Demon Slayer: Tanjuro Kamado returns from Sekiro

Chapter 1 - Kamado Tanjuro
It was pitch black all around.

"Tanjiro, remember to breathe."

In the dark and drowsy mind, deep voices echoed layer upon layer.

"Breathe……!"

Kamado Tanjirou suddenly woke up from his suffocation.

"Cough! Cough-cough-cough!!"

He took a deep breath, but was choked by the snow that buried his head deeply.

His entire face had turned purple due to prolonged suffocation and being buried in the icy snow.

The head is congested!

--correct!
—Father, father, he is still at home!
His father's voice echoed in his mind, Tanjiro looked flustered, he hastily pulled his head out of the snow:
"Father!"

White snow fell from the top of his head, and Tanjiro, who had just woken up, suddenly raised his head and looked in the direction of his own house.

The scalp-numbing smell of blood in the air still exists, and even becomes stronger.

Tanjiro's eye sockets trembled slightly, and the smell in the air made him feel very uncomfortable.

"Ha ha…"

He took a big gulp of air, and the exhaled gas formed a white mist in the icy environment.

The cold air stung his lungs.

The wind and snow were blowing randomly, and the bone-chilling chill almost froze Tanjiro's limbs trapped in the snow due to his fall.

in front of him.

creak...

The sound of feet stepping on the snow.

A familiar thin figure was standing at the door of the house, facing Tanjiro sideways, blocking Tanjiro in front of him.

He is dressed in a yellow and black square haori.

The long dark red hair was uncharacteristically tied into a high ponytail.

The sun pattern earrings on the ears are shaking slightly due to the snow mixed with the cold wind.

In his hand he was holding a knife that he had never seen before.

That is the back view of Kamado Tanjirou's father, Kamado Tanjurou.

Tanjiro's slightly trembling eyes reflected the two figures in front of him, he was a little dazed.

After a year of slumber, did my father finally wake up?

now.

Tanjuro was holding the black sword in his hand, the tip of the knife was drooping, and the sharp cold light was facing the front.

Confronting his father was a man Tanjiro had never seen before, wearing a black suit and a white top hat.

The disgusting smell of blood in the air was all emanating from this strange man.

Since Tanjiro fell down in the snow, he couldn't see the expression of his father who was turned away from him.

But he can, see the other side.

——The man in the black suit, with the horrified expression in the red pupils.

It was an expression like seeing a ghost.

……

……

one day ago.

On the mountain.

A well-groomed log house sits here.

This is the house of the Zaomen family.

They have lived here for generations, and it is said that they can be traced back to the Warring States Period.

It was daylight now, and the mountains were covered with morning mist.

Winter mornings always make people shiver with cold, not to mention that this is still on the mountain.

"Bang dang! Bang dang!"

A little chill seeped into the wooden house through the open door, and the wooden door shook slightly in the cold wind, making a sound.

The sleeping children in the room curled up subconsciously, and tightened their quilts.

As if he had noticed this, the boy who had just walked out of the door turned around with an apologetic face, and closed the door softly.

"Creak..." The old wooden door made a sour sound when it was squeezed.

Carrying a bamboo basket of charcoal, the dark red-haired boy with black and gray faces smiled and looked at his sleeping brothers and sisters through the crack of the door.

After locking the door, he stood up straight and prepared to set off with a basket full of charcoal on his back.

He is Tanjiro, the eldest son of the family.

Inside the cabin.

"call……"

Several children were huddling together, hugging each other, and sound asleep.

The slightly older one was a girl, who was sitting up in a daze, rubbing her hazy eyes.

"Ha-ah..." I stretched.

Turning his head, his eyes looked at the wooden door that was slowly closing the cracks, and there was some dazzling light coming from there.

The girl tilted her head slightly, she glanced at the empty seat beside her in a daze, and said to herself:

"…elder brother…?"

His sleepy gaze shifted from the space beside him to the middle of the bunk.

She saw her father who had lost his bedding because of the unconscious scramble between his sleeping brothers.

"what!"

In an instant, the confusion and drowsiness disappeared.

"Really..."

She smiled helplessly and sighed, then with a smile on her face, she took back the bedding from her younger brothers and spread it on her father again:
"Wake up, Takeo, Mao."

"No matter what, I can't take my father's quilt away."

When their names were called, the two boys who were sleeping together in their arms opened their eyes dimly.

Mouth dazedly responded:

"Sorry... sister..."

Looking at the beds of her elder brother and mother who have already packed up in the room, and the faint voice of conversation coming from outside the door, the girl is also ready to pack up and get up:
"All right."

"Brother and mother have already woken up, hurry up, you may have to go down the mountain today."

"it is good--"

In the room, there was the sound of Xixi Susuo starting to pack and dress.

"Mao, you're crushing me!" Takexiong put on his scarf, and kicked Mao, who had a shaved head beside him.

"It hurts...Brother Zhuxiong." Mao, who was younger than Takexiong, got up quickly, and he touched his smooth head:
"Sister Huazi, are you going down the mountain today?"

"Yes! . . . if possible."

The Zaomen family currently has six children.

They are Tanjiro, Mizuko, Takeo, Shigeru, Hanako, and Rokuta.

Except for Tanjirou who got up early, everyone is already awake now, stretching and getting out of bed.

And in the room, there was a person who was not making his own bed at the moment, and was still lying there as silently as a plant, who was particularly eye-catching under the support of others.

——It was a middle-aged man with a sallow complexion, long dark red hair, and a light scar on his left forehead.

His eyes were closed tightly, and his bare hands showed his shriveled muscles.

With thin yellow skin and dull skin, at first glance one would think that he is a poor man who is terminally ill and his days are numbered.

From the beginning to the end, he didn't make a sound.

It was so quiet that one couldn't help but wonder if he was dead.

The other people in the room seemed to be very used to the fact that the middle-aged man didn't respond.

Only the youngest Liutai, who had just reached the age where he could speak, held the man's finger, crying and unwilling to get up:
"Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo" Dad!"

His crying instantly attracted the attention of other people in the room.

Often the most straightforward expression of feelings, only children.

"Liutai..." Zhuxiong looked at Liutai's crying appearance, and then looked at the middle-aged man's still closed eyes, feeling a little depressed.

The same is true for Mao, who is two heads shorter.

Lying down, the middle-aged man with his eyes closed was them, and Tanjirou's father, Kamado Tanjuro.

"Be good, be good, Liu Tai, if you want to sleep, go on sleeping." Mi Douzi who had packed up, reached out to hug the crying Liu Tai, coaxing him skillfully:
"Father is still sleeping, don't disturb him."

Mi Douzi hugged Liutai, shaking slightly.

"Well…"

Soon, under the comfort of Mi Douzi, the sixth wife calmed down, lay in Mi Douzi's arms, and fell asleep again.

Takexiong looked at his sleeping father, he opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something.

But Mao, who is younger than him, is even more childish:

"Father, I have been asleep for almost a whole year."

Although Mao said so, the low emotion in his eyes could not be concealed:

"Sister, brother."

"Will Father still wake up?"

After these words were spoken, the room was quiet for a while.

Takexiong turned his head to look at Mao beside him, stretched out his hand and pinched him secretly.

Mao also knew that he had said something wrong, so he lowered his head and didn't cry out.

"Most definitely."

It was Mizuko who broke the silence.

She smiled, hugged Liutai who was sleeping in her arms, and looked at Takeo, Shigeru, and Hanako:
"It will." Mi Douzi took a deep breath, just repeated this sentence without any further explanation.

At this time.

creak - clang
The door of the wooden house was slowly opened halfway, revealing a space for one person to pass through, and the white light reflected by the snow outside instantly filled the dim room.

Along with the light came the cold air—although the wind was no longer blowing.

A woman wearing a white scarf and a purple and white square-patterned kimono stood at the door, smiling at the children inside:

"Ah, I'm already up."

This is their mother - Zaomen Kuizhi.

Zaomen Kuizhi spoke softly, noticing Liu Tai who was still sleeping in Mi Douzi's arms, smiled and nodded to Mi Douzi:
"Thanks for your hard work."

Then, her eyes moved to Tanjuro who was still lying down, and seeing that he was still sleeping, her expectant eyes gradually dimmed.

Snapped!
She clapped her hands and smiled slightly, but she couldn't hide the tiredness in her eyes:
"Tanjirou has already gone down the mountain to sell charcoal, but it just snowed yesterday, so everyone should not go down the mountain."

"Hey!" Shigeru and Takeo, who were excited to see the thick snow just now, were instantly poured with a bucket of cold water, and their happy faces collapsed:
"Mother!"

Mao looked at his mother with pleading eyes.

"Tanjiro has already gone down the mountain." Kamodo Aoie's answer was still refusal.

"Ugh……"

"Let's go, Mao."

"understood…"

In the end, the lost Mao could only go out with the two equally lost Takeo.

"But." Zaomen Kuizhi changed the topic, she touched Mao's head, the corners of her mouth raised:
"Tanjirou will bring back something delicious."

Hearing this, Takeo turned his head instantly, a sharp light flashed in his eyes:

"Really?"

Zaomen Kuizhi nodded.

"Great!"

The two immediately became happy and cheered.

They took an axe and skipped to a place closer to home to cut trees.

After combing her hair, Hanako followed her mother and began to learn how to pack things at home.

Mi Douzi wrapped himself in a quilt and carried Liu Tai on his back to prevent him from catching cold. He went to the charcoal cellar to check whether the heavy snow last night made the cellar damp.

——If the cellar is damp, there may be no new charcoal to burn in the next few days.

……

inside the room.

The open door was closed, as if he was afraid that the cold wind outside would catch the sleeping Tanjuro.

Tanjuro lay flat on his back quietly.

Sudden.

It seems to be because of the noise just now.

or……

It's because of the bright red spot on the top of Tanjuro's head, which cannot be noticed by others but keeps flashing.

——The word "dangerous".

His fingers twitched.

……

……

the other side.

A place so far away.

So far away, it seems to have crossed another world.

"Sekiro" world.

The inner hall of Xianfeng Temple.

wow-

The sound of water flowing came from outside the hall, it was the pond outside the hall.

in the cella,
Bianruo Shenzi leaned on his crutches and stood at the door of the inner hall. He seemed to be in doubt, and looked back into the hall:
"What's wrong? Qingzi's ninja...no, dragon's ninja."

She put on her turban and looked at the ninja "Wolf" who was standing up half-kneeling behind her, but kept looking around.

The ninja was wearing a somewhat worn-out orange sackcloth, and the flaxen scarf looked weathered.

——The large dark red ferocious pattern on the left forehead proves the special nature of the ninja.

now.

The ninja frowned slightly, his hands unconsciously clenched the wedge pill around his waist, and became vigilant.

— not right.

——Is there an enemy nearby?

At this moment, his perception ability has been maximized, and he can clearly perceive the danger coming from around his body.

The word "Danger", which represented the danger he perceived, seemed to be flashing above his head.

Even if he had once faced the Weiming Sword Master who had returned from hell, the warnings in his heart had never been so sharp and frequent.

Sweat protruded from his forehead, and the hand holding the handle of the knife turned white.

The ninja's eyes quickly surveyed the surroundings.

As if someone was hanging a needle between his brows, a chill climbed up his spine.

Suffocating.

But after waiting for a long time, nothing seemed to happen.

The ninja looked at the Bianruo Shenzi in front of him, and slowly swallowed his raised heart:

"fine."

Bianruo Shenzi looked at the nervous appearance of the ninja, she nodded calmly:
"It's fine, let's go."

"Go to the west, the home of the sacred dragon."

Afterwards, the Son of God resolutely stepped out of the inner hall.

Seeing this, the ninja "Wolf", who had lingering fears, hurriedly followed.

However, before leaving the palace, deep in his mind, he couldn't help but worry.

——It has been more than thirty years since I came to this world.

——I don’t know, how are Aoie, Tanjiro, and Yazuko doing now.

——The neon here has not found a way to go back. Will there be a way to go back to the hometown of dragons in the west?

Thinking about it, the ninja didn't let go of the handle of the knife.

Ninja "Wolf"

——It was Kamado Tanjuro who traveled from another world.

To be precise, this is the third life of Kamado Tanjuro.

He was originally born in modern times, the earth at the beginning of the 21st century, but at the age of 20, his life as an ordinary person was lightly ended by a truck.

Then he was reincarnated into another world, which looked like an ordinary modern neon place.

——The world of the manga "Demon Slayer: Blade".

but.

When he was first born in this world, Kamado Tanjuro did not awaken the memory of his previous life on Earth.

Instead, it is safe and sound, adult, married, and have children, and practice the dance of Kagura year after year.

Until he slaughtered the man-eating bear close to home, exhausted his body, and was about to die of illness.

He just recalled everything from his previous life.

So, in his heart, everything there is his everything, his family, real family.

But when he died of illness, it was too late for him to say anything.

Before he could say it, he closed his eyes due to heavy fatigue.

That probably means death, he thought.

With his eyes closed, he once again came to this ancient neon world similar to the Neon Warring States Period - the game "Sekiro".

Second rebirth.

He became the original protagonist "Wolf" who was picked up from the battlefield and raised as a ninja since childhood.

Another thirty years passed.

to this moment.

He has completed the most difficult hidden ending in the original game - the return of the dragon.

He is preparing to leave Neon and go to the western country of Neon together with the Son of God.

He wanted to go back, to the home that belonged to him.

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find a way to go back.

now.

The ninja raised his head and looked outside the hall.

It seemed that because he hadn't looked up for a long time, his vision was a little dark, and it seemed that the sun-filled palace was very bright.

tread!
When the ninja stepped out of the threshold and walked towards the light outside the door.

The blinding light made him want to close his eyes.

Actually he did close.

After a while, the ninja felt as if he had stepped on nothing.

When the eyes get used to the harsh light.

Kamado Tanjuro slowly opened his eyes.

--What happened?
The light gradually faded away.

What caught my eye was the once familiar roof of the wooden house.

--roof?
I was lying down?
Tanjuro blinked his dry eyes, and his vision gradually recovered.

Slowly raising his left arm, he clearly felt the stiffness and soreness of his body.

Ok?
hand?
"!" Zamon Tanjuro looked at his left hand that appeared in his vision, his pupils shrank.

hand? !

——The left hand of the ninja "Wolf" was broken long ago, and it became a ninja prosthetic hand made of bones.

——And what is in sight at the moment is a human hand intact!

Tanjuro thought quickly.

Could it be that…

Even Tanjuro Kamado, who has lived three generations for nearly a hundred years, can hardly suppress his inner emotions at this moment.

creak...

Kamado Tanjuro tried to sit up on the bed.

"Bang!"

Beside him, there was a sound of something falling.

Tanjuro subconsciously turned his head to look.

Just as Kuizhi opened the stove door, the stone teacup in her hand fell to the ground unconsciously due to shock.

At this moment, she was covering her mouth, her eyes were filled with mist, and she looked at Tanjuro's gray eyes in disbelief.

She thought she would yell subconsciously, but on this day, Kui Zhi realized that she couldn't yell at all.

Tanjuro froze when he tried to sit up, he quietly looked at his wife who had a tired face on his face.

He opened his mouth and couldn't say a word for a long time.

After a while, the two who lost their voices came back to their senses.

"...I'm back." Kamado Tanjuro tried hard to squeeze a smile out of the extremely stiff muscles on his face, and said hoarsely.

Zaomen Kuizhi also nodded vigorously, trying not to choke herself, and smiled:

"…Welcome home."

　ps: Membership of the Zaomen family (set in the original book)

　　Father: Kamado Tanjuro (the protagonist of this article)

　　Mother: Zaomen Kuizhi (the head post of the first generation)

　　Eldest son: Kamado Tanjiro (second generation head post)

　　Second Sister: Zaomen Midouzi
　　The third child: Zaomen Takeo

　　The fourth child: Zaomen Hanako

　　Fifth child: Zaomenmao
　　The sixth child: the sixth wife of the kitchen door

　　
　
(End of this chapter)