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A mixture of dirt, sand, and rocks being pushed into your face was not comfortable. Especially when Tanjiro couldn’t move his arms and the pain from his injuries was practically rushing everywhere in his body. Something was wrong with his jaw. Overall, everything about this position was not good.
Especially with the man crouched over his back who was pinning him down into the position. Then, the man in black and white started to tell him about the importance of the people in front of him. The people who had a wave of disbelief, distrust, disgust, anger, and a small twist of pity mixed into the mess of scents.
A woman in a butterfly-styled haori was about to start the trial when she was interrupted by some of the swordsmen around her who seemed ready to chop his sister’s and his head off without a single word or explanation.
One by one, he was forced to hear them complain and point out how much easier it would be to end their lives quickly. Not once was he able to get out a word in his defense in the face of all of the mad, top-ranked slayers.
When all of the barely hidden insults and accusations had slowed, he was finally able to explain what had happened.
Yet they still did not believe it. But it was true! Everything was true! Why wouldn’t they listen to him? Why? Why?!
He knows they must be afraid to believe such a thing because of their duty to protect humans from demons.
His tale must be one out of a myth to them. How his sister had never eaten a human or a single drop of blood. How her actions affected his family to a point where their actions reflected hers like she was the leader. Multiple demons sleeping to recover energy and fighting with such power seen on the mountain? He knew it must be hard to believe. Maybe that is why none of them trusted his words.
But he could prove it if they just gave him some time, a single moment to show how gentle his family is despite their demon bodies!
“Listen to me, please! I became a swordsman, demon slayer, so I could find a cure for my family!” He heard at least two of them scoff as their scents remained heavy in their disbelief. One was looking at him pitifully while another’s gaze was trained on the clouds above. “Just let me prove to you that my family—!”
Demon. He breathed in deeply. No, multiple demons whose scents were familiar to him— his family! Tanjiro turned his head to follow the smell just to get a wave of anticipation and rage from the white-haired slayer approaching with a sick grin on his face.
The white-haired swordsman was dragging his family’s boxes behind him as a black and white-dressed servant pleaded with him to let go of the boxes. The swordsman ignored her words as he called out. “Is that the famous demon slayer who brought all these demons with him?”
“Shinazugawa, please don’t act this way, especially without the master here.” The woman in the butterfly haori said, her smile had dropped yet the peaceful expression remained as her scent twisted into a feeling of annoyance.
Tanjiro focused on the wooden boxes where he knew his family was resting. Almost like time had slowed, he watched Shinazugawa smirk and stab into the closest box. And then almost in quick succession, he stabbed into two of the other boxes with nothing but the sickest smile growing on his face like he enjoyed toying with him.
The sickening smell of his family’s blood and panic flooded into his nostrils.
Tanjiro lost it.
He barely remembers how he had jumped up from the ground and rushed at Shinazugawa with rage. He does remember the stinging pain when he hammered his head down with as much force as he could right into Shinazugawa’s forehead. He doesn’t remember hearing anything that was happening around him while he spread out his body over the three boxes to make himself a human shield for his family.
He kicked out at Shinazugawa who returned to the spot with his bloodied sword until Tomioka had shown up to block his sword from swinging down on him.
Then, a soft, melodic voice echoed through the courtyard space that made everyone freeze in place.
“The master has arrived.”
His feet were grabbed to pull him off the boxes and guide him to kneel on the ground. ‘Guide’ was a nice way to describe having his head forced down to the dirt by the scarred slayer. He peeked his eyes open to take a look at all the other slayers who had fallen to the kneeling position to show respect.
“Master, I pray for your good health,” Shinazugawa said without a single bit of vitriol or cockiness like before. “But I must ask, what is this situation?”
How is it that he is acting so respectful now when he didn’t care about whatever orders he was given when he stabbed into his family’s boxes? Was he like a child who hid the fact they stole from a market stall by being all sweet to the owner?
Tanjiro glanced up as far as he could to see a sick-looking man with scars covering most of his face. His chest tightened at the familiar smell radiating off of him. The same smell came from his father during his final year.
“I apologize for not informing you all about this discourse of Tanjiro and his sister.” The master’s soft voice washed over the courtyard. “I received a letter from the former Water Hashira, Urokodaki Sakonji. Please read it, my daughter.”
“Please spare the Kamado family. Even in their starved state, the family did not eat humans and this has remained true for more than two years. They have merely survived by resting their bodies and gaining energy through slumber.” The white-haired girl explained in a clear tone to everyone listening. “If any of them consume human flesh, Kamado Tanjiro, Urokodaki Sakonji, and Tomioka Giyuu will atone by committing seppuku.
Tanjiro nearly teared up at the end at hearing how both Tomioka and his mentor would kill themselves if his family ever committed the sin of eating humans.
“We can’t guarantee that they won’t attack humans.“ The master commanded attention with his words. “But I have more news to share with all of you concerning young Kamado. Tanjiro has met Kibutsuji Muzan.”
There were exclamations and shouts from most of the slayers around him at this information. People were asking questions like how it happened, where was he spotted, and what he looked like. Then, his face got pushed into the ground hard by Shinazugawa. “What do you know?! What is his stronghold?”
“Shinazugawa, be calm.” The grip on his hair relaxed only slightly as the demon slayer’s hand twisted into the locks of his short hair. “Kitbutsuji has previously sent pursuers after Tanjiro. We don’t know the full reason as to why he is a target. But it might have something to do with his demon family.” The master continued as his daughters remained at his side, staring out at the gathered slayers with matching smiles. “I believe something is happening with her that Kibutsuji never saw coming,”
“I apologize, master. But I cannot accept this!” Shinazugawa said while he yanked his head back. “Not after what demon slayers have been through! Not after so many people lost their lives to demons! I cannot trust this boy or the demons he has with him.”
“I see.” The master hummed, lowering his hand to pat his daughters’ heads in the following silence. “What will it take for you to be more convinced to at least relax in their presence?”
Shinazugawa sat up straighter from where he was kneeling. “I believe I can provide the evidence needed to prove that we all have a right to distrust this.”
And... the master agreed.
Suddenly, Shinazugawa was moving towards his family’s boxes when another pair of vicious hands held him against the ground in a vice grip. He could only watch as the white-haired swordsman rushed forward and manhandled each of the boxes into the open room.
Each box was flung without a care to the inhabitants which made him afraid for their safety and angry that they were being handled like this.
He tried to call out for his sister but choked when the swordsman behind him grabbed the back of his throat and knelt on his back. He let out a strained yell due to his injured ribs hurting more due to the other’s action. Thankfully, the woman from before ordered him to correct his grip on him which made the hashira loosen his hold the slightest bit which allowed him to breathe more comfortably.
He tensed when he saw Shinazugawa just stab into the boxes again with a proud grin. Then, the hashira sliced open his arm and let the blood drop on the wooden boxes and the floor around the boxes.
“Hey, demons. Come and get it,” Shinazugawa said. The scent of fresh blood from almost all of his family members joined the hashira’s blood that fell to the wooden panels below their feet. It smelled almost like that one child from the mansion mission. Did he have marechi blood?
Oh, this trial would be more difficult than he expected since that type of blood was like heaven-sent to regular demons.
But his family was different. They could power through. He knows it!
He could smell his family’s demonic blood stinging his nose as one by one each of the doors to the boxes opened slowly. Tanjiro watched each of his siblings crawl out and grow to their normal size with his mother being the last one and holding Rokuta. Was— Rokuta didn’t look like he had any blood on him! Shinazugawa’s sword must have missed him. Thank goodness!
His sister stood at the forefront with her pink, blood-stained haori and that bamboo muzzle holding back her elongated fangs. Takeo was a step behind her with their mother to the side of him. Both his mother and Takeo are standing in front of Shigeru and Hanako.
It was clear they were guarding the younger ones from the hashira’s sword. Mother’s hold on Rokuta was turned away from Shinazugawa and Takeo had both of his arms extended out to his sides to protect the two siblings from any sword slices.
The smell of blood was so strong in the air that he almost couldn’t smell anything else. Then, a sharp pang of hunger pierced through the smog of blood. And before he could begin to panic, the hunger was swiftly laced with the subdued scent of drowsiness.
That was the exact smell that Nezuko had when she got sleepy. Wait... All of them were starting to have that same smell!
Takeo looked like he was unsteady on his feet with only their mother’s hand to correct his stance. And Rokuta was rubbing at his eye even when he wasn’t injured! That was just like him to take the chance to nap at any possible time. Tanjiro felt himself relax at the recognized scent of sleepiness affecting all of his family.
A sense of anticipation bubbled in his throat as the slayers behind him carefully watched their movements like his family would attack even with their eyes fighting to stay open.
“What happens now?” One of the other swordsmen asked in a whisper. It was the one with hair that reminded him so much of sakura mochi.
Tanjiro watched his sister’s eyes flutter. Yeah, this was going to happen. Even though he could smell the minimal amount of confused interest behind him, the amount of sleepiness was overpowering it.
The fire-haired one answered with a powerful tone to his words. “We watch to see who makes the first move—“
BAM!
Bam! Thump! Thump! Bam!
Everyone jumped back as his demonic family started falling to the wooden floor one by one. The master’s daughter seemed to jump slightly at the first loud sound and shifted backward into the man either to protect him or have his presence comfort them.
All of the scents from the smell of anticipation to the ironic smell of fresh blood were replaced with a wave of sleep wafting off each family member. Each of the scents was lined or laced with sweet, positive emotions that he could almost taste on his tongue.
Aww, Shigeru was twitching his foot in his sleep like he was trying to play with a ball in his dream. That was so cute.
It almost distracted him from the blinding pain that was slowly but surely catching up to him. Oh, his ribs
He turned his head to see all of the slayers looking at the pile of sleeping demons with confusion while some of their hands still twitched toward their swords like they were expecting it to be a ruse.
Yet no growls echoed in the air. The only sound was the rumbling snores from his family’s chests as they slowly started to seek out the other’s warmth in their slumber.
“Hah?!” Shinazugawa yelled out in outrage. His blood was still ignored as his family continued to sleep like calm babies.
None of his family members were coherent enough to answer the enticing smell of his blood or his loud, aggravated voice. Rokuta let out a yawn as he cuddled up to Mother’s chest.
“What happened, daughter?” The gentle voice of the master piped up despite the almost silent chaos in the courtyard.
His daughter at his right side smiled, “All of the demons have fallen asleep without even moving towards Shinazugawa or the blood spilled on the ground.
“Hm. What an amazing feat. They fell asleep so quickly,” The master noted with a bit of an awed tone in his soft voice. That scarred face turned towards the other swordsmen. “Now it has been proven that—“
Takeo snorted in his sleep quite loudly as his legs twitched up into the air almost like Shigeru but with more ferocity in the movement.
“—The Kamado family won’t—”
“Zzzzzzz....” Nezuko was next with a soft hiss escaping her mouth past the muzzle.
His mother’s soft hum of sleep echoed with Rokuta’s clawed hand grasping at the air near her on instinct even while in deep sleep.
“—won’t attack humans.” The master continued despite his family’s low snores interrupting him. It seemed like he was holding back a bigger smile or soft peels of laughter based on his expression. “I’m sure that even after this, there are some that still won’t accept her. But for now, I ask you to leave them be.”
Another snore followed his words like a verbal end to the conversation and meeting.