The World On His Shoulders | Demon slayer x Male reader

Chapter LII

Third Person's POV.

Sanemi knelt beside Kumeno's tomb. His fingers gently arranged the flowers, freshly picked from the estate's garden, laying them with care on the grave.

He brushed a stray rock aside, his gaze lost in the memories that lingered around the tombstones. "Hey Masachika," he began. "It's been more than a year, but it feels like I lost you just yesterday."

Sanemi's eyes softened as he crouched down, speaking as if his friend could hear him. "My brothers... they're struggling. You always knew what to say and how to help them. I wish you were here."

A moment of pride came in his eyes as he spoke of Y/N's recent victory. "He defeated an Upper Moon. Can you believe it?" But his expression quickly clouded over, troubled by the contents of Tamayo's notes, revealing a depth of concern rarely seen in the Wind Hashira.

Sanemi's hands shifted from his pockets to clasp together. "I don't know how to help him. I wish you could guide me." The cemetery, a place of rest for many, now served as a confidant for Sanemi's unspoken burdens.

 "Gods, Masachika..." he began, his voice strained. He paused, grappling with the complexity of Y/N's condition, a challenge for someone who always considered himself more brawn than brains. "I ain't smart... not like mom was, or how Y/N picks up things. I'm more like... like our old man," he admitted.

"I stole a book from Kanae's sister. Took me a while, but I read it... Y/N, he's got this... thing in his head. It's getting worse."

He struggled to articulate the medical terms he'd come across, his understanding rudimentary at best. "It's like his brain's getting banged up inside his skull, again and again. Every hit, every fight, it's just... tearing him up in there. Like his mind's getting scrambled." Sanemi's explanation was confusing even to himself.

"The notes... they talked about memory loss, mood swings, even... even getting violent," he continued. The notion of Y/N suffering silently, his mental state deteriorating, clearly pained Sanemi. He looked down, his brother's condition hitting him hard. The brother he'd always seen as invincible was facing an invisible, internal battle that Sanemi felt powerless to fight.

Sanemi's voice trembled as he continued, "There's a lot of bad shit in Y/N's head... trauma, anxiety, depression. His mood swings... they can get worse." He pinched the bridge of his nose.

Opening his eyes, he gazed blankly at Kumeno's tombstone. "And his groin... remember those cock jokes we used to make? Not funny anymore." He sighed heavily. "When he was treated that night, the damage was... it was horrific according to the demon woman. The demon blood did some healing, but it's a twisted kind of irony, ain't it? Some of the damage... no one knows if it'll ever fully heal. Hell, even having a family might be just a dream for him now."

 "It's... it's not just physical, either. The mental scars, the humiliation... it's private, too personal. And he doesn't even know our family's gone. Thinks they're alive, sending money to ghosts..." He shook his head in anguish. "How the hell do I break that to him? How do I tell him he's been living a lie?"

Sanemi's struggle was every gesture. "How do I explain this to people who can help, like those Kocho sisters? They're smart, but what he's been through..." He trailed off, lost in thought. "If I tell him, so he can decide whether to tell them, he'll just get defensive, claim he's fine. That prideful idiot..." Sanemi's words were a mix of anger and deep-seated concern, a brother's love battling the hard exterior he often presented to the world. "The woman said there would be some things that could happen but her damn notes didn't say...showing traits of a demon in the making..."