Yoriichi Tsugikuni's gaze settled on the long sword inside the puppet, his eyes filled with memories.
"Master Koizumi forged this one. He was so excited back then, and everyone was happy. But later..."
Tetsuhiro said, "Sorry. I brought up painful memories."
"Now everything has changed, and everyone is gone. I really wish I could just fade away..."
"Don't think like that. If you disappear too, who will remember them?"
At those words, Yoriichi shuddered and sank into his memories.
His mother, his wife, his comrades, Kichi Kamado, and his older brother...
"You're right. I can't fade away yet!"
"That's the spirit. The False God is dead now. It's time to live again, for yourself!"
"Yes. Live again!"
"Um, excuse me, could you possibly be..." Kotetsu asked quietly, fidgeting.
"Oh? A descendant of Master Koizumi? I am Yoriichi Tsugikuni, nothing more than a wandering spirit."
"Ah! It really is you! I actually got to see you in person!!" Rather than being frightened, the little boy was thrilled.
He could brag about this for the rest of his life!
"People in this world really are strange. They're afraid of fake ghosts, but seeing a 'real ghost' doesn't scare them at all. It actually makes them happy."
Tetsuhiro couldn't make sense of it, so he simply chalked it up to a quirk of this world's people.
"Tanjiro, this sword is yours. In your hands, it should bring out the full power of Sun Breathing."
"What? Something so precious... I couldn't possibly accept it." Tanjiro hastily bowed and refused.
Tetsuhiro feigned anger. "I said it's yours, so it's yours. Just take it."
"But..."
"Tanjiro, accept it. This is a kind of destiny, too. I can't stay out here for long, so I'll head back." With that, Yoriichi turned into a cloud of glowing motes