The sun was shining high in the sky. At the Hashira headquarters, the Hashiras gathered together. Suddenly, the boy named Goku Urokodaki--or maybe it's more correct to say, Goku Tsugikuni--woke up.
He could clearly see he was in an open space. A courtyard, apparently.
Where... Where am I...
He realized he was sitting on the floor. He looked to his right and saw Tanjiro, brought down on the ground, his hands tied up behind his back.
"Oh, finally, the boy woke up!" said a guy with yellow and red hair, and with a cape with flames.
"I hope he's flashy," said another guy, with white hair tied up and a very muscular physique.
"He seems pretty cute..." said a girl with pink hair and green socks.
"I sense potential in him..." said the last guy, who was seemingly blind, judging by the absence of pupils in his eyes.
There was also a little boy with long, black hair and blue eyes, but he didn't say anything.
"Who... Who are you...?" asked Goku. Suddenly, he got kicked in the face by a Kakushi.
"Pay some respect to the Hashiras!" He yelled.
H-Hashiras? They're Hashiras...?
"Your name is Goku, right?" asked the guy with yellow and red hair. "It's very similar to mine! My name is Rengoku Kyojuro, and I'm the Flame Hashira!"
"Yeah, your names kinda look alike, Rengoku..." said the guy with white hair. "I'm Tengen Uzui, by the way, the Sound Hashira."
"I'm Mitsuri Kanroji, the Love Hashira, nice to meet you!" the girl with pink hair said, smiling.
"I'm... Muichiro Tokito, the Mist Hashira..." said the only boy who hadn't spoken up yet.
"And I'm Gyomei Himejima, the Stone Hashira," said the last, tall guy. Then, Goku turned to see Giyuu Tomioka, standing aside from everybody.
"Hey, Tomioka-san! Did you bring me here?"
"Yes, he did," said a voice. Goku turned again and saw Shinobu.
She's... She's here too... He thought. In that moment, Goku fought against himself from the inside to try not to blush in front of everybody.
"Oh... you're here too, Shinobu-san..."
"You're here because you could be useful for the Corps," said Gyomei. "But first, let me ask you a question: what do you think we should do with Kamado Tanjiro?"
Goku looked at Tanjiro, still unconscious, and then turned again to face the Hashira.
"I think we should keep him alive!"
"But he's a criminal! He has to be killed right now!" exclaimed Tengen.
"I know, but... maybe there's another way to punish him without killing him!"
Suddenly, the boy kicked Tanjiro.
"Hey, Tanjiro-kun, wake up!"
Tanjiro suddenly woke up.
"Wh-what... Goku-san...?"
"I already told you to stop calling me Goku-san, have you forgotten? It makes me feel old. Just call me Goku."
"O... okay..."
"Just for you to know, they're planning to kill you because you're walking around with a demon."
"W-what? But she's my sister..."
"That's what I told them, but they don't seem to listen."
Suddenly, upon a trunk of a tree, Goku noticed someone: a guy with a yellow eye and a blue one, with a snake wrapped around his neck and black hair.
"I think we should kill both of them..."
"No need to kill Urokodaki, Iguro!" exclaimed Rengoku. "But... I agree with you. Kamado should be killed."
"So... who are you, another Hashira?" asked Goku, talking to Iguro.
"I'm Obanai Iguro, the Serpent Hashira," he said.
"Oh, so... one, two, three... There are eight Hashira in total, right?"
"Wrong," said Shinobu. "There are nine of us."
"Seriously? Where's the ninth?"
Suddenly, from the left side of Goku, another guy appeared. He had white hair, a white haori, scars all over his face, and he was holding Nezuko's box.
"Hey! Are you the ninth Hashira?" asked Goku.
"Yes, it's me," said the guy. "I'm Sanemi Shinazugawa. And no need to fear, I'm gonna kill this little demon by myself!"
Sanemi extracted his sword and pierced the box, stabbing Nezuko directly from the inside.
"Stop it!" screamed Tanjiro, running towards Sanemi.
"Don't be a fool, Tanjiro-kun!"
Tanjiro didn't listen.
"Stay put!" exclaimed Sanemi, swinging his sword towards Tanjiro. But the boy jumped and dodged. Then, with an insane force, Tanjiro headbutted Sanemi.
Both of them fell to the ground, and Sanemi dropped Nezuko's box.
"He just headbutted a Hashira..." whispered Goku, slapping his own face. "You just made your situation worse, Tanjiro-kun..."
Suddenly, the door started to open, and every Hashira bowed down.
"Bow down, Oyakata-sama is arriving," whispered Shinobu, talking to Goku. Immediately, Goku bowed.
Kagaya Ubuyashiki got outside the door and reached the courtyard.
"Hello, my beloved children," he said. "I see we have two new entries here."
"Oyakata-sama... what should we do with Kamado and Urokodaki?" asked Sanemi.
"I think we should keep Urokodaki with us, just like Giyuu and Shinobu wanted," said Ubuyashiki. "I agree with them: under the right wing, he has the potential to become very strong."
"I'm... very honored, Oyakata-sama..." whispered Goku.
"You're already so formal and educated, Goku..." whispered Ubuyashiki. "Tell me, what Breathing Technique do you use?"
"I use Flame Breathing..."
"That's beautiful! I use the Flame Breathing too!" Rengoku exclaimed. "Would you like to be trained by me?"
Goku's eyes filled with admiration.
"R-Really? Yes! I would love to!"
"Well, then it's decided," said Ubuyashiki. "Goku Urokodaki, I accept you here, and I allow you to be trained by Rengoku Kyojuro. As for Tanjiro Kamado and his sister, both of them will be spared. I received a letter from Urokodaki Sakonji, which says that in case Nezuko attacks a human, he, Giyuu, and Tanjiro himself will commit suicide."
Goku smiled: Tanjiro's life was safe, at least for now.
"But, Oyakata-sama..." said Sanemi. "Isn't it a bit too risky?"
"Of course it is, but... sometimes, in the life, taking the risk is the right choice. Now, Kamado, Urokodaki, you'll be accompanied at the Butterfly Mansion. Kamado needs to be rehabilitated. Urokodaki, you're already fine, but I think you would want to see Agatsuma and Hashibira."
"Really? Zenitsu-kun and Inosuke-kun are here too? That's fantastic!" exclaimed Goku, "Hey, Tanjiro-kun, let's go!"
"Yeah, let's go, Goku..."
Led by two Kakushi, who served the headquarters, Tanjiro and Goku made their way to reach the so-called Butterfly Mansion.
Chapter 10 - End