Tsunami of Dead Tears: Part 1

Epilogue

CAW! CAW! ALL DEMON SLAYERS, REPORT TO OKAYATA-SAMA! MUZAN HAS BEEN CAPTURED!!!

"Oh no..."

The four of them (Nezuko was in her box, so she doesn't count) looked on in horror as a huge pillar of black smoke rose from the mountains.

Shinobu ran first, and the others followed. As they got closer and closer their eyes found the charred remains of wisteria trees, burned down to black, shriveled tree corpses. The further they got, the more gruesome the sight was.

Finally, Shinobu froze, dead silent. The others paused as well, searching for what could have possibly made Shinobu freeze like that.

Then they saw it.

Through the heavy fog of ash and embers, they could see the Butterfly Estate, wasting away in a sea of flames.

And right in front of it were the cold bodies of Sumi, Kiyo, Naho, and Aoi. They've been dead for what seemed like hours.

Shinobu stumbled towards them, crawling on the ash-filled ground with tears in her eyes. As she took the three of them in her arms, she desperately called out to them.

"Aoi... wake up... please wake up..."

Giyuu placed his hand on her shoulder, and she didn't retaliate.

"They're gone, Shinobu." Giyuu muttered. "I'm sorry."

Shinobu, after hearing him, slowly placed the girls' bodies back on the ground and stood up, wiping the charcoal off her haori.

"Let's find this asshole." Shinobu said.

Giyuu nodded. They all quickly sprinted through the headquarters, searching for a sign of a demon, then finally, they could hear faint voices.

Giyuu's eyes widened. He stopped in his tracks and took Shinobu's arm.

"What?!" Shinobu said. "What are you doing?!"

"Don't interfere." Giyuu said. "You'll ruin it."

"What are you talking abo-"

Tanjiro also restrained her, confusing her even more.

"He's right. We shouldn't do anything."

"Uuh, guys?" Zenitsu whispered. "I think I heard a thud..."

The four of them climbed to the roof of a building and looked down below. To their horror, they saw the corpses of their fellow Hashira, all surrounded in a pool of crimson red blood.

Shinobu almost screamed, but Giyuu held her mouth shut, knowing something she didn't.

. . .

Muzan slit the throat of the last Hashira, a masked man with a striped haori.

Okayata STILL didn't budge.

"Hahaha, I knew it." Muzan said. "You're just a selfish tyrant that doesn't care one bit about his own people."

"You're wrong, Muzan." Okayata said. "Every time you slaughter one of my children, a piece of me mourns."

"Well, if that was true, you would tell me where the blue spider lily was."

"Their lives are worth my secret."

Muzan grit his teeth, then walked over to Okayata and clutched his throat.

"Well, if you don't tell me, I'll tear your head of your body, EXACTLY like what your 'children' did to MY people!"

"Go ahead then. Do it."

"TELL ME WHERE IT IS!"

"No."