At the same time.
The camera shifts to a location a hundred miles away.
The Mount Sagiri in snow.
This is an isolated mountain shrouded in fog and snow all year round, and it is also the place where the former Water Hashira Sakonji Urokodaki, lived in seclusion.
The howling wind whipped up the thick snow on the ground, which danced wildly in the air halfway up the mountain.
"Crunch... crunch..."
The two people were trudging through knee-deep snow, making their way towards the wooden cabin halfway up the mountain.
Tanjiro's breath turned into puffs of white mist due to the cold.
But his wine-red eyes were now gleaming with unprecedented excitement!
His incredibly sensitive nose had already detected that scent that haunted his dreams—the smell of his family!
Almost there!
It's just ahead!
The outline of the wooden house gradually became clear in the wind and snow.
In front of the wooden house, an elderly figure wearing a sky-blue cloud-patterned haori and a red Tengu Mask was already waiting there.
He's Cultivator, Sakonji Urokodaki!
Hearing the sound of footsteps in the snow, Urokodaki slightly raised his head.
Beneath that fierce-looking Tengu Mask, no one could see the old man's expression at that moment.
Giyu stopped five meters away from Urokodaki.
"Mr. Urokodaki."
Giyu's voice remained steady, but it carried the respect of a wanderer returning home.
"Sorry to keep you waiting~ I've brought Tanjiro Kamado safely."
"He's a swordsman of unwavering will; I'm counting on you for his upcoming special training."
Sakonji Urokodaki remained silent.
He walked forward with a slightly unsteady gait, extending his large, calloused hands.
The old man didn't look at Tanjiro, but instead patted Giyu's broad shoulder with great satisfaction.
"Slap! Slap!"
Two dull thuds echoed through the wind and snow.
"Thanks for your hard work, Giyu. Well done. You didn't let me down."
Everything is understood without words.
"Bang--!"
At the very moment the master and apprentice handed over their mission!
The wooden door Sakonji Urokodaki was practically rammed open!
"Ni-chan--!"
Accompanied by a cry filled with endless longing and grievance.
A petite figure in a pink kimono rushed headlong into the swirling snow!
It's Nezuko!
Nezuko!
Tanjiro's tears instantly burst forth. He no longer cared about his injuries, threw down his baggage, and ran towards his sister with open arms.
"Bang!"
The brother and sister collided violently in the snow and embraced each other tightly!
"Waaaaah... Brother! You're finally back! I was so scared! I was so afraid I'd never see you again!"
Nezuko buried her head in Tanjiro's arms, crying and trembling all over.
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry, Nezuko! I'll never leave you again!"
Tanjiro hugged his sister tightly, sobbing uncontrollably.
Immediately afterwards.
More familiar figures appeared at the door frame of the wooden house.
Kie Kamado, tears streaming down her face like a broken string of pearls, and she staggered out.
"Tanjiro... my child..."
Even the usually arrogant Takeo was now crying with tears streaming down his face. He wiped his eyes and shouted:
"You idiot brother! You made us wait so long!"
Delia and Shigeru rushed over, crying as they did so.
"Nii-chan!"
"Big brother!"
A family of six huddled together tightly in the snow-covered Mount Sagiri.
They endured life-or-death trials and overcame the cruel curse of the demonic bloodline.
The human tragedy that almost unfolded in this family has finally turned into tears of joy after surviving a disaster.
Tanjiro knelt in the snow, surrounded by his mother, younger brother, and younger sister.
He completely let down his guard and broke down in tears.
On this cold winter day.
This moment of reunion is frozen in time!
On winter nights in Mount Sagiri, the wind and snow always arrive exceptionally early and are exceptionally fierce.
The howling wind was like a pack of unseen wild beasts, frantically tearing and thrashing through the mountains and forests, making sounds like ghosts howling and wolves wailing.
However--,
Inside that seemingly flimsy little wooden house, however, a completely different and warm scene unfolded.
"Crackling... crackling..."
The orange-red firelight bathed the entire room in a warm glow.
In a large iron pot hanging above the hearth,
A pot of stewed wild vegetables, radishes, and fresh fish soup bubbled and simmered until tender.
In front of this not-so-large low square table,
The Kamado Family six, along with Sakonji Urokodaki wearing Tengu Mask and Giyu Tomioka dressed in loose casual clothes, were sitting together.
This was supposed to be a deeply moving reunion dinner.
However, the atmosphere at the dinner table at this moment became slightly... eerily comical because of the presence of a certain man.
"Mr. Tomioka! Thank you so much!!"
Kie Kamado knelt beside the table.
While thanking her, she frantically piled the fattest pieces of fish from the pot into Giyu Tomioka's already overflowing rice bowl, like a feeding machine that was afraid the guest wouldn't have enough to eat.
"If it weren't for your great mercy, if it weren't for you risking your life to stop Tanjiro..."
Kie wiped away her tears as she continued to "add bricks and tiles" to the small mountain of fish meat.
"Our Tanjiro... he can't turn back into a human. Our whole family, a widow and her children, has nowhere to go."
"You are the greatest benefactor of our Kamado for generations to come! We could never repay this kindness, even if we worked like oxen and horses! Please eat more! Don't be shy!!"
Faced with the overflowing gratitude of this simple mother, and the bowl of wild vegetables, fish, and radishes in front of her that had completely lost its surface tension and was on the verge of an avalanche, I was overwhelmed.
Giyu simply stretched out his hands very properly and steadily picked up the rice bowl.
Thank you for your hospitality.
The Giyu is very brief.
The next second.
"Swish, swish! Smack, smack!"
Giyu Tomioka has completely transformed into a heartless, emotionless rice-eating machine!
He was holding chopsticks at that moment, and he actually created a dazzling series of afterimages!
Seeing this scene, even Sakonji Urokodaki his mask.
"This brat, how long has it been since he had a proper meal? Was he being abused at the Butterfly Mansion?"
Master Urokodaki sighed helplessly to himself.
However,
No one knew that Lord Water Hashira had a completely different thought at that moment.
Too much talk leads to mistakes.
"If I speak now, and this mother's keen intuition detects any flaw, all my efforts will be in vain."
Therefore, Giyu chose the safest and most practical tactic—shut up, lower his head, and eat like crazy.
Just as Giyu Tomioka was comfortably replenishing his nutrition...
Sitting opposite him, Tanjiro Kamado felt like he had nails stuck in his buttocks, and cold sweat was pouring down his back!
"Gulp..."
Tanjiro swallowed hard, feeling his heart pounding like a broken drum.
His gaze darted back and forth between his mother's grateful face and Giyu's expressionless face as he frantically ate.
"It's all over! It's all over! It's all over!!"
Tanjiro let out a bloodcurdling scream deep inside his heart, as if his whole body was about to split open!
"My mother... she actually thought I had completely reverted to being an ordinary human being?!"
"But in reality! Tamayo's Demon Transformation Medicine Agent only forcibly suppressed the raging demon blood activity within me!"
"Deep down, I'm still a terrifying demon who could go berserk at any moment!!"
Just thinking about it sent chills down Tanjiro's spine.
He simply couldn't bear to think about what would happen if his mother found out this cruel truth...
A terrifying image instantly flashed through Tanjiro's mind:
[Mother Kie was so frightened that her hair turned completely white, and she held a kitchen knife every night, too afraid to sleep;]
The younger siblings huddled in the corner, trembling with fear!
The entire family was shrouded in a cloud of despair, as if they might be eaten alive by the eldest son at any moment.
"No!! We absolutely cannot let this happen!!"
P. S.: Sorry I'm late!! (இωஇ )