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She was assigned a solo mission this time around. The other Pillars were too occupied with their own, and the situation was urgent—leaving no one else but her to get it done.
The task was simple: get rid of the wandering demon in the woods next to a nearby village. There were already ten cases of merchants and travelers suddenly disappearing while making their way through the woods, only to be discovered a few days later, torn apart from the inside and out. The few who had survived the demon compared to it like a wild animal: unpredictable and quick, bearing edged claws and fangs. It was said to be active throughout the day thanks to the thick trees sheltering it from the sun. A piercing cry would often echo outside the woods, indicating that someone had been eaten.
Everyone within the area stayed far away, but with the approaching winter season, most families had to find their resources for wood. Which is why Shinobu got sent—she had to return a sense of normalcy and peace to the village as soon as possible so they could prepare for the upcoming cold.
“Now where on earth could you be hiding…”
The Insect Pillar observes her surroundings, searching through various bushes and logs. The demon was akin to a child, when she had asked the villagers for information. It was rather small and liked to hide, making it easy to pounce on any unaware travelers. Given its size as well, it was difficult to defend from.
Then again, normal people don’t stand a chance against demons.
After much wandering, Shinobu stops, noticing something shiny up ahead. When she gets closer, she finds a necklace and notices its design: a silver key shaped like a flower. It was covered in dirt, almost hidden away completely by the dead leaves on the ground. Without trained eyes, it would have been almost impossible to discover the object.
The key reminds her of a certain exchange she had at the village. She was getting ready to depart for the woods when someone had called out for her and tugged on her haori.
“Miss Demon Slayer…”
It was a middle-aged woman with puffy eyes. By her side, a little girl stood, sniffling as she hid behind her mother.
“I know you must be busy and that this is a selfish request...but if you can, please find my daughter.”
“Your daughter?”
“Yes… She ran away from home one day. Someone said they saw her going into the woods.” Her lips trembled as she let out an uneven breath. “Not too long after, a demon appeared and started eating some of the villagers…”
At the mention, the youngest daughter buried her face into the mother’s kimono, whimpering. Shinobu’s grasp on the hilt of her sword tightened as she softly said, “I can’t guarantee I’ll find anything.”
“I know. It’s just…” The mother gave a pained smile and pulled up her sleeve, revealing a small lock bracelet. “She was wearing her favorite necklace before disappearing. It was a key. She would always carry it around with her.”
Shinobu promised to keep an eye out for it. The woman laughed weakly, holding her hands gently.
They were trembling.
“Even if it’s something minor...please bring it back, Miss Demon Slayer.”
“Then this is it?” she asks aloud. It was the same color as the mother’s bracelet, made of the same quality. The girl had an affinity for flowers, from what the mother described too, so it made sense. She could only hope that this was actually her eldest daughter’s necklace.
Shinobu is about to pick it up, but the rustle of tree from above immediately draws her attention. Within a split second, she draws her sword and quickly comes face-to-face with an incoming strike.
The demon's small, but its strength isn’t. Shinobu feels her feet being pushed back into the ground as she analyzes its appearance.
It was a young girl, somewhere around thirteen years old. Her hair was messy and tangled, skin scarred, and blood soaked her ripped kimono. Scars covered her entire body, most likely from those who had tried fighting back. Along with sharp nails, she bore large fangs that could easily bite into flesh, making it easy to snap a body part off. The girl no longer resembled a human, figuratively and literally speaking.
Shinobu slides under the demon and tries to grab the necklace, but she picks up fallen leaves instead. Her heart becomes uneasy.
The demon is agile; it jumps over her, aiming from behind. Fortunately, Shinobu can deflect its attacks, but her own swings barely connect, slicing into the thin fabric. The demon ducks and jumps constantly, avoiding every slash delivered. It soon becomes a continuous cycle: blocking and attacking.
Shinobu knows no progress will be made if this keeps up, and the demon seems to have reached the same conclusion, increasing its speed and range of attacks. She accordingly adjusts herself to the change of pace, watching the demon struggle.
It’s not long until one of them starts losing patience. The demon grits its teeth, each move becoming more desperate than the next. Though it had plenty of stamina left, jumping back and forth without making contact could only do so much. It must have realized the exact opponent it was up against, when she didn’t fall to her feet within a minute.
So it changes tactics. The demon claws at her, grabbing anything within reach—her haori, jacket, pants, legs, arms...
In one leap, it manages to grab hold of her hair, lunging forward to tear into her throat. Shinobu is quick enough to pierce her sword into the demon’s flesh and step aside in time, but its nails manages to cut her and she feels a part of her skin stinging slightly. Blood slides down her collarbone.
She lands on her feet with ease, hyper-aware of the hair that tickles her neck; from behind, she hears her butterfly ornament drops to the ground.
Shinobu inhales sharply. Her chest burns.
It’s over.
It takes approximately a minute—perhaps even shorter than that—for the poison to kick in. The demon recovers and jumps once more, pouncing towards the Insect Pillar, but its movements become too slow, too easy to predict. It’s the perfect target for Shinobu as she thrusts the blade into the demon, watching the crazed look of hunger in its eyes get replaced with terror.
One final agonizing scream is released from the demon as it crashes into the ground. Its grey, scaly skin turns into a dark shade of purple as it gasps for air and thrashes about. Shinobu crouches next to it.
Her eyes land on the missing necklace that has fallen outside its pocket.
“Mother…”
The demon’s voice is fragile. Weak. She tries to reach for her but fails. Noticing, Shinobu grasps her hand.
It makes the girl choke out a sob as tears fall down her cheeks.
“I-I’m sorry… I’m sorry…. It was so scary…”
She takes a deep breath.
“I didn’t want to… I really didn’t want to eat them…but I was so hungry...”
The remorseful expression on the girl’s face is genuine. Shinobu squeezes her hand.
“I know,” she says, giving a sad smile. “It must have been difficult, but it’s over. You can rest now.”
The girl tries to smile. She closes her eyes before ultimately stopping as a whole, falling silent with limp limbs. The thick air inside the forest lifts, replaced by the faint smell of wisteria.
Shinobu feels sick.
“That’s that...”
She sighs, sheathing her sword. The sun is setting soon, so she’ll need to get rid of the corpse or it’ll rot on its own, attracting more demons. She supposes that she’ll have to get back to making new medicines tomorrow morning by the time she gets back to the mansion.
Her body aches—and she’s exhausted. Frustrated. Irritated. She wants to sleep, but there’s still work left for her to do.
I have no choice. Let’s get this done quickly.
Readjusting her haori and carefully picking up the butterfly ornament, she begins the burial preparations, wondering how long the journey back home will take. She’ll need to revisit the village first.
“A key, huh...”
Shinobu looks down at the necklace. She clenches her fists.
The premises are dark and peaceful, with only the soft rustling of nearby trees filling in the silence. The fatigue Shinobu experiences doesn’t go away, but it is somewhat lessened as she relaxes her breathing in the comforting mansion.
One of the crows have already notified the Master about her completed mission, so there was no need to personally visit him herself—and considering her current physical state, Shinobu wasn’t sure if she even should in the first place. Her priority was to make him feel at ease, not worried after all.
So she instead heads straight to the Butterfly Mansion, ready to turn in for the day. No one welcomes her at the door, but that’s fine with her. She doesn’t have the energy for cheerful greetings.
The halls creaks as Shinobu makes her way down to her room. Without the moonlight, it would practically be impossible moving around without accidentally tripping over something. Although the mansion was often kept neat and tidy, it was the exact opposite during on other occasions.
And, from what she could observe, today was one of those busy days. Along the way, she picks up gauzes and mortles, moving them off to the side with the mental note to clean everything before sunrise.
Hm?
Without looking up from the ground, she eventually bumps into something or rather someone. The smooth fabric and soft hair that she is met with are immediate indications as to who it is much to her own dismay.
Shinobu curses to herself.
“Good afternoon, Tomioka-san,” she greets, face muffled into his haori. “May I ask why you’re roaming around like you own the place?”
The Water Pillar was tensed up, seemingly startled by the sudden attack to his back, but he relaxes upon hearing the familiar voice. Then, his shoulders sag at the realization that it was specifically her.
“...Medicine,” Giyuu says, turning to face the Insect Pillar. “I ran out.”
She steps back, quirking an eyebrow at the answer before recalling his previous mission where he ended up getting poisoned by a group of demons banding together; humans were apparently involved and used as bait to handicap him. In the end, he managed to take them all down alone and rescue everyone involved, but most of his right side became paralyzed, rendering him useless.
When she had seen him rushed into the Butterfly Mansion and heard what happened, Shinobu wasn’t sure if she admired him for his dedication and skill or thought of him as an idiot for being so reckless. She decided on both, after enough pondering.
“Is that so? Then…”
Shinobu reaches into her pockets and hands him a spare bag with the necessary medicine—there were often accidents when it came to poison, so she found it useful to carry on her during missions.
“There. You only need to take it for two more weeks, right? This should be enough.”
Giyuu nods, and she knows that’s the best “thank you” she’s going to ever get out of him. As he takes the bag and tucks it away, he points to his neck.
“You’re bleeding.”
Right. She had forgotten all about her own injuries. Brushing away the few hair strands from her neck, Shinobu finds blood still trickling down her skin, leaving behind a burning sensation. She clicks her tongue quietly before returning her gaze on him with a trained smile.
“It’s simply a scratch. Nothing too serious,” she reassures. “I’ll tend it once I get to my room.”
“Make sure to drink some medicine too then.”
“I will. Why wouldn’t I...”
She trails off, realizing his comment. It’s rare for him to say something thoughtful, let alone act on it. Was he finally warming up to her? Did he return to his common senses? The man was too much of a mystery to figure out.
All she knows is that he’s confusing. So much so that she can’t help the natural teasing that comes out of her.
“Oh my… Are you concerned for me?” A loud gasp is made for effect as she purposely tries to hide her shock. “I’m impressed! To think, that you’re capable of such a thing.”
His expression turns into one of exasperation as he turns his back on her and grumbles to himself (“I’m capable of many things…”). Shinobu can only find it amusing, how she’s learned well enough that he was sulking.
How very like him. Despite her demeanor towards him, it would be a lie to say she didn’t feel a little touched that he would say something so obvious yet considerate in his usual emotionless tone.
Shinobu expects that to be the end of their conversation and for him to return back to his own room, but he stays in one spot, deep in thought. When he turns slightly to face her, curiosity is written over his face.
“...Was it difficult?“
“Annoying, really. The mission took up more time because the demon kept jumping everywhere.” She lets out a dry laugh, recalling the girl’s last words and tears—she suppresses a shudder. “Without my poison, who knows how long it would have taken.”
“It was originally assigned to me,” he states, frowning.
“Is that really all you have to say? Look after yourself first, then you’ll get to do all your missions you want.”
Giyuu sulks even more at that. For someone who has no tolerance towards those that don’t know their limitations, he sure forgot to apply the same mindset to himself.
“I’m working on it,” he grumbles, and there’s a hint of sincerity in those words. She pats his shoulder in encouragement.
“Good! Make a swift recovery, Tomioka-san. We can’t have you lazing around in bed forever now... You’re a Pillar too, remember?”
He says nothing to that. Shinobu has her own suspicions as to why, but she doesn’t voice them. There was another time and place for that.
“In any case,” she begins, readjusting her haori to the passing wind, “it’s getting quite late. It’ll become morning soon.”
Her eyes fixate on the moon for a brief moment before she begins walking. The question of whether she’ll be able to sleep peacefully tonight remains in the back of her mind, but she feels as though she already knows the answer to that.
“Kochou.”
Her feet stops, and she waits. Giyuu is silent for a moment before he finally speaks.
“Did something happen?”
It’s a question that bothers her. When Shinobu turns to face at him, he’s wearing the same bitter expression as he usually does—except there’s something off about it. He looks at her with neither pity nor understanding, but instead, clarity. The stone walls he had carefully built up isolating himself from everyone was gone, replaced by a peaceful, calming air.
It’s like looking into water. Giyuu was oblivious, but he was more perceptive and critical than the credit he’s given. He was better at picking up at things when it applied to those around him rather than himself. Time after time again does she see a different side to him herself, but lately, he’s changed, especially after how the Kamado siblings came into his life.
And that unnerves her.
“Nothing at all,” Shinobu snaps. “And even if there was, what could you do about it?”
Her words come out more harsh and aggressive than intended. The anger from before is replaced with immediate regret when she sees Giyuu taken back, not expecting such a response. A part of her wants to take it all back, but how can she? It was the truth anyway.
Even so, she thinks, that was too much. At this rate, she’ll be venting out her frustrations on him when he hasn’t even done anything to purposely provoke her. He doesn’t deserve such treatment.
“...I’m sorry. That was uncalled for.” Shinobu sighs with heavy shoulders as her head lowers. “I’m exhausted. That’s all.”
It wasn’t the whole truth, yet it wasn’t a complete lie either. There was more to it, Giyuu knows, but he nods slowly. He looks somewhat apologetic, and it makes her feel worse. Shinobu would rather have him get angry, ignore her, do something, than just accept and excuse everything when it came to her actions. It would make things so much easier, less complicated for the both of them.
The air around him remains calm, though there’s a slight disturbance in it when he approaches her. She expects him to walk away completely, but he stops right in front of her, causing Shinobu to look down.
She’s not sure if she can meet his gaze without keeping her emotions in check. So she waits until he eventually gives up and returns back to his room, where they can pretend nothing happened in the morning.
But that plan never comes. Instead Shinobu feels it—the weight of his hand on top of her head. It takes her a few seconds to register the situation.
Was something in her hair? Was he just being weird again? Or was this a side effect of the medicine he’s been taking? There were too many explanations that fit, but a part of her was keenly aware of the possibility that it could be due to him trying to comfort her.
She forces herself to glance up the Water Pillar.
“What are you doing?”
Giyuu opens his mouth; nothing comes out of it. Evidently, he’s not sure himself. Shinobu is embarrassed on his behalf.
“Please think of a reason before doing these sorts of things... You know this is why no one likes you, right?”
His eyebrows furrow at that. He finally lifts up his hand from her head, and Shinobu is able to think clearly for once.
“Did you want to pat my head that bad?” she inquires him, trying to get the exact response she needs to hear. “Well? What is it?”
She doesn’t expect an honest reply. To her surprise, however, he wears a gentle expression. His voice is quiet when he speaks.
“You’ve worked hard.”
Shinobu stares at him. He doesn’t elaborate; considering his own observations, he doesn’t need to. Giyuu reaches inside the bag of medicine given to him before handing her a small antidote.
“You’re a Pillar too, so it’s only expected...but good job.”
His words are short, but they hold a lot of meaning to her. More than Shinobu would like to admit. She takes the small bottle from him, reading the ingredients. A small laugh slips out of her when she reads her own instructions.
'Apply to affected burned area twice a day. Change gauzes everyday. If burning persists, visit Kochou Shinobu.’
In one way or another, the Water Pillar manages to surpass her expectations everyday. She wonders how he could have known but remembers the fact that he’s been through countless battles against demons. He’s probably more familiar with the severity of injuries more than anyone else, aside from herself.
If there was any indication that he seemed satisfied with himself, the slight tug on his lips showed it. He doesn’t seem aware of it though, and Shinobu doesn’t point it out either—as thanks for his consideration.
“You’re really quite something else…”
Giyuu doesn’t understand what she means. Regardless, he hums in acknowledgement. “I try my best,” he agrees.
“That’s not—“
Shinobu bites down on her tongue to refrain herself from engaging any further with his nonsense. She shakes her head, walking down the halls; Giyuu follows.
By the time they reach her room, he can barely keep his eyes open. Shinobu hands him an extra pillow for his journey back to his room, and he gladly accepts.
“If you keep walking around like this at night, you’re going to hurt yourself,” she murmurs as he lets out a yawn. “Are you sure you can head back alone?”
Giyuu inclines, but the drooping of his head says otherwise. She gives him a sharp poke, startling him awake.
“It’s not my fault if someone accidentally steps on you in the morning. At least try not to sleep in the halls.”
He makes no promise. She pushes him forward as he stumbles forward, and he begins to depart on his way. His shoulders are hunched over the pillow as he shuffles away.
Ah. Shinobu almost forgets to do something. Just before he disappears out of sight, she calls out to him.
“Tomioka-san?”
He lifts his head up at her. Shinobu gives him a smile, a genuine one this time.
“Goodnight. And...thank you.”
His eyes widen in surprise. Before she can add a teasing remark, he turns away.
“Go to sleep, Kochou.”
She laughs. They’re back to normal—but not quite. Shinobu likes to think they’ve grown a little closer, in fact.
Maybe he’s not the only one who's changed.
She thinks back to the demon and family. She remembers how the mother burst into tears upon seeing the necklace, how her youngest daughter could only hold back sobs as she hugged it close to her chest. She remembers how they kept thanking her over and over, even when she said there was no need for it. She vividly recalls their anguish, their gratitude, their relief, all of it.
"I knew," the mother’s voice repeats in her head. “I knew Shouko became a demon. I can’t imagine how lonely she must have felt, with no one to rely on but herself. I wish… I wish I could have seen her that night she ran away and told her that it was okay.”
Shinobu slides the door behind her shut. She listens to Giyuu’s quiet footsteps until eventually—there was nothing.