimistic answer. The least? He had killed a demon slayer and taken it. Kanae didn't doubt that it wouldn't be challenging at all for the man that sat so casually across from her. She wanted to say it would be out of character for him, but then again she hardly knew him. They only knew that which he was freely sharing with them and only after making a point to them that he was perfectly capable of choosing whether or not to play along with their interrogation.

Naruto's silence was deafening to the two as the tension picked up again. Internally, Naruto weighed several options in his head. To tell the truth or a lie. Or perhaps a half-truth. A half-truth was also a half-lie, or at least still dishonest in nature. He had decided he wanted these two to trust him. The last several days played over in his mind again and he reached the conclusion that if he was going to proceed forward on his current path, he needed to know someone in the Corps more intimately.

Naruto hid from demon slayers as readily as he hid from demons. At least, that was the case up until last night. Demon slayers died. All the time, as a matter of fact. While a somber fact, it was one Naruto had long since understood. That being said, Naruto was not, nor would he ever be, someone that turned a blind eye to those in need in front of him. He'd now need three hands to count the number of times he had directly intervened in a fight between the two factions.

He'd sent people to die before. It was an ugly reality that kept rearing its ugly head in his life. Always had it been a last resort and the names and faces of those men and women were seared in his near photographic memory. Unlike before, he was present for this one and he would be damned to let history repeat itself right before his eyes.

There was something about these two sitting in front of him, though; something he had not been able to put a finger on. It waned on his mind from the first moment he had placed himself in their path to now. And Naruto was never one to ignore a gut feeling.

"Naruto-san." Kanae's delicate voice broke him from his thoughts and he realized he must have gone silent for a couple moments too long. "I ask again: where did you come to possess a nichirin blade?"

Naruto smiled. He had decided how to proceed forward. "It belonged to someone I had come to respect greatly; someone long dead now." He answered truthfully, leaning back up in his chair. Naruto could gleam that the two of them were particularly receptive of his tone and posture. Therefore, he made a point to answer with as transparent a demeanor as he could. For their sake.

"Was your friend a demon slayer?" Shinobu asked, speaking up for the first time in a long while. Naruto turned to look at her and her gaze softened as she recognized the look on his face. The same look he had given her last night - a slight grin, with a tired look in his eyes. He hadn't specified if they were close to him or not, truth be told, but Naruto decided it wasn't information worth sharing. Not at the moment.

"Yes, she was."

Kanae's stare softened. She couldn't put a finger on it and she'd be hard pressed to explain the feeling, but she knew he was telling the truth. "I'm sorry for your loss." She expressed her sympathy.

"It was a while ago." He shrugged his shoulders.

"What was her name?" Shinobu asked, not entirely stopping to think on whether or not the question could be insensitive or not. Despite that, letting his solemn expression melt away to warmth once again, Naruto looked left at the young woman.

"Natsu. Mayumi Natsu."

There was another feeling Kanae couldn't quite put her finger on, either. He looked to be her age, perhaps a year or two older. That wouldn't put him hardly any older than twenty. And yet... when he would look away - either to address Shinobu or think - why did his stare seem so... ancient?

"I apologize, Naruto-san. It was not my intention to bring up potentially painful memories. I am merely seeking answers." Kanae explained professionally, filing away her observation for another time.

"Like I said, it was a while ago. Hardly a reason to let the mood be ruined."

And with that, there was only one more question Kanae had; probably the most glaring question that had been plaguing their thoughts since early this morning. "One more question, Naruto-san, if I may?"

Naruto raised a brow but did not offer any resistance.

"How is it that demon seemed to recognize you?"

Mukago gasped for air, her lungs burning, sprinting as fast her petite legs could take her. She clawed through the woodline, completely numb as branches and leaves gave her tiny lacerations to any bits of exposed skin she had. They would heal on their own fast enough and the fear that permeated through her entire being was a powerful anesthetic.

Earlier that morning, after she had regained her composure, she had set off in the direction she simply knew was correct. There had been hardly two full hours of darkness before it would become lethal to travel. Mukago had found a particularly thick bramble to situate herself in during the day. There had been no rest; no sleep. Mukago found she couldn't even close her eyes for longer than a couple seconds at a time. Muzan's blood was still acclimating, and she felt as if her veins were shredding as the foreign ichor flowed through them. Not to mention that feeling she had in the pit of her stomach. Just the feeling of sitting there, not moving; not getting closer to what it was her master sought was threatening to drive her mad.

Mukago had sat there in the trees for hours, trembling, quickly becoming drenched when the rain finally set in. It started around noon and gave no sign of letting up. It had felt like any second, she would snap and dart out of her safety to suppress that feeling. The rain was a blessing in disguise, as it let her set back out sooner - the sun losing its harshness much sooner due to the thick overcast.

So, here she was again running, like she had that morning. Each step she took was long, trying to clear as much ground as possible with every stride. The wet terrain only proved to be a detriment. Mukago planted her foot on a branch and immediately slipped. With her momentum still pushing her forward, Mukago slammed into a branch ahead of her and tumbled down to the forest floor, loudly crashing through multiple branches and landing in a broken mess.

Her eyes watered once more as she tried to push herself up, but the surging pain in her leg and arm signaled they were broken. That punishing feeling returned, as if aware she was no longer moving. The best she could do to abate that maddening presence was crawl forward with her unbroken arm, pushing herself forward with her good leg.

It took hardly half a minute, but both of her limbs repaired themselves and Mukago was able to stand and keep pushing forward. She opted to stay on the forest floor for the remainder of her journey.

Maybe this would be it. Maybe if she followed her directive then she would be rewarded. Given enough blood to be strong? Given enough blood to not be afraid? The wishful thinking was just that and Mukago knew it. The presence in the back of her mind made it completely clear to her; when she found what she was looking for, her usefulness would be used up. What would happen next?

Mukago knew what was to come after and her eyes watered. She couldn't refuse and run; she'd be found. She couldn't prove herself worth keeping. She knew her existence was wretched and sickened her master. Even now, her legs betrayed her as she kept running closer and closer to her doom. She was a coward and she cursed herself for it, utterly disgusted. Between two deaths, she didn't even have the stomach to try and choose the one that would, if nothing more, give her a taste of freedom.

Despite never having been here, Mukago knew that the village was over the hill. The terrain became familiar, but she couldn't quite grasp at the images in her mind. It was as if she were trying to remember the events of a dream right after waking. The more she tried to make sense of it, the less clear the image became.

She leapt up on to a tree branch, climbing forward higher and higher until she saw over the hill and gazed upon the village below. There were spots of torch light dotted all around and Mukago's eyes darted around, trying to find the best way to press forward. The instincts that had been put in her were quieting down, despite no longer moving forward. It meant she had, at least, arrived at her destination and the instincts forced upon her by her master had no longer clear and concise direction to give. It was up to her now to search. Search and, if successful... report. Mukago leaned forward, as if preparing to jump forward and begin, but then-

Did she just hear... a bell?

What followed next was the single most crushing, murderous intent Mukago had ever experienced.

Visions assaulted her mind; she suffered a thousand deaths, all unique and more painful than the last. She tried to crawl away pathetically, just a torso and an arm, while the maw of a giant kitsune opened wide behind her.

Ba-bump.

She couldn't move. Why couldn't she move? Why couldn't she breathe?

She didn't sweat. She didn't cry. Her body had ceased such autonomous behavior.

It felt like hours.

Her instincts screamed at her and her consciousness returned. Had she blacked out? How long has she been frozen? The sweat came, the tears flowed, but she still couldn't breathe. Slowly, ever so slowly, she turned her head.

Crouched alongside her was someone - she couldn't see his face behind the straw hat - and she knew instantly this was where that killing intent emanated from. "A-ah... hah... h-hah." Mukago tried weakly, her desperate gasps for air preventing anything coherent.

Naruto calmly reached out with his senses to the demon in front of him. An intriguing individual sat perched in front of him. It was obviously a demon, but the pure, carnal, fear - the sheer terror - that poured out of this wretch was unlike anything he had ever come across. Fear was a motivator as well as a safety net. It was a purely instinctual emotion and nothing save for brutal mental and physical conditioning could hope to temper that reaction when you encountered what it was you feared most.

This demon was beyond that. The fear that told them to flee, to do anything but stay exactly where they were, had crippled even that. Naruto surmised if he did nothing else except just sit here and feed his murderous intent to the demon, it would stay like that until the sun came up.

In a moment of weakness, perhaps, Naruto felt pity. He lessened his intent on the demon and the fear began to subside slowly. So, it was female? He honestly couldn't even tell; the emotion she gave off had practically drowned the space around her. "Lost?" He asked.

The one word rang out in her head, piercing the silence as if it were an explosion. Mukago's breath returned to her finally and she stumbled backwards. She turned to escape. Her feet and hands scratched at the branch, trying desperately to get a grip or foothold to jump from. She failed and tumbled down. Mukago didn't even register her broken bones and darted off as fast as she could. Seconds passed and she could feel her ribs mend themselves, followed by her hip.

Had she done it? Had she escaped? Mukago had tunnel vision, not focusing on anything other than the concept of forward. The forest around her blurred as she ran. Her vision suddenly shifted to the right, instead of forward. Had she done that? A single solitary second of clarity returned to her and she realized a hand was pressing into the side of her face. The attack followed through, a loud and resounding 'slap' echoing through the woods. She was powerless to prevent being flung into, and through, several large trees.

Naruto clicked his tongue, lowering his hand. He hadn't meant to put that much force behind his push. This demon was intriguing, to say the least. He had spent lifetimes being hunted by these monsters. Upon seeing his face some chased him and attacked in a blood frenzy. Others screamed to the sky that they had succeeded and abandoned him as prey altogether to frolic around like mad men, as if trying to be as overt as possible. That was the case the previous night.

This hadn't been something he'd experienced before. For the first time, a demon ran. Not as if in a craze to alert everyone within a kilometer to his presence, either. She had simply run. What could this mean? Did it mean anything? Was she just that much of a coward?

Then he realized she couldn't have actually seen his face. Naruto furrowed his brow as he stepped over tree trunks. Was it worth it? Should he even test it? It had been the most unusual demon behavior he'd seen in who knows how many years. He had zero inclination to believe anything remotely similar would happen again.

Mukago's vision came to. She had finally hit a tree that was sturdy enough to absorb her impact. In actuality, she had simply gone through enough trees to slow her inertia. That energy transferred, however, and Mukago was suddenly aware her arms and legs had been blown off on impact. New limbs burst out of her stumps after a few seconds and she shakily tried to get up.

Jingle.

Mukago looked forward and saw her death incarnate once more. However, this time, he gave off no killing intent. Not that he needed to anymore. The doom she experienced seconds prior would be etched into her for the rest of her life. Slowly, he brought a hand up to his straw hat. She sat there on one knee, silently observing his actions, her whole body tense. Grasping the hem between his fingers, he pulled the hat off his head and slowly it came to rest at his side.

Blue eyes stared into Mukago's red. Her mouth fell open and her eyes widened, immediately having a reaction to his face. "M-master." She breathed silently. Mukago felt something stir inside her. 'Stop! Be silent!' She couldn't! How could she? She felt utterly compelled to alert her master. Mukago was suddenly aware she knew exactly how to as well. Had the knowledge been implanted with his blood?

'Don't! I don't want to!' She screamed internally. 'I have to! Master wills it!' Visions of her death followed, no doubt influenced by Muzan's will flowing through her veins.

"You feared this human more than you feared me?" Mukago's body was split into dozens of different pieces.
A mass of flesh slammed her into the ground, leaving her nothing more than a smear.
A snake-like appendage swallowed her whole, breaking down her very existence.

Mukago knew her fate. She would be absorbed as a congealed fluid by her master for no reason other than to just be made aware of having seen this man's face. Her life meant so little to Muzan, he was all too willing to snuff her out just to satiate a mere curiosity. 'No... no, no, no! I can't!'

Naruto sighed and prepared to unseal his nichirin blade to quickly put this woman out of her misery. Just like all those before her and, most likely, all who would come after. He had done a foolish thing just now and he hoped it was only he to suffer any consequences. He hesitated when Mukago suddenly leveled a glare - fierce and rebellious - directly at him. It was a rather sharp turn in behavior, the blonde noted. But then, the impossible happened. Naruto's eyes widened as Mukago raised her fist.

Crunch!

Blood spilled out her mouth and down her chin as Mukago bit into her knuckles furiously. Her teeth strained against the bones in her own hand and she stared fiercely into Naruto's eyes, tears spilling down her face and mixing with the blood gushing from her hand. The voice in her head howled at her, thrashed about her being, demanding to be obeyed. Her face strained. Blood vessels around her eyes burst and red trickled into her vision, but she didn't stop. She couldn't.

She clamped down harder, completely mangling her hand. Bone pierced her tongue and the roof of her mouth. A couple of fingers were almost completely severed at this point. Her hand healed just enough to consistently provide the same state of pain for her. All the while, she didn't break eye contact with Naruto. Her gaze hadn't faltered; she hadn't blinked even once.

Mukago was trying desperately to prevent the second curse in her from triggering; the one that turned the minds of lesser demons such as this to mush in a mad attempt of alerting their master. Naruto stared back at the girl, his eyes still wide. She was suppressing the curse through sheer will. Her will to survive was clashing with Muzan's will inside her. And it was winning!

Her panting slowed and Mukago felt herself calming, but she dared not remove her hand. Instead, she continued glaring into Naruto's eyes. Testing the waters, Naruto stepped towards her slowly. Her breathing quickened with each step he took, but she held her glare all the while. She was panting again, drool trickling from the corners of her mouth, when Naruto stopped in front of her.

Naruto raised a hand up. Mukago slammed her eyes shut in preparation. "Rest." He commanded gently, his hand coming to rest on her exposed neck. Mukago opened her eyes again in confusion. Her breath slowed and she could feel herself being put at ease. How was it possible for someone so dangerous - for destruction incarnate - to regard one as wretched as her with such... warmth?

Mukago's eyes rolled back in her head. Darkness claimed her.

Chapter Text

"How is it that demon seemed to recognize you?"

Kanae studied Naruto for any movement to betray his thoughts; any involuntary tick that showed he was uncomfortable with the question. There were no such movements. Naruto only held that same, welcoming, grin on his face. It was just visible, as he still had his head propped up on his hands - his eyes keeping direct contact with hers. It irked Kanae only slightly. She'd been hoping to force a reaction from him, something to throw him off-kilter given how incredibly calm and forthcoming he had been for the majority of the evening.

"Was wondering when you'd get around to that," he chuckled, finally leaning back in his chair. Looking up at the ceiling, Naruto crossed his arms. "How to put this into wordsss..." he trailed his 's' in thought, but gave no sign of any frantic eye movement that would otherwise suggest he was preparing a deflection. After but a moment, he looked back down at them and uncrossed his arms. "Do you two know what a Marechi is?"

Both Kanae and Shinobu's eyebrow raise showed their confusion. "Marechi, Naruto-san? I'm afraid I'm unfamiliar with the term." Kanae was the one to speak for the both of them. If Shinobu had an objection, she certainly didn't show it and only remained a curious onlooker.

"No? Hmm," Naruto hummed aloud. He adopted a deliberating countenance, but the expression didn't linger. "There is an exceptionally rare blood type that demons find intoxicating. Just the smell of it will trigger their hunger tenfold, to the point where they will kill each other for a chance to taste."

"Fight each other for a chance to devour the human?" Shinobu asked for a quick clarification.

"That, but also rip into each other for a chance to take the blood for themselves after it's already been devoured." Naruto shifted his gaze to Shinobu as he addressed her query. "Marechi is what demons themselves have used to describe a human with this blood type."

Kanae's visage gave no outward sign of disbelief, but internally was another matter. 'A blood type so rare demons will try and open each other up for a chance to taste? It certainly is in the realm of possibility... and it's not as if there's a clear doctrine or curriculum the Corps provides to study that would include such a term.'

"It doesn't surprise me too much that you haven't heard of it," Naruto continued his explanation, distracting Kanae of her thoughts. "Knowing this does little to help you combat demons. You could argue that if there was a situation with a Marechi involved and you were aware of it, you'd be able to more accurately predict the demon's movements. That being said, there's nothing you can really do to discern a Marechi unless: one,"—He made a show of raising his hand and splayed one finger—"they have an open wound. Two,"—a second finger followed—"a demon happens to be around to identify the scent of the blood. Three." Finally, three fingers ended his list. "You happen to be in proximity of the first two."

'If a Marechi is as rare as Naruto-san makes it out to be, then that would be an unlikely situation to find yourself in,' Shinobu mused, furrowing her brow once more. 'The first two conditions, not so much, but with demon behavior as we know it to be, the third condition would be happenstance, at best, to meet.' After a pause, Shinobu made an additional consideration. 'If it's true.'

"I assume the point you are trying to deliver is that you are a Marechi, Naruto-san?" Kanae pressed for an answer to her original question.

"Nope," was his cheery response, a wide grin accompanying the denial. Shinobu felt her brow twitch.

"Then what was the point-?" she started, but a quick 'halt' from Naruto served to silence her.

"As a point of reference," Naruto continued. "I'm not a Marechi. Were it so easy..." he glanced off to the side, his grin dipping into a light frown. It didn't go unnoticed. Naruto looked back and his usual demeanor returned. "For this or that reason, demons find me irresistible. Originally, I assumed it was my blood. However, in addition to reacting to my blood, just seeing my face serves to trigger them." He tilted his head, eyes trailing to the door.

Kanae and Shinobu followed his gaze and their eyes locked on to the straw hat hanging to the side of the doorway. Both made the correct assumption internally, but Shinobu voiced their theory first. "Which is why you keep your face concealed. Why not just wear a mask?"

Naruto laughed at hearing her suggestion and Shinobu felt heat rise to her face, half in anger, half embarrassment. Feeling ridiculed, she opened her mouth to vent such frustrations, but was stopped just before doing so. "I considered it, but do you know how odd that'd look? I'd stick out more than I'd conceal myself."

Any protests Shinobu might have had lined up receded back into her mind. She knew he had a point. Kanae, however, had a different line of thought.

"Then why would you wear it during the day?" Kanae asked simply, her gaze returning to the object of their faux interrogation; though it was certainly becoming less and less of an imitation.

Naruto raised a brow at her inquisition. Color him impressed, this one was full of cross-observations. Despite himself - despite the situation - Naruto let a smirk surface on his face and Kanae knew she had asked the right question. "To keep the sun out of my eyes." His rebuttal was full of levity, yet also issued a challenge. 'Question me on it', it provoked. Shinobu's eyes darted back and forth between Naruto and Kanae, the tension in the air becoming more and more palpable.

Kanae rose to the challenge, yet in her own roundabout way. "I suppose you have me there, Naruto-san," she began with a smile, though her partially lidded eyes signaled her supposition. "After all, it would be odd to assume you had just as much reason to hide during the day as you did the night."

In that moment, Naruto decided. He'd keep tabs on these two going forward. What was the swelling in his chest? Such a foreign, long forgotten, feeling. Was it satisfaction? Pride, he daresay? Naruto couldn't pinpoint the exact time he last had an extended exchange of words with a demon slayer, but that alone served to prove the interaction had sparked no such reaction out of him.

The older sister that saw underneath the underneath as naturally as she spoke with composure and grace; the ever-curious little sister that sought strength and knowledge, yet not for her own, selfish, benefit. Naruto would make no such assumptions about the rest of the current generation of demon slayers, but these two? Sitting before him? They had a sparked an interest anew in the Demon Slayer Corps. "Yes, that would be odd, wouldn't it? What else is there to hide from, after all?"

Kanae and Naruto stared directly at each other, their smile and smirk respectively not faltering.  A few beats passed and Shinobu only darted her eyes between the two more feverishly, a lone drop of sweat threatening to trickle down her forehead.  Kanae knew they were at an impasse. She had been beaten, she realized. Naruto, while surprised by her subtle attempt to reveal his machinations, gave her no room to continue their seemingly innocent discussion. He knew what she was attempting to do and forced her hand in a blatant attempt to provoke a more aggressive line of questioning. The only remaining path forward would be to adopt a hostile stance in their discussion. But she couldn't well do that, could she? Kanae was all too aware what any attempt of forcing the issue would spell. Therefore, she did the only logical thing remaining.

Kanae retreated.

"Thank you for your time, Naruto-san." Kanae's delightfully cheery disposition came back full force. She stood up and Shinobu did as well, who felt thrown for a loop at just how sharp that had turned. "Isao-san, and your neighbor, eluded to us that you have a penchant for travelling." Not so much 'travelling', looking back on it. Moreso just falling off the face of the Earth for indiscriminate lengths of time. Still, Kanae worded her question purposefully. "Will you be departing in the near future?"

Naruto brought a hand to his chin, thinking it over. "Probably another day at most," he answered tersely. "Why do you ask?"

"Merely out of curiosity, Naruto-san." Both demon slayers returned their weapons to their sides and Naruto had the courtesy to stand and show them out. Both sisters stepped outside—ah, it had stopped raining finally—and turned.

Kanae dipped her body forward in a respectful bow, an action that surprised both Shinobu and Naruto. "Thank you very much for saving both my sister and myself, Naruto-san. I am in your debt."

Shinobu, while surprised at the flourish, followed her sister's direction and bowed as well. "I also express my gratitude, Naruto-san."

Naruto blinked, finding it a sharp juxtaposition to the tense interrogation seconds ago. Still, he could sense the genuine emotion in both of their words and that prompted him to sheepishly scratch the back of his neck. He was still not used to praise, it would seem.  "None of that, now," he chuckled, trying to dismiss their formality. "Just keep doing what you do, Kanae-san; Shinobu-san."

One last smile, nod, and wave between the three ended their meeting for the night.

"I'm surprised you didn't ask if he would be interested in joining the Demon Slayer Corps, nee-sama." Shinobu broke the brief silence that had settled between them on the journey back to their lodging. The exchange was still fresh in both their minds and they'd each taken a couple of minutes to ponder before the inevitable discussion. Shinobu had taken the initiative this time.

"Oh? And why's that?" Kanae replied, tilting her head enough to look directly at Shinobu.

"Well..." Shinobu trailed off, organizing her train of thought. "First and third impressions aside," she grumbled, still quite sour with Naruto's first prank and the chase from earlier that day. "I think his combat prowess would be a huge benefit to the Corps. Not to mention, if he did join, he might be convinced to bring others with him. He did say he grew up in a village with those who trained with him from childhood."

Kanae didn't seem entirely convinced of the possibility and voiced such. "Shinobu-tan, I have no inclination to believe Naruto-san has an interest in joining the Demon Slayer Corps." Shinobu looked surprised. "If anything, I've surmised he has made it a point to avoid demon slayers."

Shinobu frowned, taken aback by her sister's declaration. "But why?"

'Why, indeed.' Kanae stared back up at the sky, the clouds parting to give way to feint moonlight. "For that, I have no answer. Theories, if little more." She could feel Shinobu's curious stare and continued. "Perhaps he has committed crimes against the Demon Slayer Corps? Unlikely, given his willingness to put himself in danger for our sake." A pause, then an addendum. "Although, I suppose it's safe to say there was little danger for him. Regardless, I'm sure we would have already been made aware of such an individual if they posed any threat to the Corps. Especially the anomaly of a human threat."

Shinobu thought back to how quickly Naruto had both seen through that demon's abilities and subsequently neutralized it. She had to agree with Kanae's assessment on that, but didn't do so vocally.

Kanae continued. "I also found it strange Naruto-san had no questions of us. Perhaps he is apathetic to the Corps as a whole? Again, not likely, as he seems to be very learned on the subject of demons; their mannerisms and cravings, specifically. I find it hard to believe that was knowledge he merely obtained through secondhand encounters."

"If it's true," Shinobu added in.

"Quite. However, I sensed no deception. Naruto-san may just be incredibly proficient at masking his deceit, but he made it very clear through his actions that—were he so inclined—he could have avoided interacting with us altogether. So, why go through the trouble of inviting us in, allowing us to seize the advantage, and press him for information if he was simply going to lie?" It was a rhetorical question, mostly for allowing a pause for Shinobu to soak in all Kanae had to say.

"Um..." Shinobu opted to answer the rhetorical question, regardless. "Perhaps he just wanted to poke fun at us?"

Kanae giggled at Shinobu's attempt to keep track with everything laid out before them. Her little sister flushed, realizing it was a rather silly hypothesis. "That may well be the case, Shinobu-tan, though I doubt such luck is on our side. While certainly irksome, it would be an answer to proceed forward with." Kanae allowed a rare sigh to escape through her petite lips. "No, I fear this man is anything but simple. I'm debating on reporting this all the way to the top."

Shinobu's eyes widened. "Directly to Ubuyashiki-sama?" Kanae nodded a sharp affirmative.

"Yes. I'm hesitant to go over the heads of the Hashira, but this whole situation has me on guard." Her expression tightened, conveying further her caution.

"Then I will accompany you and we can both shoulder the blame, nee-sama." For her part in all this, Shinobu resolved herself to stand by her sister. With her own resolve steeled, she gave Kanae a serious nod. Kanae looked at Shinobu silently for a few seconds, before her usual playful mirth returned.

"My~! What a doting little sister I have~!"

"Nee-sama..." Shinobu huffed, but was relieved to feel the tension all but evaporate. It didn't last long, and a guarded air swirled around the two. A few moments of silence passed, and it allowed Shinobu time to mull over all that her sister had said. A man capable of killing demons, yet with no connection to the Demon Slayer Corps? A man seemingly well-versed on demons, yet expressed little interest in learning anything about the organization dedicated to combating them? A man who actively pursued isolation from demons and demon slayers alike... yet so quick to put his life on the line to protect them. So many contradictions tumbled around in her mind at once and Shinobu felt the beginnings of a headache form.

"My crow still hasn't reported," Kanae noted with a small frown. It was a welcome reprieve from her thoughts, and Shinobu looked at her, managing to gleam Kanae's concerns.

"Do you think Naruto-san is involved?"

"I certainly hope not. I've not known him to take this long to return when I have an inquiry." Kanae was, without a doubt, concerned of the implications that Naruto was somehow the culprit of her crow's tardiness. It made little sense to her how he could somehow disrupt the work of a Kasugai Crow, but with everything going on—everything swirling around in her mind—it was an obvious red flag.

"Perhaps the overnight weather prevented his flight?" Shinobu tried to offer a comfort. Kanae's smiled returned at Shinobu's attempt to dispel her concerns. All things considered, it was a definitive possibility. Maybe she was overthinking things. It was a vain hope, she noted, but the possibility was there.

"That is certainly a possibility I had not considered," Kanae replied truthfully, turning her smile back on Shinobu. Shinobu, despite herself, returned a small grin of her own, happy that she seemed to finally provide something of her own. "Any other time, I would not bat an eyelash at that reasoning. Perhaps I am allowing these past couple of days to stress me more than I realize."

Shinobu studied her sister's expression and noted that, indeed, Kanae appeared conflicted internally. That smile on her face seemed forced and her brow seemed to be constantly furrowed as of late. Shinobu only wished she could do something to abate her sister's concerns. A thought came to mind and Shinobu voiced it before even she had time to make sense of it. "What if it's to protect people?"

Kanae looked back at Shinobu thoughtfully. "Hmm?" she hummed, encouraging an explanation. Shinobu inwardly cursed at voicing her thoughts, but she perked up, widening her shoulder width to give off the air of the utmost confidence in what she said next.

"What if Naruto-san is hiding from demon slayers because he thinks his attraction to demons makes him too dangerous to be around?" Shinobu strung out her thoughts without pause, only half-aware that her wording made little sense. At Kanae's inquisitive expression, she felt pressured to continue. "We know he doesn't stay in town for long. Isao-san said it could be weeks at a time. His neighbor said he waits until the end of the day and buys out the remaining stock in the market when he is in town. What if he just returns to get a handful of supplies and leaves so he doesn't risk demons finding him around other people?"

Kanae opened her mouth in rebuttal but stopped. For once, Kanae appeared stumped and her mouth agape proved this. "So..." Regaining composure, Kanae attempted to interpret just what her sister was implying. "Naruto-san knows of his affect on demons and isolates himself to not cause disturbance? That's reminiscent of simple paranoia... unless..." She trailed off.

"I FOUND HIM, MASTER! I FOUND HIM!"
"I know I've gone weeks at a time without seeing him."
"Sometimes Uzumaki-san doesn't come back until late at night."
"Probably another day at most."

All the pieces splayed out in front of them and they simultaneously picked them up and put them together; all the words spoken, actions taken, echoed in their minds. Simultaneously, Kanae and Shinobu stopped walking and turned to face each other suddenly, exclaiming in unison. "He thinks they're hunting him!"

(The Following Day)

At around three or four that morning, Naruto had finally been able to splay out onto his bed. Sleep did not welcome him, however. No, it would most likely not for a long while. For a few hours, he tossed and turned in vain attempts to get comfortable, but it would be of little use. For Naruto's mind was swirling with turmoil. It had been years since he had been truly unable to process an event that took place. Living as long as he had, no doubt he had seen almost everything life would have to offer. At least, that's what he had thought only hours prior.

A demon had resisted Muzan's curse. Right in front him; glaring directly into his eyes. She hadn't been simply immune to the effects of the curse. No, they had most certainly triggered, but she had resisted. That's the part that kept replaying over and over again in Naruto's mind. A demon inflicting harm upon itself to disobey the will of its master? That was absolutely unheard of. Over the years, Naruto had unfortunately allowed his face to be viewed a few dozen times. 'More and more recently,' he added with a scowl. Was he getting sloppy? Were the demons just getting craftier? Both? Speculations for another time.

There was a fact that Naruto would swear to be true upon his dying breath. Every. Single. Demon. That saw his face, fell victim to the curse. Every single one. Statistically, that was a one hundred percent attrition rate. Centuries of evidence pointed to the one truth that a demon seeing him was followed by only one outcome.

Naruto brought a hand sharply to his forehead. He was running around in circles with his thoughts here!

He sat up in bed and groaned loudly, placing his face in both of his hands. 'I can spout experience all day... let's look at the facts objectively.' Naruto took hold of his thoughts and steadied them harshly. A demon had overpowered the curse. Fact, that had happened before him. Said demon was currently stashed away in the woods, far away from the village. Also a fact; he had two clones standing guard refusing to tear their gazes from the still unconscious demon. At first sign of a stir, one would dispel and alert Naruto. The other would stand ready for any sign of confrontation while the original made like a bat out of hell towards their location.

For now, this anomaly was secure. It would be dealt with quickly if push came to shove. He'd have to hastily relocate and not return to this village for an incredibly long time, but that was the most concrete outcome, Naruto concluded.

And if push didn't come to shove? If his senses didn't betray him and he had truly encountered merely a terrified young girl? Naruto scratched his scalp with both of his hands. Then what? Save her? Fix everything? Say the magic words, the fact she was a demon would magically resolve itself, and they could just skip into the sunrise?

Naruto had learned, through great pain and suffering, that you can't save everyone. He just couldn't. He couldn't be everywhere at once; he couldn't prevent every cruelty from taking place. While he was doing good on one side of the country, there was an atrocity being committed on the other. It was a traitorous fact that went against everything he had stood for in his younger years, but he had grown out of trying to fool himself. With great regret, he had turned his back on the one to try and save the many. Logically speaking, that was the best of course of action. Mentally? That was a whole other story.

He was getting off topic again. Why couldn't he keep his thoughts composed? Naruto stood up and paced, his arms going from crossing over themselves, to resting behind his head, to rubbing his temples multiples times over the next several minutes. There wasn't an easy solution, he quickly determined. Many solutions came to mind, none panned out long-term in his head.

A jolting sensation broke him from his furious brainstorming. Naruto stepped towards the window and just managed to peak out at his front door. An eyebrow rose curiously. A half-smile soon followed. 'Oh? And what do I owe the pleasure of seeing a butterfly at this time of day?'

(Earlier)

That night had been restless for Shinobu. Sleep embraced her minutes at a time it felt, before she'd return her stare up at the ceiling. She had tossed about, had planted her face in the pillow in frustration, even let out low groans. That man, Naruto, plagued her thoughts unlike any other before. He was a living contradiction of facts and speculations. Whenever she or Kanae thought they had reached a conclusion, some other detail reared its head and put them back to square one.

He had trained to fight as a child? Alongside other children? If there was a location anywhere near the Demon Slayer Corps Headquarters that produced warriors of this caliber from an early childhood, surely they would be aware of it. 'Nee-sama had asked if he healed us and he readily admitted to it... how, though?! Why hadn't she pressed the issue?!' Then, his blade. They hadn't seen it and Shinobu had made sure to discreetly glance around the small abode for any signs of it. Surely it would be somewhere within reach of all times, but that thought was filed away for a more important line of thought. Shinobu could express the utmost sympathy in losing someone close to you to a demon, but taking their weapon from the remains and fighting with it? Then again, Shinobu realized, he also failed to specify if his friend's life had been taken by a demon. He didn't even confirm if it was demon slayer or not. Logic would say if they had a nichirin blade, then surely they were a demon slayer.

Shinobu looked out the window and noted the sun was high in the sky, yet not quite afternoon. Her eyes betrayed her exhaustion, both physical and mental.

"Something on your mind?" Kanae asked across the room, seated at a table. She was writing down a report of the past two days. Just how informative of a report? Shinobu didn't know and didn't want to ask.

"Nothing specific, nee-sama." Shinobu told a small lie just now, though was certain Kanae probably saw through it easily. "Just tired."

"Hmm~. It was a restless night for the both of us, it would seem." Kanae hummed, not turning her attention from her letter. She stopped, suddenly, and straightened her posture. Without looking back, she suggested, "Why don't you go for a walk and see if you can get your thoughts sorted? I've a report to finish and won't be of much company in the meantime."

Shinobu looked at Kanae wordlessly. A couple of seconds passed, then Kanae began writing once more. It seemed like a harmless suggestion. No... Shinobu knew what Kanae was encouraging her to do. Kanae could sense her conflict and wanted her to resolve it on her own. "Yes, nee-sama... I'll do just that." She did her best to not make any too sudden of a movement, less she betray just what she thought of the opportunity.

Ensuring her uniform was professional in appearance, her hair ornament seated firmly, and her blade was sheathed at her hip, Shinobu stated, "I'll be back in a couple hours, at most, nee-sama."

Kanae hummed her acknowledgement. And with that, Shinobu departed, allowing the door to close gently behind her.

Twenty minutes later, Shinobu had arrived at her destination. There she stood once more in front of Naruto's home. 'Was this really his home?' The more time passed as lavender orbs all but tried to pierce through the door to Naruto's house, the weaker Shinobu's resolve became. She was alone.

There was no danger, she had convinced herself. And Shinobu believed it, too, but that in of itself is partially what disturbed the young woman so. Why did she believe that? Kanae was on guard for the majority of their dealings, she thought. If she trusted Kanae's judgement, shouldn't that serve indicator enough that Naruto may, in fact, be someone to be wary of?

Shinobu stood in front of the door, still as can be, breathing lightly—as if any stray movement or sound on her part would wreak havoc for her. She had been unable to sleep, their conversation with Naruto the night before replaying in her mind over and over again. For all the answers he had so willingly gave, Shinobu realized they, by no means, actually provided clarity to any of the questions asked of him. They just created more questions and presented more absurdities.

She thought back to both her and Kanae's last revelation late last night. Could it be true? Was this man being hunted by demons? If so, then for how long? A few years? His whole life? It would give credence to the fact that she had never heard a single utter of the man's existence before. It was a small world and word of warriors unaffiliated with the Demon Slayer Corps that could fight demons head on—and win!—would spread like wildfire. The Corps was always recruiting and might even seek him out themselves. That thought alone seemed to convince her more that maybe they were on to something.

Shinobu's face scrunched up, her fists clenching, in thinly veiled frustration at her own lack of understanding to the whole situation. It's what had kept her awake and pushed her to where she was now; standing outside of Naruto's house. She'd knock and then what? He'd open the door and...? Welcome her in? Send her away? Suddenly answer all her questions? If he didn't answer a majority of their questions from last night more informatively then he could at least explain why...

Shinobu pursed her lips as the words came to mind. 'Why do I feel so... at peace around him?' She was willful, headstrong, stubborn, and all too willing to dive into a situation to seek a resolution. With a grumble, Shinobu would admit those to be her traits. Case in point, her current predicament. Yet with gentle urging—be it soothing words or soft touches—Shinobu had felt herself placated by this odd man, who seemed hardly older than both her and Kanae. Why? Was it relief from being alive? Grateful to their savior? Or was it something else?

With a start, Shinobu furiously shook her head. 'And come across as some love-struck maiden? As if I can just ask that!' She admonished herself, a touch of red to her cheeks returning. Closing her eyes, she inhaled and exhaled slowly over several seconds. Shinobu steeled her resolve, opened her eyes, and tried her best to burn a hole into the wood with a fierce glower. She raised a clenched fist up to knock, but just before her hand could rap upon the door-

"Ah, Shinobu-san, was it? Been waiting a while?" A voice behind her broke the silence. Shinobu's body went rigid, her arm freezing in its mid-knocking motion. Slowly, she turned to look over her shoulder. There stood Naruto, arms crossed, looking down at her with an incredibly bemused expression - the very definition of a shit-eating grin plastered on his face. Shinobu's eye were wide and her face burned. Who knows how long she'd been standing there glowering at his door. Seconds? Minutes? And he had seen! She didn't even hear him approach!

"A-Ah, n-no..." Shinobu cleared her throat, trying to regain some manner of composure. "I had just arrived and..." Naruto arched his eyebrow and Shinobu's expression only managed to darken further. "... decided to wait for you." she added, failing miserably to salvage the situation. 'Just put me out of my misery now...'

"Hmm." Naruto gave her a critical once over. "Why don't you come on in?" he offered politely after a beat.

"That would be appreciated," Shinobu stated, nodding and trying to assume some stance of professionalism once more. The burn to her cheeks had managed to subside only slightly, however. She side-stepped and allowed Naruto to open the way for her and, upon his 'come on in' gesture, stepped into his home once more.

It was with great deliberation that Kanae had conceded to let things play out. She had been all too aware of her sister's tossing, turning, groaning—really, did she think herself silent? Kanae knew her sister was significantly more bothered about the situation than she was, marginally due to her lack of understanding. Which, in turn, made her feel inferior and unhelpful. Kanae knew she needed this and as her older sister, it did truly worry her to not have Shinobu safe at her side.

But she needed to learn. The girl needed answers and Kanae would be remiss to refuse the opportunity, else Shinobu's mindset could prove a detriment in the future. With all that being said, Kanae had reached a hesitant conclusion about Naruto. Despite the face value absurdity of it, Shinobu's theory made the most sense the more thought she gave it; that he was a man that put himself into isolation, with rare instances of socialization, to protect those around him. With a solid theory as a foundation, the scattered thoughts suddenly started to clear and align themselves. With the protection of other people on his mind, he would be wary of sharing too much information with them.

In that same light, he would also be forthcoming as much as he could. He had been, looking back on it. A previous observation returned to her. Kanae had determined that every action Naruto took was with a purpose; it was a feeling that formed in her gut when they had been observing him. How deep did it go, however? Did everything he had to say last night serve to just try and push them into the right direction without him having to directly tell them? It would give them answers, but it would also give him time to excuse himself from their vicinity while they mulled it over.

Kanae fully believed that, if he simply chose, they would never meet him again. His mere presence—his bearing—had solidified that theory a dozen times over, which gave credit to her guess that he had truly been as honest with them as he could reasonably be. Now it was her turn to feel the beginnings of a headache.

Having finished her task, Kanae rolled up the letter. She would give Shinobu an hour to herself; an hour to figure things out on her own in a way she saw fit. Then, go after her. Leaving their room, her delicate hand traced the banister as she stepped downstairs into the bar/restaurant below. Kanae had her eyes on the exit and made for it with a purposeful stride, when suddenly-

"Delicious!"

'Here I am... alone. Nee-sama isn't here to steer the conversation or take over if I blunder.'

"I'll put some tea on," Naruto announced over his shoulder, having set his hat aside now that they were in the privacy of his home. "That work for you?"

"Yes, thank you for your hospitality," Shinobu dipped her head politely. Her tone, while sounding moderately composed, contradicted the rigidness of her posture.

She truly was out of her element, Naruto surmised. He tempered his outgoing behavior a tad and instead opted for a more reserved, yet still just as welcoming, visage. "Sit. Relax. I'll be just a second."

Shinobu felt her shoulders sag ever so subtly once more and she wordlessly followed his invitation. Removing her sheathe from her hip, she placed it in her lap as she sat at attention. Her eyes glanced around the room, once again trying to locate Naruto's weapon but her search came up short once again. Defeated, she had no choice but to follow his movements out of the corners of her eyes.

Having just set the pot of water over his freshly lit fire, Naruto procured two smalls cups as well as a bag of tea leaves. He glanced back over his shoulder. "Just the two of us this morning? Kanae-san won't be joining us?"

"Nee-sama has official business to handle this morning," Shinobu informed simply.

"I see." Naruto turned back to his work. Seating the leaves in the two cups ahead of time, all there was left to do was wait for the water to boil. Which meant Naruto could finally turn around and join Shinobu at the table. This time, however, he pulled his chair out and turned it around. Using the back of the chair to rest his forearms on, he finally leveled his full attention on the young woman. "So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your company?" The seemingly polite words were juxtaposed by the faux professionalism, betrayed further by his wide grin. Not quite patronizing nor condescending, either.

Shinobu appreciated his actions to set her at ease, and it had worked for the most part. As for the answer to his question—the reason she was here—Shinobu had trouble aligning her thoughts properly to proceed with any line of questioning. She then idly realized she truly didn't have any actual strategy now that she was here, sitting across from Naruto. In a nervous tick, Shinobu's arms straightened, her hands gripping her knees tightly.

Naruto made a point to give no visible indication he was growing impatient or put off at her hesitance. Thus far, after his brief interactions with Shinobu, he had suspected that this woman was incredibly—how to say... 'Unfocused? Not confident?' He mulled over what the best way to describe her would be. Accompanied by her older sister, she kept her composure, most of the time, and was all too willing to back her up if needed. Alone, however? Alone she had no one to fill in the gaps for. A follower, in every sense of the word. Not that there was anything wrong with that. Some people weren't fit for leading and for many different reasons. Some lack experienced, others simply more comfortable following.

Realizing Shinobu had yet to say anything, even after offering her the respite, Naruto decided to do her a favor and start the conversation. "Shinobu-san," he stated to get her attention. Shinobu tensed for a split second, having been jarred from her thoughts.

"Yes?"

"Why'd you become a demon slayer?" It was a straightforward question, or at least Naruto hoped it was, and one that would ease her into any other related topics after attaining her stride with her words.

At his prompt, Shinobu relaxed. That, at least, she had a clear and concise answer for. "We became demon slayers to prevent demons from inflicting any more pain and suffering on innocent families."

Naruto's brow raised ever so slightly, unnoticed by Shinobu. "We?" The answer was obvious, of course, but he was merely pointing out her choice of words. Instead of 'I became', she had said 'we became'. Perhaps he was simply reading too far into it.

Shinobu blinked. "Yes, nee-sama and myself. We decided to join the Corps at the same time. We both trained for years, then passed Final Selection together a couple years ago." It was, Naruto noted, cute how Shinobu perked up whenever she got the chance to talk about Kanae.

"That recent, huh?" He decided to keep this topic going, if only to confirm something he had been mutely pondering about. "And what ranks did you say you both were?" They hadn't, yet Naruto got the distinct feeling Shinobu wouldn't realize the fact and share anyways. He was right.

"Nee-sama is a kinoe, the rank just below Hashira." She took priority in sharing Kanae's accolades over her own. "I'm just a hinoto." There it was, as if an afterthought. In the quiet morning, the pot of water started to have an audible boil. Naruto stood up and adjusted his sleeves.

"In just two years?" He whistled in appreciation, pouring both of their cups gently. Naruto tossed the embers of the fire until the flames died down, before hooking the pot high above it to retain warmth, yet not so close to be returned to another boil. Grasping both cups, he returned to the table. "That sounds impressive. Do new demon slayers usually advance that quickly?" He placed a cup in front of Shinobu then returned to his seat, sitting as he had a minute ago.

"Thank you for the tea," Shinobu thanked, using both hands to take hold of the cup. Between light breaths to cool off the liquid, she continued, "Not that I've known. There's been some rare exceptions, but beyond that it usually takes longer. It doesn't surprise me that nee-sama was able to advance so quickly; I know for a fact she's already being looked at as a Hashira candidate. She just needs to meet the requirements."

"You think she has what it takes?" Naruto pressed, though his tone indicated he was already aware of her answer. Naturally, Shinobu responded adamantly.

"Absolutely!" The conviction in her voice had returned and Naruto smiled. It always brought him joy to see someone talk about something, or someone, passionately. Though, his smile dipped slightly when Shinobu's gaze flickered to the side. "In fact, I think she'd have been made Hashira a while ago if not for..." She trailed off, her words growing quieter near the end of her exclamation.

A frown appeared as he read the shift in tone. "And after Kanae-san earns the rank of Hashira? What will you do?" That, at least, seemed to return some spark back to Shinobu, but not quite to the point she was at earlier.

"I intend to become her tsuguko; her apprentice to train under her and, if needed, succeed her as Hashira." If she died, though Shinobu didn't dare utter the words. She finally took a sip of her tea and appreciated its warmth with a hum. Naruto took the opportunity to continue.

"Sounds to me like you really want to support Kanae-san every step of the way." It was an obvious observation, Naruto knew, but it was also bait.

"Of course." Shinobu affirmed quickly, taking Naruto's bait none the wiser. "We're in this together and I will support her as best I can."

"And if your sister didn't want to become a demon slayer?" Naruto asked without missing a beat.

Shinobu opened her mouth to answer, but stopped as the words were about to leave her tongue. It honestly wasn't something she had even considered until just now. She closed her mouth and furrowed her brow. She and Kanae had always been inseparable, even before their parents died. Their parents had been murdered by a demon, who then subsequently met a swift end at the hands of Himejima Gyomei, the Stone Hashira. With nothing else, they had both resolved themselves to do their best from preventing any more atrocities affecting innocent families. At least, to prevent it to the best of their abilities; they couldn't help everyone, unfortunately, but they were at least doing something. 'But... what if nee-sama hadn't been interested in becoming a demon slayer? What if she had been content to make the most of her life outside the Corps?' It was an incredibly unlikely scenario, as she remembered her sister's resolve that day, yet Naruto's simple question had caused that feeling of self doubt within her to swell anew.

An inaudible gasp escaped her lips as Shinobu realized she didn't know. She truly had no answer to give. The past few years of her life had been grueling. They had fought, bled, killed side by side. They had each developed their own breathing styles that complimented their strengths and weaknesses. 'Is that really the truth, though?' she thought. If anything, her current breathing style, while did make up for her own lack of strength, seemed best suited to simply capitalize on any shortcomings of Kanae's Flower Breathing. Had she developed it to be as such? Just filler for her sister?

'No... I know the answer.' Shinobu's brow furrowed as she bit her lower lip. 'If nee-sama hadn't become a demon slayer, then I wouldn't have either.' Normally, Shinobu would have been all too proud to admit how much she looked up to Kanae; how much she respected her and her goal of being just like her. 'But the best I can do is emulate what she does; try and mimic what she says and thinks. Do I... am I even my own person anymore? Have I ever been?'

Naruto's gaze had softened considerably, a genuine smile spreading wide. "Hey." He ushered gently, seeing—let alone feeling—just how much his seemingly simple query had affected her. Shinobu managed to return her gaze to Naruto's. Those lavender pools staring at him laid bare her feelings; her feelings of self-doubt and a flicker of shame snuffed out the passion and spark that had been present a couple minutes ago. Naruto decided he didn't want to see that look on her face anymore. "You love your sister, Shinobu-san. You want to support her and you take selfless pride in her happiness and her strength. Where she falls short as a demon slayer - as a person - you want to be there to fill in the blanks. I can't speak for everyone, nor will I, but I will tell you this with certainty." With a tilt of his head, his lips widened into a toothy smile. "I think that makes you amazing, 'ttebayo."

Shinobu's eyes widened slowly, her lips parting in shock as if to speak, yet she remained speechless. Her chest flared with a feeling she was unable to identify. She knew for a fact her face—no, entire head—was alight if the burn she felt was anything to go by. All she could do was try and avert her gaze and stutter out, "A-ah, t-thank you, Uzuma-Naruto-kun-san!" She cursed herself for devolving into little more than a stuttering mess.

Naruto laughed heartily at her response, which only served to spread the heat from her face down her neck. Despite herself, Shinobu still succeeded in affixing a glare on him for laughing at her. It was far from threatening and all it really served to do was make Shinobu look like she was pouting. He stopped laughing, giving her his previous smile as he rested his head on his palm. "Just take into account what you want from now on; who you want to be. You're young, but I can tell you'll become all the more incredible in the future—the both of you. Don't get so caught up trying to make your sister happy that you neglect yourself, mkay? I think Kanae-san would appreciate that very much as well." Naruto's eyes twinkled mirthfully. "Don't you think... Shinobu-chan?"

Shinobu's glare had vanished halfway through his words and she could only stare in shock. Then, as if a weight had been removed, her shoulders slumped; her entire posture relaxed in her seat and a beautiful smile graced her features. It was faint, yet something stirred in the back of her mind; something greatly resembling adoration. With flushed cheeks, she finally managed to look away from Naruto and down at her teacup. "Yes... Naruto-kun."

"Kyōjurō-kun?" Kanae asked, no doubt surprised greatly. Sitting at the, admittedly small, table in front of her was none other than the man next in line to become the Flame Hashira, Rengoku Kyōjurō. His attire was as she remembered when she'd seen him last. His demon slayer uniform was a paler brown than what was standard. Resting on his shoulders, a completely white haori. Kyōjurō turned a bright-eyed, smiling, face to Kanae and she saw his family's hereditary hairstyle. Bright yellow hair, streaked in red to also give the appearance of flames.

"Kocho-san!" Kyōjurō announced with zeal. He stood up from his meal—a hot, steaming, bowl of miso soup—and faced her fully. With his arms crossed, he seemed to almost stare over her. "It pleases me to see you are still with us!" He continued, none the quieter. The present patrons gave him strange looks that Kanae sheepishly tried to wave off.

"Yes, Kyōjurō-kun. I am alive and well," she confirmed. "Shinobu-tan is also accounted for."

"Hahaha! Splendid!" Kyōjurō exclaimed with no less enthusiasm than he had started with. In fact, it seemed to be roaring higher and higher. Kanae had only a handful of interactions with Kyōjurō, but they had all been pleasant, given his penchant for eccentricities kept the mood aloof. They currently shared the same rank, kinoe, however it went without saying Kyōjurō was next in line to become the Flame Hashira as soon as his father either was unfit to or retired.

"How long have you been in town?" Kanae asked, looking around him again at his still steaming meal. At this question, Kyōjurō finally did look at Kanae directly.

"We only just arrived!" While still alight, his tone did drop a noticeable number of decibels. Despite making eye contact with Kanae, his posture remained the same. "I received word that a pair of young, bright, demon slayers had failed to report in two days after their dispatch. I was in the area and decided to investigate the matter myself!" Kyōjurō explained. Again, Kanae looked around him at his lunch. Without missing a beat, Kyōjurō added, "Mitsuri should be returning from her patrol any moment!"

"Kanroji-chan accompanied you?" Kanae asked, smiling at the prospect of seeing her, and Shinobu's, friend. It had been probably over a year at this point since their last meeting.

"Naturally! I thought it an excellent opportunity to observe the fruits of her training in the field!" Kyōjurō nodded once firmly, his smile never dipping, nor his eyes losing any of their fire. It made the next question all the more intense. "And where is your partner now, Kocho-san?"

Kanae, to her credit, didn't give any outward signs the question caught her off guard. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't have, but she knew where Shinobu was and it brought about her earlier conflict. All signs of their investigation thus far pointed to Naruto wishing to remain anonymous. Did she trust him? Kanae didn't have an answer. Did she trust her and Shinobu's instincts? With her life. "Shinobu-tan elected to patrol the village for any domestic issues she could lend aid to. With any luck, her and Kanroji-chan will bump into each other and meet us back here." She stated with her usual level of elation.

"Hm," Kyōjurō hummed, his visage not budging an inch. Kanae couldn't help but realize she felt tense under the unflinching gaze. "Hah! To be expected of the younger Kocho sister! However, I'm obligated to remind you that we are not law enforcement and should absolve ourselves of interfering with such matters!" It took a great deal of restraint to not release her breath.

"Yes, yes, Kyōjurō-kun. I'll bear that in mind and remind Shinobu-tan." Kanae's smiled never faltered.

"In any case; sit. Join me. Ma'am!" he called to the woman behind the counter. "She'll have what I'm having!"

Kanae obliged the invitation for the meal, her face only slightly strained at this point. She usually kept a cheery disposition, but even this was fast exhausting her.

"Thank you for your time this morning." Shinobu began to bow politely, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her abruptly. Her eyes widened in surprise, curiously looking up at him.

"Come on, now. I'd hoped we'd be past this," Naruto said with a cheerful smile. Shinobu stood up straight at his direction but found she couldn't decide what to do with her hands. Naruto removed his own hand from her shoulder and stepped back, giving the young woman space. "Don't be a stranger. Got it, Shinobu-chan?"

"Y-yes, Naruto-kun," Shinobu could only reply her affirmative, much too shaken to offer any form of dispute. Not that she particularly wanted to, at the moment. The realization only served to confuse her.

"Give Kanae-san a good afternoon for me, yeah?" Naruto stepped back into his doorway, one hand on the door.

"I will." Shinobu, fighting the physical urge to not simply bow, waved at Naruto as she turned to depart. Naruto responded in kind and closed the door.

With a completely relaxed posture, Shinobu began her stride back to her lodging. Her head was held high, shoulders wide, and her fists clenched; she gave off the air of a young woman completely sure of herself. That was, until she rounded the corner down the road.

Whack!

Shinobu very eloquently introduced her forehead into the tall, wooden, fence to her right. Stepping back, she nursed her forehead, but her ire didn't dissipate in the least. She had accomplished nothing! Not one question did she ask! Not one! It had gone downhill right from the get-go! Shinobu covered her face with her hands, doing little to mask her blush. 'I must have looked like a complete fool standing outside his house making faces in the middle of the day!' she berated herself. That cocky, smug, mischievous, shit-eating, pompous smirk he had; the face he made when he'd caught her would be seared to memory.

"Excuse me, young lady, are you okay-" Shinobu suddenly slammed her fist into the wall she had headbutted, caving the wood in, not even registering the stranger's interjection. With a shriek, the man dashed away.

And yet... that sincere smile he gave when he complimented her. Her. That would also not be forgotten any time soon. Her face flushed alight once more and Shinobu had no idea how to process her thoughts and emotions. 'Other than nee-sama, that was the first time since kaa-san and tou-san that someone seemed... proud of me? Genuinely praise me?'

Shinobu had started to accept that she might never step out of her sister's shadow. But here was a near stranger, someone she had met not but two days ago, looking at her like that and cheering for her. Who does that?! What does that mean?! A few seconds passed and Shinobu found her expression softening, the crimson on her cheeks settling down to a warm glow. '... is it bad I want him to say it again?'

Her private moment of reflection was interrupted as she looked up. Pink and green assaulted her eyes.

"Shinobu-chan!" The loud salutations were what jolted Shinobu back to reality. A second of confusion followed before Shinobu recognized the source of the interruption.

"M-Mitsuri-chan?!" she shouted in shock, reeling away from her incredibly extroverted friend.

"That's me~!" the young woman, Mitsuri, confirmed in a sing-song tone. She was only a year older than Shinobu but had long since begun refining her more feminine features. Her demon slayer uniform was the standard top and belt, as well as the traditional leggings. There were two completely unique features to her, however. First, her hair—loud as ever—was predominantly pink, with three braids trickling down her body. Two braids in the front, one in the back, all three tipped with green highlights. Of course, what caught Shinobu's gaze was Mitsuri's second unique feature.

"Why is your top like that?!" Shinobu pointed at her friend's chest, which was unbuttoned halfway up her uniform to splay her cleavage to the world. The button to her collar remained fastened, however. It created a 'boob window', for lack of a more eloquent way to describe it. While it had been a while since she had seen Mitsuri last, Shinobu didn't recall the young woman's breasts being anywhere near that size. 'Where did those come from?!'

"Because I like it this way~," Mitsuri chirped, clasping her hands at her waist. The action serving to squeeze her breasts together. She tilted her head curiously, failing to see what the issue was. Shinobu glowered directly at the woman's shameless display but did eventually regain some composure.

"Ahem." She cleared her throat. "Not that it isn't good to see you, but what are you doing here?"

"Kyōjurō-senpai and I came to investigate why you and Kanae-chan hadn't reported back yet." Mitsuri explained bluntly, smiling brightly with a nod. Shinobu's eye almost twitched when the motion had caused Mitsuri's breasts to jiggle slightly. Then, she blinked, Mitsuri's words registering.

"Rengoku-san? You're both here?" She asked incredulously.

"Yep~. I volunteered to do a preliminary search of the village while he investigated the inn for any information on you two."

"The inn? He might have already met with nee-sama then," Shinobu informed. In the back of her mind, however, her thoughts raced. Had Kanae given a report about Naruto by now? That was the right thing to do, right? Her logical side agreed. Her emotional side? She couldn't make sense of that side at the moment.

"Hmm." Mitsuri's hum alerted Shinobu that the woman seemed to be looking at something. Following her gaze, Shinobu's gaze fell on the two dents in the fence right next to her. A bead of sweat appeared on her forehead. Mitsuri then looked at Shinobu's forehead which bore a scuff on it—a very recent looking scuff. More sweat drops. "Mhm, mhm." Mitsuri continued to hum as she inspected. Shinobu could only stand rigid as Mitsuri made her deductions before her very eyes. With a snicker, Mitsuri voiced her conclusion. "Pent up, are we?"

Shinobu's face would've made a Rengoku proud. "Hah?!"

"Delicious!"

"Delicious!"

"Delicious!"

The crescendo of appraisals welcomed Shinobu and Mitsuri when they stepped back into the inn. It made finding Kanae and Kyōjurō easy enough, as they could hear the boisterous declarations from down the street. Kanae saw them first, as Kyōjurō's back was still to the exit. She gave a gentle wave, paired with a gentle smile, and ushered the two ladies over.

"Kanae-chan!" Like teacher, like student. Mitsuri had no reservations displaying her glee seeing her friend again after so long. Kanae had just barely managed to stand up before Mitsuri pulled her into a very strenuous hug. Kanae had almost forgotten just how strong this young woman was. "You're as beautiful as I remember! It's so good to see you!"

Kanae, despite the tight constriction, managed to giggle at her friend's behavior. She returned the hug as well, but quickly separated herself for room to breathe. "My, ever the exhilarated one, Mitsuri-chan." Her eyes trailed downward, giving her appearance a once over. A pause. "You've grown," she assessed simply.

"Mhm~! A whole two inches!" Mitsuri patted her own head a couple of times to emphasize. Through sheer willpower, Shinobu refrained from smacking her forehead in exasperation.

"Kanroji-kouhai! Imouto-san!" At this point, Kyōjurō had decided to interject into their reunion. He had pivoted his body to face the two, one leg under the table, the other on the outside. With his back completely straight, arms crossed, he regarded them both with his characteristic smile and unblinking gaze. "Your timing is impeccable. I heartily suggest you both join Kocho-san and myself in finishing this meal!"

"Ooh, don't mind if I do." It took no twisting her arm to get Mitsuri to seat herself to Kanae's left and grab the first thing that looked aesthetically pleasing.

"Yes, that sounds like a good idea," Shinobu replied with a wary expression. Kyōjurō seemed to notice this right away.

"Are you troubled, Imouto-san?"

"No, just tired." Shinobu quickly offered the man a small smile of her own, which seemed to be all he needed to see. Shinobu sat down on Kanae's right, Kyōjurō's left. Together, the four of them formed a square around the table. "Thank you for the food," she stated, pressing her hands together in a moment of prayer. Kyōjurō had turned back now.

"Now!" The sudden exclamation gave Shinobu a jolt. "I am delighted to see you are both in good health. That being said, I would ask why it took so long for HQ to receive an update on the situation." His pleasant smile gave no indication on whether he was trying to adopt an interrogative tone, or merely curious.

"I had attempted to send word back to headquarters on the night Shinobu-tan and I arrived," Kanae began her explanation calmly, steepling her hands. She rested her chin gently atop her fingers as she spoke, appearing completely casual and confident. "With your presence, I can only assume the message did not reach back?"

"I'm afraid not, Kocho-san," Kyōjurō rebutted. "I've not known a crow to take so long to deliver a message after being dispatched. By your words, I gather there has been no word back either?" In a rare moment of seriousness, Kyōjurō's smile dipped to a frown, yet his intense stare persisted. Kanae shook her head solemnly.

"No, not a sign. Shinobu-tan speculated the weather the other night had delayed him. I would have thought to still hear back, regardless." The safety of her crow companion greatly concerned Kanae, Mitsuri surmised. Not that it surprised her in the least. Kanae had always regarded most living creatures worthy of protection. It's what endeared the slightly older girl to her so.

Of course, it also elicited a more vocal response. With a happy sigh, Mitsuri clasped her fingers together and brought them to her cheek. "You're so responsible, Kanae-chan." Despite herself, Kanae giggled at Mitsuri softly.

Caw!

Startling many patrons, a crow swooped through the window and landed on Kyōjurō's left shoulder, hastily flapping its wings to steady its sudden stop. "Kaname!" Kyōjurō greeted his crow aide. "Kocho-san's crow is currently missing in action. Please use what resources you can to search the surrounding areas, as well as the path you would take back to headquarters."

"I will search with Urara!" The crow, Kaname, stated in an attempt to match Kyōjurō's gusto. "I will return!"

Completely off topic, but brought on by the mention of her own crow, Mitsuri mumbled aloud, "Oh, I found the cutest bow to put on Urara~. I can't wait to show her," she claimed with a longing sigh.

"Hey, you! No pets in here!" The innkeeper shouted at Kyōjurō, pointing her finger at him.

"I am sorry!" Kyōjurō apologized without missing a beat, his smile having returned by now. Kaname flapped away, out the way he came, once again causing a disturbance with the patronage.

"Thank you very much, Kyōjurō-kun. Shinobu-tan and I had remained in the area to try and discover what might have possibly happened to him." There was truth to her claim.

"I am not surprised at your concern for a comrade," Kyōjurō praised his peer enthusiastically. "The search may be slow. Kaname has just returned from delivering my message to HQ that Kanroji-kouhai and I had arrived." He nodded once. "Hm. For the sake of your companion, we shall all remain in town until tomorrow morning. Afterwards, I would have to implore you both to return to headquarters."

Kanae and Shinobu both shared a look with each other, but it was brief. Mitsuri didn't notice. Kyōjurō did. "We can only hope that he can be found by then, Kyōjurō-kun."

The day had been a nice distraction, Naruto concluded. He was also incredibly fortunate that his captive did not stir from her slumber during the day. Particularly during his earlier exchange. It would have been incredibly disappointing to have to leave halfway through that little discussion with Shinobu. Naruto wasn't sure if the little butterfly would be able to talk to him again if he had suddenly excused himself for the remainder of the day at such a impressionable point of the conversation.

The hours ticked slowly after the fact. The sky had turned several shades darker by now, signalling the approach of sunset. Naruto had begun his trek out of the village now, making a point to keep to the back roads and alleys. Only when he was certain he was completely out of sight did he utilize shunshin to travel.

He felt in no way more prepared than he had early that morning on how to handle this situation. He wondered if the years had made him hesitant; far more cautious and calculating than circumstances could require. Were he younger, he'd have made a reckless gamble and charged in head first. Consequences be damned. Times were different now.

Naruto had ordered his clones to move the demon as soon as the sun dipped behind the mountains. They would move her to a far, out of the way, location—far removed from civilization. If anything did happen, he'd be able to keep it contained in a remote area. This way, he hoped no one would get caught in the wake should his own reckless actions come back to bite him.

The travel was nice, at least. Naruto allowed his thoughts to come to a blank as he just enjoyed the breeze, moving at a comfortable speed along the treetops. It was a welcome moment of respite. The sun had set by now, and Naruto had arrived, landing on the ground silently. With a neutral expression, he laid eyes on his captive, still peacefully asleep. His clones dispelled and Naruto was given hours of memory of the girl's sleeping face. His clones had observed her occasionally grimace in her sleep, but otherwise gave no indication she was waking.

Curious. Did demons have nightmares? Naruto was sure they did; they weren't animals, after all. Just... victims. A long sigh escaped his lips and Naruto turned away from the woman. It was time to wait.

He had to use what time he had now to make a decision.

A couple of hours passed. It was dusk now. Naruto sat cross-legged with his back to the forest. In front of him, an open field. The long grass danced gently as the breeze rolled through, creating an almost wave-like effect. It had rained the day prior, and the humidity had lingered. The cold that accompanied the wind, however, alleviated the oppressive dampness in the air.

His eyes were closed; his body still—deathly still. Yet through his meditations, Naruto was aware of everything around him. Throughout his lifespan, he always appreciated the moments he could sit down and truly be at ease with nature around him. Those opportunities were usually far and between. A life on the move was very detrimental to finding moments to just stay still.

Naruto cracked an eye open, glancing to his left. Not a second later, a low groan followed. His captive was stirring.

Naruto inhaled slowly, closing his lone eye again for a few seconds, before opening both. He looked to his right at the straw hat dangling listlessly in the breeze, hanging off an outstretched tree branch. Standing up, Naruto felt a few of his joints creak and groan. He'd been meditating, completely still, for a couple of hours - biding his time and centering his thoughts around what was to come.

Naruto guessed dawn was still several hours off. He also noted that, over the course of the next hour, things could take a dramatic turn in any direction. An hour, versus the thousands of hours—hundreds of thousands—he'd spent in his elongated lifetime. It seemed like such an impossibly short amount of time for change, but Naruto knew otherwise. Most, if not all, change was sparked from a single deciding moment. With that, he turned around and waited for the demon—the woman—in front of him to regain her senses.

Mukago's eyes fluttered, another groan rumbling from the back of her throat, as she roused. Her awareness was quick to return after that. Or was it? Mukago blinked once. Twice. Why couldn't she see? Was she still asleep? She made a motion to move and rub her eyes but quickly found that she couldn't. That oh so familiar fight-or-flight instinct came screaming and she struggled, tensed her whole body, in a vain attempt to move. In a flash of panic, she discovered she could only move her head; her arms and legs had simply ceased all locomotion. A hand placed itself on her shoulder and she cried out quietly at the sudden feeling. Her body wasn't numb, after all. She could still feel. Unable to move, unable to see, she was at the complete mercy of her captor.

"Shh, shh," Naruto urged, placating the girl with his aura. With a whimper, Mukago stopped trying to resist. Despite her struggles ceasing, he could still detect that same nauseating fear. "I have you under a paralysis seal. You will not be moving unless I allow you," he stated sternly. It hadn't meant to come off as a threat, but it still did well to make Mukago realize the situation she was in.

"W-why...?" Mukago started, struggling for words.

"Hmm?" Naruto hummed.

"Why can't I see?" she finished weakly. Naruto had the girl seated upright against a tree, so before answering he circled back behind her. Gently, taking care not to make too sudden a movement, he reached to her head. With a slight push, he raised the blindfold up to her forehead for a couple of seconds.

"It's just a blindfold." He assured her calmly. While extremely thankful she wasn't blind, it did little to soothe her overall state of mind. Naruto returned the cloth to its original spot. "I don't think I need to explain why it's there." Mukago shook her head furiously. "Dawn is in a few hours. They may be your last. Depending on how these next few minutes go, I will resign myself to watch you burn away in the sunlight."

Mukago's fear spiked at his words. Her lips trembled, parting gently as she tried to ask him something. "Wha—"

"Right." Naruto sighed, cutting off whatever it was Mukago was about to say. Circling back in front of her, Naruto stared down at the bound demon and crossed his arms. He had spent the past day and night agonizing over several courses of action. Eventually, and very recently, he had settled on one plan. If it worked, he'd know without a shadow of a doubt that this demon before him would be trustworthy—that she was worth the massive gamble he was making.

More than that, he'd finally be able to start what would feel like the first concrete step towards attaining his ultimate goal. If it failed... well, he didn't need to repeat aloud what would become of the demon before him.

But failure also meant…

Another sigh left his lips, and the weight of his life—the choices he'd made—felt as if they had just dropped back onto his shoulders. But deep down, he dared to feel a little hope. Maybe this choice would be one he wouldn't come to regret. The blond gave a fierce shake of his head, shoving those thoughts away viciously. Now wasn't the time for them. Now was the time to act.

"What is your name?" Naruto asked simply, a rather useless piece of information in the grand scheme of things. Mukago didn't know the significance of him knowing nor why it would matter. All she knew was her direct compliance was required.

"M-Mukago!" she all but shouted. Silence followed and Naruto frowned. Just as he'd expected.

"So, you've got a choice to make here, Mukago," he started anew. "Two options. First, I can put a seal on you; much like the seal that is keeping you from moving. However, this one will let me know if you're lying or not. You tell the truth, you're fine. You lie, and you'll experience immense pain. It's not perfect, mind. In fact, depending on your tolerance for pain, you might just die outright. Or go insane." Normally, discerning truth from lie solely from the emotions of another was simple enough for him. However, this was a rare exception. The waves of raw terror this young girl gave off drowned out everything around her, making it surprisingly difficult to detect anything else. Even something small, like asking for her name just now, proved impossible for him to confirm.

Mukago gulped, feeling as if somebody had replaced her heart with a block of ice at that choice. She hated pain, feared it. Granted, she feared a lot of things, but pain and death were right at the top of that list. Going insane sounded like an entirely different fear altogether, and some part of the mind questioned if that fate would be better or worse than death. She harshly refused to even entertain an answer to that question. "And the other choice?" she asked meekly, but with a definite note of desperation.

"I look into your soul. Your very being," Naruto answered, not bothering to tiptoe around his answer. Best be direct. "I'll see everything about you. No lies to hide behind. Who you are. Who you were. Your fears, your dreams, hopes, regrets. You'll be an open book to me. I won't be able to pick and choose, and neither will you. It may be that I won't get all, if any, of the information that I want. But I'd know 'you'. The downside? There might be a bleed-over. You might see things about me and my past. I can't say for sure what they'll be, or if you'll even understand any of it. But you could see it anyways. The choice is yours, Mukago. So, what's it going to be?"

A moment passed. Then several more. And then a minute. Followed by more. Naruto was in no rush. He'd just given her a very big choice, and knew she needed time to process it. The truth was, he was entirely correct... and entirely wrong.

For Mukago, it was simple. He'd given her a choice. Choice. That one word alone was what shook her to her very core. He had given her a choice for the first time in... she wasn't even sure how many years. The last 'choice' she'd been given, so much had been hidden from her about it. But this monster—no, not a monster. This man had given her a choice and made clear what each option carried. He told her everything about each choice, or at least a substantial amount about them, and then left the decision entirely in her hands.

And though it took her several moments to speak, in that instant she realized what he'd done…

She knew. Whether he ever did realize or not, she was thankful and loyal to him—to whatever his choice would be afterwards. Because he gave her this one chance to take hold of her future through her own decision.

"O-Okay." A beat passed after that word came out of her mouth, a single moment for her to compose herself. "Okay. I'll take the second one. I... I want to take the second one. Please." And with that, she placed her life in his hands. She could only hope that, in some small way, what this choice brought about would help him.

Naruto hesitated only a second longer before taking a deep breath. Exhaling, he nodded. Fist clenched tightly, he extended an arm out towards her.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"...is something happening?" Mukago tilted her head curiously after a minute of time had passed without word nor sound. It took Naruto a second longer to realize that she still couldn't see him, and thus didn't see his hand. Something he was momentarily thankful for, since she didn't see his embarrassed blush. His fingers brushed the paper seal on her chest and he pushed some chakra into it, adjusting her state of paralysis.

"Just...just hold your hand out, would ya? Straight out and make a fist." A bit confused, Mukago did as she was told regardless and found that she could, just barely, obey his command. With a gulp, an action she didn't realize Naruto had fought back himself, she felt her knuckles touch his, the warmth from his limb flowing into hers.

Then the visions started.

And she saw.

She saw herself stumbling as she carried a plate, spilling the meager amount of food on the ground; felt her father drive his fist into her stomach for her stupid action, forcing her empty stomach to try and force something up. Before her father rained more blows upon her body.

She watched as a crowd of people glared at her as she walked the streets, forcing a bright smile that she didn't feel on her face. She ignored the pangs of hurt as one woman visibly curled her lips in disgust.

She watched the dirt under her slowly part as she dragged her feet. She wandered the forest, bruised and bloodied as her head pounded after her father left her out in the dark as punishment for having screamed in the night for a nightmare; for not being a good and quiet girl.

She tried to bring another smile to her face as she watched the children be taken from the playground by their parents when she appeared. She could hear them saying something to them—knew they were talking about her—and the sadness grew greater.

She grasped feebly at the hands that wrapped around her throat, crushing it between them as she tried desperately to beg for air, for mercy, for forgiveness after she questioned her father on where mother was. When she was getting back. The tears, snot, drool leaked and pooled as her impotent struggles grew lesser and the darkness loomed closer. He kept squeezing and she was dying oh Kami-sama she was DYING AND SHE DIDN'T WANT TO DIE NO NO NO PLEASE NO WANT TO LIVE PLEASE GOOD GIRL I'LL BE GOOD A GOOD GIRL NOW-

She felt disgust and hatred towards these people; towards the ones who decided she didn't deserve their kindness. To share their happiness, their friendship. She hated them. She hated them all. What did she do? She did nothing. Nothing! But they hated her and didn't let her near any of them without warnings and dark mutters and she hated them she wanted them to DIE AND GO AWAY AND I HATE YOU HATE YOU I DID NOTHING HATE YOU ALL-

She was at the market, her arm bandaged poorly in a pathetic attempt to keep the limb from swinging limply. The bones still hadn't healed, and father wouldn't let her see a doctor until she finished the shopping. Maybe she'd get some more for her usual serving at dinner if she brought father a present, oh but then she might get in trouble for spending more money than she was allowed. It was hard enough to find something tasty with the small amount he'd allow her to carry-

She watched with no energy to even form a smile as the proud parents congratulated their happy children. They'd all passed but she hadn't she'd tried so hard but she couldn't do it right and failed. So, there she was—sitting on the swing and watching with dead eyes at the sight in front of her. She listened as the parents gushed and preened over their children before standing and walking away without a word she heard two parents talk about her and how she shouldn't have even been allowed to try in the first place because-

she flailed and tried to scream but only bubbles came out right before water flowed its way back into her throat as father's hand pushed her head under the river. Why was he doing this she didn't mean to let the fish cook that long but it was her fault but she didn't mean it and air she needed air please please air need air I'm sorry I'm sorrysorrysorrysorrysorryairsorryairairsoRRYSORRYAIR-!

she stood dumbfounded as the man cackled told her why everybody hated her how she was the source of their loss years ago how she murdered all those people it was all her fault she was a monster and everybody hated her blamed her for destroying their lives and their homes and everybody who she'd found to treat her better than the rest were lying and he was throwing that giant shuriken at her and he was telling her demanding that she die and she didn't know if she wanted to stand there and let it hit her or step forwards and end it faster-

she stared up at the knife in her shaking hands she wanted to die and escape but she was too scared to die and she was too scared of the dark but she was so scared she couldn't stay in the village his fault it was his fault she didn't want to hurt him didn't want to but he'd thrown her and was coming towards her and she was so scared she didn't like when the blood fell on her face as he stepped back from her with blood spraying out of his throat the knife felt heavy in her hands and she'd fled and she needed to die but she was so SCARED and then a shadow fell over her and there was a man cold his eyes were so cold but there was something there and she hated it and she stood up and pointed the knife at him her hands were shaking but she wouldn't waver she wouldn't let him kill her she wanted to live/die  and the man gave a smile with no kindness and he offered her-

the agony the pain it hurt the hand through her lung hurt but not as much his eyes were so angry and hurt and lonely and he wanted to leave he didn't want to be with them anymore he called them weak he called their family WEAK and when she tried to help him he put a hand with lightning through her chest he wanted to kill her but she pushed it into her lungs and then he removed it and then she felt her body burning it hurt but she was powerful burning POWERFUL and she dropped to all fours he was her family her best friend her BROTHER she would bring him home she would save him and they could BE A FAMILY AGAIN-

Gently, the cover over her eyes lifted. Mukago didn't react. Her mouth hung open as tears poured down her face, even as Naruto knelt down in front of her. She finally reacted, her eyes refocusing. She turned to him and red met blue, truly seeing him for the first time. And still the tears fell, silently. She understood, at least a little. Enough? She didn't know.

But she knew.

She saw the unshed tears. She saw his regrets. His pain. His conviction. She could see the fire, almost dead—little more than an ember being shielded from a raging storm—but still alive and yearning to start burning again. Naruto nodded. A simple action. It meant nothing. It meant everything. It was an answer. It was a promise; an offer.

And Mukago finally moved, throwing herself into his chest as she wailed. She cried for herself. She cried for him. She felt his arms wrap around her and bring her in closer to his chest. She welcomed the intimacy. She remembered that long suppressed hunger to experience it again. She drove her face into the crook of his neck and he rested his cheek on her head, not even caring about how her tiny, rounded, horns pushed into his flesh. She knew who he was, what had made him this way. He knew who she was, why she fell. But most of all, she knew her answer, and his response.

He wasn't her master; he'd never accept that. She knew. It was more than that. And she was okay with that, so long as she could walk his path so he—no, so they—would never be alone again.