Demon Slayer Corps Headquarters, Ubuyashiki Estate, Courtyard.
Thud!
Gyomei's massive body was smashed onto the ground once again.
He struggled to sit up, managing to fold his legs cross-legged, but he had no strength left to stand and fight that man.
After such a long and fierce battle, all Gyomei could hear was the man's long, powerful breathing, indicating that he still had reserves of energy.
'He's truly a monster.'
He never thought that he, who had always been called a monster, would one day call another person a "monster."
Gyomei was the one who held out the longest; the others were already exhausted and collapsed on the ground. He sighed, bowed toward Kagaya, and said, "Oyakata-sama, Aomori-san's power is superhuman. His words are trustworthy. On behalf of the Hashira, I agree to Aomori-san's request."
Although this battle had cost the Demon Slayer Corps some face, compared to gaining a powerful ally they could rely on, it was insignificant.
The opportunity for humanity to finally eradicate the Demons seemed truly at hand.
Thinking of this, Gyomei shed warm tears once more.
"You have all worked hard," Kagaya, who had been informed of the battle's result by his two daughters, bowed forward. "Aomori-san, I apologize profusely, and I offer my apologies on behalf of these children. I hope you will not hold a grudge."
Aomori waved his hand, his breathing gradually evening out. "In the matter of killing Muzan, we are natural allies. I hope we can cooperate well in the future."
"That goes without saying!" His urgency to destroy the Demons was barely concealed in his tone of excitement. The vague future he had seen seemed to be manifesting before him. "From now on, we will fully cooperate with you. Unfortunately, the Hashira Meeting cannot continue today."
Except for Sanemi, who had charged at Aomori like a madman and had been knocked unconscious, the remaining Hashira had sustained injuries of varying degrees and would require at least a day of recuperation.
"That's fine. Then let's fulfill a few of my requests first."
"Please, speak freely."
"First, I need two Nichirin Swords."
"No problem. I will ask the swordsmiths to custom-forge two Nichirin Swords for you."
"Second, I need all the data and resources your Demon Slayer Corps has regarding the Breathing Styles, including cultivation methods."
"The documents currently at Headquarters can be delivered to you tonight. For those scattered among the Hashira, former Hashira, and cultivators, I will have the Kasugai Crows issue directives, and they should arrive at Headquarters within five days."
"Third, I want to join the Demon Slayer Corps. From this day forward, I will be Kakado, the Rumble Hashira!"
…
"Kagaya, is he the person of the future?"
After the Hashira Meeting concluded, Kagaya returned to the inner room and met his wife, Amane, who had been waiting for him.
"There is no doubt. He is that person! Cough, cough!" Kagaya coughed violently twice, his voice laced with resentment accumulated over a thousand years. "At the crossroads of thunder and light, the Demons shall crumble, and the Curse shall fade into nothing!"
The Ubuyashiki family shared a blood relation with Muzan. After Muzan became a Demon a thousand years ago, the entire family seemed to be cursed. The babies born were sickly, and most of them did not live past the age of 30, even if they survived infancy.
In Kagaya's view, this millennium-long feud would be resolved in this generation.
…
"This is the Butterfly Mansion. It's the treatment facility that I manage." In front of a residence, Kanae smiled and introduced the place to Aomori and Tanjiro beside her. Behind them were the Hashira, being supported or carried by Demon Slayer Corps staff.
Since Kanae's injuries were relatively minor, Kagaya had asked her to be Aomori's private consultant and, incidentally, bring the more severely injured Hashira over for treatment.
The group entered the Butterfly Mansion and saw two girls, one older and one younger, emerging from an inner room.
"Onee-chan, you're back!" The older girl eagerly jumped in front of Kanae, the younger girl following close behind.
They were Kanae's younger sister, Shinobu Kocho, and her successor, Kanao Tsuyuri.
"Huh?" Shinobu first noticed Aomori standing next to Kanae Kocho, then the large group of people behind them.
"More injured people?" When she clearly saw the state of the injured, a chilling sense of dread shot through her. "Did a Demon attack Headquarters?!"
Otherwise, there was no explanation for why all the monstrous Hashira would be injured together.
"Of course not. They got into an argument during the meeting and fought each other," Kanae said, immediately pushing Shinobu toward the injured. "I'm leaving them in your care, Shinobu."
Having said that, she pulled Aomori into the inner room.
"Is that true?" Shinobu looked suspiciously at her sister's back and asked Kyojuro, who was first in line.
"Ah, it was a memorable battle!" Kyojuro laughed heartily.
"It is true," Giyu said expressionlessly.
"That's right, it was all that Sanemi guy's fault!" Tengen chimed in.
"Oh." Shinobu temporarily believed them.
…
Kanae led Aomori to an empty room and let out a long breath. "Phew, it's easy to be seen through when lying to Shinobu."
"My apologies for the trouble," Aomori had requested the Hashira to keep his arrival a secret so that Muzan would not catch on too soon.
Kanae shook her head. "Here is a Demon Slayer Corps uniform, though the lightning haori that signifies the Rumble Hashira's identity might only arrive in a couple of days. Besides that, do you need anything else?"
Kanae had been startled when she heard Aomori say he intended to become the Rumble Hashira. If he had said so earlier, why did he have to start by posturing as someone demanding the Demon Slayer Corps serve him?
"This is enough," Aomori took the Demon Slayer Corps uniform and shut the door on Kanae.
'Looks like he's the cool and aloof type?' Kanae thought, resting her chin on her hand.
A moment later, the door reopened.
Kanae, who had been waiting outside the door, focused her eyes, looking him up and down suspiciously. She then glanced into the room, and only after confirming she sensed no one else's breathing did she hesitantly ask, "Aomori-san?"
"With thunder, I smash the darkness! I am the new Rumble Hashira, Kakado. It is a pleasure to meet you, my beautiful lady. Please take care of me."
Standing at the door now was a handsome young man in a Demon Slayer Corps uniform. Unlike Aomori, he wore black-rimmed glasses and wore a carefree, uninhibited smile.
'This smile, it's a completely different person from the aloof Aomori-san!' Kanae took a step back, a hint of caution hidden in her purple-pink eyes.
"Woah, looks like the disguise worked pretty well, huh?" As he spoke, he took off the glasses and used his original voice, saying, "It's me."
"It really is Aomori-san!" Kanae was surprised and circled Aomori, unable to understand how a mere pair of glasses could have such a miraculous effect.
"That is truly amazing! It must be sorcery, right? Sorcery! Does it change a person's personality?" Kanae leaned closer to Aomori, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"Let's just call it sorcery. The personality change is something I deliberately acted out. If I'm going to put on a disguise, I might as well be thorough," Aomori, putting his glasses back on, instantly reverted to the sunny, outgoing Kakado.
"It really is sorcery! I knew it! Shinobu keeps saying sorcery doesn't exist, but even Demons have Blood Demon Arts, so it's perfectly normal for humans to have sorcery, right? Say, say, what other sorcery do you know? Do you have a spell for walking through walls? Do you have an invisibility spell?..." Kanae rattled off a long string of questions, leaving Aomori momentarily stunned.
"Ah, I'm sorry. Did I say too much? It's just that I'm so interested in these kinds of things!" Kanae blushed, slightly embarrassed.
"It's nothing, nothing. As long as you're happy."
"But... I feel like Aomori-san is enjoying this, too."
"...Please take me to the Swordsmith Village immediately."
"Eh~ Alright then."
————
Note: Kakado is a meme in china about someone who doesn't looked like Kakashi. Like making fun of someone cosplaying Kakashi who looks more like "Kakado". In Hanzi, Kakado = Kaka + east , while Kakashi = Kaka + west.
You can read the ahead chapter on Patr if you're interested: p-atre-on.c-om/Overgod [Just remove the hyphen to access normally]