Tanjiro reluctantly let go of his little sister, haphazardly wiping his tears with his sleeve before carefully examining her condition.
Only then did Tanjiro realize one important thing:
"Right, Nezuko—how did you get here? You couldn't have run all the way from Sagiri Mountain, could you!?"
Not just Tanjiro—Zenitsu and Yaeko were also very curious about this question.
Wasn't Tanjiro's sister supposed to be staying with his master? How did she end up here?
Being asked this by her brother, Nezuko suddenly came to a realization.
Wait… did I just leave something behind and run straight over here?
Thinking back carefully, Nezuko recalled the sequence of events and finally remembered Horitake.
She turned her head to look back—no sign of Horitake. She understood that he hadn't followed, but that was fine; she could just bring her brother to him.
With that thought, Nezuko grabbed Tanjiro's hand and started walking back the way she came.
Being pulled forward by his little sister, Tanjiro was a bit puzzled:
"Huh? Nezuko, what are you doing?
Could it be… you're taking me to find something?"
Tanjiro obediently let himself be led along by Nezuko.
Zenitsu and Yaeko exchanged a glance, then followed with great interest.
The group walked at a leisurely pace. After covering some distance, they spotted a flicker of firelight ahead—someone had built a campfire by the roadside.
Seeing the firelight, Nezuko got a little excited and tugged her brother to walk faster.
Tanjiro also started to understand when he saw the flames:
"Oh… is it over there?"
They continued toward the campfire by the roadside.
As they drew closer, they finally saw the person sitting in front of it.
Even though the person had their back to them and was sitting by the fire, just from the silhouette, they immediately recognized who it was—it was clearly Horitake!
Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Yaeko were all far too familiar with Horitake; they recognized him at a glance!
"Horitake-senpai!"
"Big Bro!"
"Shixiong!"
Three different ways of addressing him rang out at the same time, all directed at the same person.
Horitake used a stick to poke at the campfire in front of him, making the flames burn brighter. He turned around calmly, looked at the four little ones, and nodded composedly:
"Mm, it's me. I've been waiting here for you guys for a while now. Looks like all three of you passed the Final Selection—very good. I'm quite pleased."
The three little ones were also delighted to see Horitake and instinctively walked over toward him.
But when Horitake saw Nezuko, his expression became a little hard to describe:
"Hey, Nezuko… the moment you sensed your brother's presence just now, you ran off and left me behind without even a second glance. Isn't that kind of mean?"
Hearing Horitake say that, Nezuko trotted over in a flash and promptly hugged him.
Not just a hug—she also rubbed her face against his!
Good grief—with just that one rub, all of Horitake's earlier resentment vanished into thin air!
Horitake's heart immediately started pounding wildly!
What was Nezuko doing? Was she comforting him!?
Good grief—a super-adorable Nezuko was rubbing against him like this. He really couldn't handle it. He was done for! His HP was about to hit zero! He couldn't hold on anymore!
With great effort, Horitake tried to hide the turmoil inside him, struggling to maintain his cool, aloof demeanor while quietly letting Nezuko rub against him to her heart's content.
Unfortunately, his cover was useless—because the smile that had crept onto the corners of his mouth had already completely betrayed his current feelings.
After being rubbed against several times, Horitake finally said helplessly:
"Alright, alright, Nezuko—I forgive you. I forgive you."
Only then did Nezuko look happy.
Meanwhile, Tanjiro, who had walked over and witnessed the scene, felt a complicated mix of emotions.
He had thought Nezuko was only this affectionate with him, but he never expected his little sister to be so close with Horitake-senpai too. Horitake-senpai really was an amazing guy.
For some reason, Tanjiro felt a sour pang in his heart. Seeing his little sister being so intimate with another man made him feel a little crazy inside.
Just a moment ago it had been Horitake feeling uncomfortable, and now it was Tanjiro's turn. How does one even describe this? Truly, the wheel of fortune turns!
However, Tanjiro was a kind-hearted boy. The moment he noticed his own mindset shifting, he froze for a second, quickly adjusted his attitude, and began self-reflecting:
Why would I feel unhappy about this? It's actually a good thing that Nezuko is so close to Horitake-senpai. If Nezuko likes Horitake-senpai so much, then Horitake-senpai will definitely like Nezuko even more. That way, Nezuko will be able to receive Horitake-senpai's care and protection.
As for whether Nezuko will end up marrying Horitake-senpai or anything like that in the future… that can wait until later!
See? That's exactly why people call Tanjiro a little angel.
Just look at his mindset, just look at his attitude toward self-reflection—no wonder so many people like him!
And then look at Horitake—this guy's filthy mindset, this guy's scummy thoughts—they're completely incomparable to Tanjiro's pure heart. They're not even on the same level!
After Nezuko finished rubbing against Horitake, Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Yaeko naturally sat down around the campfire as well. The group gathered together.
Tanjiro was the first to ask eagerly:
"Horitake-senpai… was it you who brought Nezuko here?"
Horitake nodded:
"Yeah. Nezuko woke up a few days ago.
Everything was normal after she woke up—her body had no issues at all.
But since she couldn't find you right away, Nezuko got a little anxious and panicked.
It just so happened that I had some other reasons to come look for the three of you, so I brought Nezuko along on the way. That way, you siblings could reunite.
So, Tanjiro—how does it feel to be reunited with your sister?"
Tanjiro sat there with a silly, happy grin:
"It feels really good. Seeing Nezuko safe and sound is better than anything else."
At that moment, Tanjiro noticed the box next to Horitake and asked curiously:
"This… could this be Nezuko's way of traveling?"
Horitake patted the box and explained:
"That's right. During the day when I'm traveling, Nezuko shrinks down and hides inside here. It's safe, sturdy, and completely blocks out sunlight—perfectly secure for Nezuko."
After saying that, Horitake handed the box over to Tanjiro:
"Actually, this box was made by Urokodaki-sensei specifically for you—so that in the future, when you're out on demon-slaying missions together, Nezuko can hide inside it. It'll be much more convenient."
Tanjiro accepted the box a little shyly:
"This… was really made for me?"
"It was yours from the beginning. I only borrowed it temporarily while bringing Nezuko to find you. Stop being so hesitant—just take it!"
"Alright… alright, Horitake-senpai!"
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