MUCH RELIEF FOLLOWED THE GROUPS RETURN, THOUGH LOTS OF MYSTERY HUNG AROUND BASING ON HOW THE UPPERMOON THREE GOT AWAY WITHOUT KILLING ANYONE.
as much as you wanted to boast to anyone who would hear it that you stunned akaza and basically defeated him, you didn't want to be labelled as weirder than you already were.
other than those who saw, the only person you've told so far...
"you did WHAT?!!?"
you shrugged as sanemi stared at you in disbelief.
"i used my phone flashlight and blinded him! ooh, i got pictures too!"
"what the hell is a phone?!"
"just an australian gadget"
he narrowed his eyes, obviously skeptical of your blatant lie.
nobody knew of your true origins, and you didn't particularly want them to.
kyojuro was currently in a coma, resting the days away in the butterfly estate.
thanks to you, he wasn't in critical condition, though was still severely injured. shinobu stated he was in a coma to let his body rest. once he was healed enough, he would awake.
you hoped it was soon, as you still felt relatively guilty for not having protected him sooner.
it seemed tapdole had also taken a liking to him, spending lots of hours sitting on his legs and tugging at his clothes, presumably wanting to play.
well, tapdole, the man is half dead. so you can wait.
over the next few days, everybody healed up and re-gathered their energy, you telling sanemi all about enmu. he seemed especially angry at the mention of the demon kissing you, and surprised he just let you kill him.
it wasn't surprising when you got summoned to ubuyashiki's estate later that same day.
you departed, hoping he wouldn't ask what you think he was going to ask.
you purse your lips nervously, sprinting towards the mansion.
it didn't take long, and you arrived shortly after.
"kiriya! hi" you waved to the boy, who looked up and beamed slightly. "big sister [name]!"
"i'm here to see your father. is he busy right now?"
he shook his head. "come"
you followed short after the boy who led you to the same, familiar room.
"bye bye, [name]"
"bye kiriya" you ruffled the boys hair. he blushed slightly and waved as you knocked on the door.
"come in" the same, gentle voice called.
you slid open the door, shutting it behind you and sitting on the cushion in front of kagaya.
"hi" you said awkwardly.
he smiled. "i presume you know what i'm going to ask"
you bit your lip"
"and you have every right to say no, though i do believe you are fully capable. as you know, you recently killed a lowermoon one. by our rules in the demon slayer corps, that is more than enough to equip you to become a hashira. however, it is your choice. you would like to become a hashira, [name]?"
you looked to your lap.
"i.. thank you very much for the offer, kagaya. but.. i have to decline"
he smiled in understanding.
"i didn't really kill the lowermoon. he didn't put up any fight, and i don't believe it is fair for me to move up without having done anything" you looked to the side.
"of course. it is commendable, though, [name]"
you looked up in confusion.
"many slayers would jump at the opportunity to rise the ranks without any care for whether they deserve it or not. the hashira are the most crucial part of this corporation, and they truly are the pillars. they save countless lives every day and many don't understand the true responsibility it takes to join the ranks"
you blush slightly at the praise.
"thank you.."
he smiled, "you are excused"
you bowed to the man before exiting the room, weight off your chest.
you knew he wouldn't be, but you were still nervous he'd be mad that you denied the request.
and maybe at the beginning of your journey you would have. but you are coming to understand that this isn't a short journey. if you have any speckling of understanding about what happened to you, you would be here at least until the final battle. or, more logically, until your death.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
