The journey proceeded without incident, and a few days later, Aomori and the others arrived at a town.
Giyu found lodging there, stopped the carriage, and said to Tanjiro, "This is property of the Demon Slayer Corps and is very secure. Your family can stay here for now."
"Oh, yes, thank you so much, Tomioka-san!" Tanjiro was excited and grasped Giyu's hands, thanking him with a smile.
"Idiot, don't touch me." Giyu shook off Tanjiro's hands and turned his face away, ignoring him.
Over the past few days, Tanjiro, with his 'Talk-no-Jutsu,' had managed to slightly crack open Giyu's heart, making him less withdrawn.
Tanjiro knew Giyu was a kind and gentle person who was merely cold on the outside, so he didn't mind. He turned around and rushed off to help carry the luggage and organize their temporary new home.
At this time, Aomori, who had recalled Absol and Pidgeotto, walked over to Giyu and said, "We should be close to Headquarters now, right?"
"Yes, we can depart immediately. However, to avoid revealing the Headquarters' true location, you need to be blindfolded. It's regulation." Giyu had already received permission for the invitation via the letter from his Kasugai Crow. As he spoke, he handed Aomori a black hood.
Aomori did not take it. If they were to reach a collaboration agreement, his Mind's Eye ability would not be hidden from them. Thus, he spoke frankly, "This item is useless to me."
"If you're worried, I give you my word that I will not intentionally record the Headquarters' location. How about that?"
"This?" Giyu was torn. On one hand, he was willing to trust Aomori; on the other, this was an immutable regulation.
Just then, a figure abruptly appeared before the two of them.
He was tall and muscular, wore a headscarf embedded with many diamonds and pearls, and was dressed in a black sleeveless vest, looking rather flamboyant.
"Tengen?!" Giyu looked confused.
Tengen Uzui was, like Giyu Tomioka, one of the Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps, holding the title "Sound Hashira."
"Yo, Tomioka!" Tengen first raised a hand to greet him, then turned to Aomori, saying seriously, "Oyakata-sama has ordered that Aomori-san be invited to the Demon Slayer Corps Headquarters, escorted jointly by the flamboyant me and the Water Hashira, Giyu Tomioka. Furthermore, there is no need to specially conceal the Headquarters' location."
"Very well, the honor is mine," Aomori nodded, not asking the foolish question of how Tengen recognized him, for he was always the most dazzling one in the crowd.
"Wait a moment, is the Oyakata-sama serious?" Giyu was perplexed.
"We tried to dissuade him for a long time, but Oyakata-sama insisted," Tengen tilted his head, picking at his ear. His expression also carried confusion. He sized Aomori up and down; aside from being very flamboyantly handsome, he didn't sense anything particularly powerful.
When the Master first informed them that someone had nearly killed Muzan, all the Hashira, including him, found it hard to believe.
As the main force against the Demons, no one understood better than them how difficult Demons were to deal with and how terrifying Muzan was. Even the Twelve Kizuki under Muzan's command were enough to wipe them out.
'If it's true, that would be incredibly flamboyant!' Tengen gave Aomori a deep look.
"Alright, let's complete this mission flamboyantly. Oyakata-sama gave us very specific instructions."
"Fine..."
"Wait, I need to bring one more person," Aomori said.
"Who?"
…
Deep in the mountains, a carriage sped along the winding mountain paths.
The driver was the Sound Hashira, Tengen Uzui. Inside the carriage sat the Water Hashira, Giyu Tomioka, Aomori, and the suddenly included Tanjiro.
Tanjiro was not given the same preferential treatment as Aomori. He was wearing a black hood and was getting nauseous from the rough bumps of the mountain road.
Just as he was about to throw up, the carriage finally stopped.
"We've arrived. This is the Demon Slayer Corps Headquarters, and the residence of our Master."
The black hood was roughly lifted. Tanjiro, regaining his sight, steadied himself and saw a sprawling complex of connected buildings.
Tanjiro gasped in awe, "It's huge."
"Don't just stand there, hurry up and come in. Seriously, I have no idea why we had to bring you along," Tengen said impatiently.
"I'm so-sorry!" Seeing Aomori and Giyu had already entered the gate, Tanjiro quickly followed.
It was early spring. Trees had just begun to sprout buds, and only purple flowers blanketed the paths on either side of the estate.
'These must be Wisteria flowers.' Aomori casually admired the scenery along the way.
After encountering three groups of Demon Slayer Corps members in black uniforms, Tengen led Aomori and the others into a courtyard.
Several people were already standing in the courtyard. Aomori looked over and identified them one by one.
The two-meter tall, ascetic-looking strongman with Buddhist beads around his neck—Gyomei Himejima, the Stone Hashira;
The scar-faced man with spiky silver-white hair—Sanemi Shinazugawa, the Wind Hashira;
The cheerful man with hair like burning flames—Kyojuro Rengoku, the Flame Hashira;
The emotionless boy with long black hair—Muichiro Tokito, the Mist Hashira;
The bandaged man with one gold and one green eye and a white snake coiled around his neck—Obanai Iguro, the Serpent Hashira;
The gentle older sister with long black hair and purple eyes—Kanae Kocho, the Flower Hashira.
Including the Water Hashira, Giyu Tomioka, and the Sound Hashira, Tengen Uzui, all eight current Hashira were assembled here.
'The Love Hashira, Mitsuri Kanroji, became a Hashira later, so it's reasonable for her not to be present now. But I remember that by this point in time, the Flower Hashira, Kanae Kocho, should have already been killed after encountering Upper Rank Two, Doma. Parallel world? A divergence in the timeline?'
Thinking of the world of Pokémon, which had multiple parallel worlds, Aomori immediately felt relieved.
While Aomori observed them, the seven Hashira (excluding Giyu Tomioka) were also silently observing Aomori.
Perfect features, eyes devoid of ripples, a polite yet distant smile, ordinary sturdy physique, movements full of openings...
He looked nothing like a man who had nearly killed Muzan! ヽ(｀Д´)ﾉ︵┻━┻┻━┻!
Similar conclusions surfaced in their minds, leading them to hold no expectation for the final outcome.
No expectation, no disappointment.
Facing the ever-smiling Aomori, even the hot-tempered Sanemi couldn't find a reason to lash out. He had no choice but to redirect his aggression toward his Demon Slayer colleague, Giyu Tomioka.
"Hey, Tomioka. I heard you missed a great chance to kill Muzan. If I were you, I would have committed seppuku already."
Giyu didn't turn around and said plainly, "I am not like you."
I am not like you? Is he saying we haven't even had the chance to meet Muzan?
Damn it!
The other Hashira couldn't help but frown at the remark. The Flower Hashira, Kanae Kocho, sighed and offered a helpless smile, retracting the words she was about to use to stop Sanemi. She knew it would be useless now.
Sure enough, a vein pulsed on Sanemi's forehead. He burst out angrily, "You bastard!"
Just then, a clear, mechanical voice rang out: "Oyakata-sama has arrived!"
Hearing this, all the Hashira immediately dropped to one knee, heads bowed, their expressions respectful. Even Sanemi, despite his furious state, was no exception.
Tanjiro, who had been overwhelmed by the Hashira's aura, finally found a chance to breathe. He craned his neck, peering in the direction the Hashira were facing, curious about the important figure who was about to appear.
The doors to the main building facing the courtyard opened. Two small, white-haired girls slowly assisted a young man outside. His eyes were lifeless, his face covered in strange scars, and his frail body looked as though he might collapse at any moment.
'This, this is the leader of the Demon Slayer Corps?' Tanjiro's face was filled with surprise. This was completely different from the image of a leader he had expected.
'Though it's hard to believe, he is indeed the leader of the Demon Slayer Corps, Kagaya Ubuyashiki. Cursed in body, yet brilliant in spirit,' Aomori thought silently to himself.