[In the Deep Mountains, a Secluded Small House.]
Kagaya Ubuyashiki sat on the steps in front of the door, enjoying the warm sunlight.
"There's no mistake. This incident has clearly shown that something must have happened to Muzan Kibutsuji. His subordinates have already broken away from his control."
"God? Do you believe there's a god in this world?"
His daughter, Hinaki, shook her head and softly said, "The surviving Demon Slayer Corps member insisted that he saw a god. But others believe it was a hallucination caused by brain trauma."
Kagaya Ubuyashiki smiled and said, "There are no gods in this world. For a Mizunoto-ranked swordsman to survive under those conditions, he must have been rescued by someone."
"Black uniform, and a hat..." Hinaki mused, "A few days ago, the Insect Hashira, Shinobu Kocho, specifically instructed the swordsmen near Tokyo to keep an eye on someone's movements."
"According to the description, that person's appearance is very similar to the one seen by the Mizunoto swordsman. The Water Hashira, Giyu Tomioka, also previously reported information about the Kamado family, and someone in that group was dressed the same way."
Kagaya Ubuyashiki slowly said, "I have a hunch that the series of changes in Muzan might be related to this person."
———
[Butterfly Mansion.]
Tanjiro was sweeping the courtyard with a broom.
'I wonder how Jotaro-san is doing. Miss Shinobu has also been gone for several days. Two days ago, several injured swordsmen were brought here.'
He turned his head and glanced over; a few swordsmen were still arguing nearby.
A one-armed swordsman was extremely devout, muttering under his breath.
"Shut the hell up!" a lame swordsman covered his ears. "This guy is insane!"
"I won't allow you to blaspheme the gods! My life was saved by Him!"
Then the two began to scuffle.
———
Kitashinjuku Station, the place where Shinobu Kocho was buying medicinal herbs.
"A man-eating bear? We call it a 'cave-leaving beast' around here. It's eaten many hunters in the mountains."
"I see. No wonder the atmosphere here at the station is so tense."
"Dear guest, I'm saying this for your own good. You'd better leave quickly."
"Hmm... it's a bit inconvenient to ask others to procure medicinal herbs." Shinobu paused, a smile appearing on her face. "Besides, due to professional reasons, I'm quite interested in this man-eating bear."
Her laughter sounded like silver bells, pleasant to the ear. "Shopkeeper, if you get any new stock, please be sure to sell it to me."
The shopkeeper was an aged woman whose beauty had faded with time. Being stared at by Shinobu's smiling face, she was somewhat speechless.
Knowing that the other party wouldn't listen to advice, she sighed and said, "Alright then, but you must be a bit careful here."
Shinobu lightly nodded her head and stood up. "Since I happen to have some free time, I'll stroll around here a bit first."
It was close to noon now, just the time for lunch. "I seem to remember there's a ramen shop here, the taste wasn't bad."
With a smile on her face, she walked down the street.
"Customer! You haven't paid yet!"
In her line of sight, a familiar figure appeared, black coat, black hat, and that cold face. Her smile froze.
"Hey, customer!" A bald old man chased after Jotaro, his expression unfriendly as he reminded him, "Customer, you haven't paid!"
Jotaro stood silently where he was, the brim of his hat casting a shadow over his face.
"This char siu rice, which smells sour like spoiled cheese, and you want to charge me 20 yen?"
He grabbed the old bald man's collar with one hand and lifted him up.
"Are you messing with me?"
The bald man was only about 165 cm tall and slightly hunched. Once Jotaro lifted him, all his momentum vanished instantly.
This burly body and solid muscles, getting punched by someone like him would mean at least a month in the hospital. Besides, the old man was the one in the wrong first.
Seeing that Jotaro was an outsider and unfamiliar with local prices, he thought to overcharge him. He often did this. Who knew that today's customer wouldn't play by the rules?
Usually, if a customer was unhappy with the price, they'd haggle a bit. Who knew this one wouldn't pay at all, and now he was going to hit him.
The bald man forced a smile and said, "Let's talk, customer. This meal is on me, alright? Can you put me down first?"
Jotaro gave him a look and then shoved him away. "Get lost!"
As soon as he let go, the old man jumped several meters away. The smile on his face disappeared. He pointed at Jotaro and shouted loudly, spraying spit everywhere.
"Someone judge this! Judge this! Everyone, come judge this! This young man bullied an old man like me. Not only did he eat without paying, now he wants to beat me!"
"Ugh, society's morals are declining! People's hearts are no longer what they were!"
Jotaro's face had turned completely dark.
Passersby heard the shouting and stopped to watch.
A vendor in an apron ran out and pointed at Jotaro, shouting, "Young people these days have no manners. Do you even understand respecting elders and loving children?"
"Eat without paying! You've got guts! Hand over the money, or don't even think about leaving today!"
"Yeah! That's right!"
Several other vendors ran over and surrounded Jotaro.
They didn't even ask for the full story and said with heartbreak, "Young people these days! No compassion at all. Even want to take advantage of lonely elderly people."
Driven by the vendors, even the clueless bystanders became upset at Jotaro's behavior and began criticizing him.
"Jotaro-san."
At some point, Shinobu Kocho had come to Jotaro's side and lightly tapped his back with her slender finger. "You really do enjoy causing trouble."
The smile on Shinobu's face was a bit forced, and her tone was somewhat helpless.
Jotaro turned around, his light green eyes looking at her. After a while, he asked, "Who are you?"
Shinobu pressed her lips together, a vein on her forehead bulging. It took effort to suppress her anger as she smiled and said, "Jotaro-san, it's exactly because you love going against people that you always get into trouble. Have you never thought of changing your personality?"
Jotaro noticed the butterfly-patterned haori draped over the girl's embroidered kimono and suddenly remembered such a person.
"So it's you. Sorry, I have a bad memory."
They had only met a few times, Jotaro hadn't bothered to remember Shinobu's face at all.
Women who talked too much were the kind he disliked the most; he couldn't care less about her appearance.
And besides, Shinobu wasn't on a mission now. Her black Demon Slayer Corps uniform had long been changed, and her Nichirin sword was wrapped in a cloth.
After all, the Demon Slayer Corps was an unofficial organization, and Japan had already banned swords. Running around in that outfit with a sword would surely make people suspicious.
So in normal times, she dressed like a regular girl. Her kimono made her look like a refined and gentle young lady.
With an aura completely different from before, for Jotaro to recognize her would've been a miracle.
"You look much more pleasant dressed like this than before. If you don't want to get into trouble, stay away from me." With that flat statement, Jotaro turned away and left her behind.
Shinobu had come over to help when she saw the situation escalating, but hadn't expected to be treated so coldly by him.
Kindness taken for donkey's liver and lungs. Even she ground her teeth in anger.
Now she didn't want to meddle anymore, she'd let him be.
Sure enough, before long, those angry citizens would drag Jotaro away. Letting someone like that suffer a bit might be a good thing.
"Sigh, I didn't expect there to be such a horrible person in this world." Shinobu shook her head and sighed.
That someone like Jotaro could grow up safe and sound, truly a miracle.
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