Ansai Waist Drums

Chiba Yo was a little bewildered, trying to make sense of the situation before him.

Ahead of him, Giyu and Shinobu Kocho were tangled together in a strange position.

Giyu had Shinobu Kocho pinned beneath his arm against his side. She was struggling to break free, but she was no match for his strength. Even when she strained so hard that her body trembled, she could not escape his grip.

...What... were they doing?

Looking at the scene before him, Chiba Yo did not dare step out, afraid of interrupting them.

"Mr. Tomioka, are you listening? Mr. Tomioka. My attack was justified because I was trying to kill a demon, so it did not violate Corps rules. But you are violating them, Mr. Tomioka. You are obstructing a demon slaying. Just what are you trying to do?"

Unable to escape Giyu's grip, Shinobu Kocho was seething inside, but she kept smiling as she questioned him.

Yet Giyu did not answer her. Instead, he wore a strange expression that seemed puzzled, yet also resigned. In any case, Chiba Yo could not tell what it meant.

"Perhaps you should say something? This is your last warning. At least tell me your reason." Receiving no answer from Giyu, Shinobu Kocho continued to question him with a smile.

Although she was smiling, a vein had already bulged on her forehead. She was clearly angry.

After Shinobu Kocho's repeated questioning, Giyu finally stopped silently wearing that strange expression and answered, "It happened about two years ago..."

But Shinobu Kocho interrupted him as soon as he began.

"It would be a headache if you started all the way back there and went on forever. Are you deliberately trying to give me trouble? Are you holding a grudge because I said nobody likes you?"

Shinobu Kocho now strongly suspected that Giyu was doing all this because she had just told him nobody liked him.

And upon hearing her words, Giyu felt offended all over again.

...Were they taking things so casually because the member of the Twelve Kizuki had already been killed?

Chiba Yo wanted to step out and ask whether the member of the Twelve Kizuki here had already been killed, but he could not find the right moment.

Then he spotted his Kasugai crow perched in the tree overhead, so he quietly asked it, "Excuse me, has the member of the Twelve Kizuki here already been killed?"

His Kasugai crow had just left him to fly around Mount Natagumo, so it should have known whether that demon had been killed.

"Caw! Caw! Giyu has killed Lower Rank Five! Giyu has killed Lower Rank Five!" The Kasugai crow flapped its wings and shouted at the top of its lungs upon hearing Chiba Yo's question.

!!! You did that on purpose!

Chiba Yo's heart clenched, and panic crept over him. Turning his head, he found Giyu and Shinobu Kocho both looking at him, still holding that same position.

"Um... I was just passing by. I didn't mean to interrupt you. Sorry!"

Seeing that hiding was no longer an option, Chiba Yo emerged somewhat awkwardly and immediately apologized to them.

I'm done for! I saw them in such an embarrassing position. They won't hold a grudge over this, will they? Especially Shinobu! Now that I've seen her pinned under Giyu's arm for so long, she'll definitely want to erase my memory!

Chiba Yo had already noticed Shinobu Kocho's kindly smile. It was so kindly that it frightened him.

I must never get too close to her from now on, or she'll definitely poison me!

"I'll leave right now!" Finding that Giyu and Shinobu Kocho were still staring at him, Chiba Yo felt that if he stayed any longer, they might silence him for good.

Just as he was about to turn and leave, a Kasugai crow flew over, calling loudly.

"Orders! Orders! Orders from headquarters! Capture Tanjiro and Nezuko and bring them back to headquarters! Caw! Capture Tanjiro and the demon Nezuko and bring them back to headquarters!"

Another Kasugai crow was also there, repeatedly describing Tanjiro and Nezuko's appearances.

"Tanjiro wears a checkered haori and has a scar on his forehead.

The demon girl with bamboo in her mouth is Nezuko.

Bring them back! Bring them back!"

The two Kasugai crows circled overhead, repeating their cries.

Hearing the orders, Giyu and Shinobu Kocho stopped. Chiba Yo also froze in place, unsure what was going on.

Tanjiro and... a demon girl? Were there still demons on this mountain? Why did they need to bring her back? What did this demon have to do with Tanjiro? Nezuko... Zenitsu seemed to have mentioned her before. What was going on?

Questions surfaced in Chiba Yo's mind one after another, making him temporarily forget about Giyu and Shinobu Kocho.

Until Shinobu Kocho walked over and patted his shoulder.

"Yo-chan, you didn't see anything just now, did you? Of course you didn't, right?

If there's anything you want to forget, I can make you some medicine to help you forget it.

If you ever get hurt, you can come find me at the Butterfly Mansion. I'll make you as good as new."

Shinobu Kocho spoke to Chiba Yo with a smile, a shadow hanging over her face.

Those three remarks sent a chill down Chiba Yo's spine. Each was more terrifying than the last.

I must never get hurt again! If I can kill a demon in one strike, I absolutely won't use two!

"I didn't see anything! There's no need for the rest. Thank you for your 'kindness,' Shinobu!" Chiba Yo answered immediately. Turning his head slightly, he saw that Giyu was now lying on the ground, foaming at the mouth and convulsing all over.

"Good, then. I hope you aren't lying to me, Yo-chan. If you lie, you could end up just like Mr. Tomioka." Shinobu Kocho's words carried a threat.

Chiba Yo hastily nodded.

Only then did Shinobu Kocho turn away and go over to haul Giyu up from the ground.

"Huh? What happened to Lord Tomioka?"

A Kakushi member arrived just then and asked Shinobu Kocho upon seeing the unconscious Giyu.

"Mr. Giyu ran too fast and overheated. He got heatstroke. Take him back to the Butterfly Mansion too," Shinobu Kocho answered with a smile.

"Huh? You can get heatstroke in a forest this cold and damp?" Somewhat puzzled, the Kakushi member took Giyu from her. After examining him, he exclaimed in surprise, "Wow! These really are the symptoms of heatstroke. Lady Shinobu's medical skills are incredible. You identified his condition immediately, even under such unbelievable circumstances."

Shinobu Kocho merely smiled without replying. Two Kakushi members fetched a stretcher, placed Giyu on it, and carried him away.

Standing nearby, Chiba Yo did not dare say a word. He could only silently wish Giyu well.

The incident at Mount Natagumo gradually drew to a close. The injured swordsmen were sent to the Butterfly Mansion for treatment, while Tanjiro and Nezuko were taken to the estate at Demon Slayer Corps Headquarters.

Partway through the journey, Giyu woke up on the stretcher.

"...What happened to me?" Giyu held his forehead, still feeling a little dizzy.

"You're awake, Lord Tomioka. You had heatstroke earlier. Lady Shinobu saved you," the Kakushi member beside him explained.

Giyu: "..."