By the time Shuya and Shinobu reached the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters, the sun was already high in the sky.
The place was a massive, castle-like mansion that screamed old money and quiet power.
"Lady Insect Hashira, and honored guest Lord Shuya, please follow us."
Two white-haired girls in elegant kimonos greeted them the moment they reached the gate. From their looks, these were the daughters of the Corps' leader, Kagaya Ubuyashiki.
"Got it."
Without wasting time, Shuya and Shinobu followed them inside. After a short walk through the estate, they arrived at a spacious inner courtyard.
The scene that greeted Shuya was straight out of the anime: a full Hashira meeting in progress.
Besides the Kamado family and Giyu—who he had left earlier that morning—he spotted several familiar faces.
The towering, blind monk with the massive prayer beads and flail: Stone Hashira Gyomei Himejima.
The scarred, hot-tempered explosive chili pepper: Wind Hashira Sanemi Shinazugawa.
The flashy ninja who somehow called his bomb-and-flame style "Sound Breathing": Sound Hashira Tengen Uzui.
The flame-haired guy with the fiery red eyes who always looked like he was either smiling or completely deadpan: Flame Hashira Kyojuro Rengoku.
And sitting across from everyone, the most important person in the room—the man with the disfigured face that looked like it had been scalded by boiling water.
The leader of the Demon Slayer Corps, Kagaya Ubuyashiki.
"A Hashira meeting, huh? Interesting," Shuya thought.
This was almost exactly like the scene in the anime where all nine Hashira gathered to judge Nezuko after she turned into a demon. The only difference was that a few members were missing—Mitsuri (who he had just left), the Mist Hashira, and the Serpent Hashira, who hadn't joined yet.
"Shuya-san, you're here!"
The second Nezuko spotted him, she lit up like she had found her anchor. She ran over, wrapped her arms around him, and happily dragged him over to sit with the Kamado family.
Tanjiro and their little brother Shigeru gave him warm, grateful smiles. Only Hanako stayed shyly hidden behind Tanjiro, peeking out curiously at the man her big sister was clinging to.
"Welcome, honored guest from afar," Ubuyashiki spoke first. Even though his appearance was unsettling, his voice was gentle and soothing, like a cool mountain breeze that could calm the heart.
Shuya wasn't buying the warm-and-fuzzy act. He gently patted Nezuko's head and looked straight at the Corps leader, voice flat. "So, where are you guys at in your discussion?"
"Shuya-san!" Nezuko jumped in before Ubuyashiki could answer. "They said that because our family has preserved Sun Breathing for the Corps all these years, they won't kill Mom and the boys… but they want to lock them up under heavy guard."
"Oh? That's it?" Shuya raised an eyebrow.
Honestly, that was already a much better outcome than what happened to Nezuko in the original story. Back then it had taken both the retired Water Hashira Sakonji Urokodaki and Giyu risking their lives to vouch for her.
Shuya glanced at Tanjiro and Nezuko. "What do you two want?"
"I—" Tanjiro started, but was immediately cut off.
"If you ask me, every demon eats people!" Sanemi Shinazugawa exploded, scars twisting on his face. "Once someone turns into a man-eating demon, they should be killed on the spot! Heavy guard? What a joke! If it's a demon, it dies!"
"I wasn't asking you," Shuya said coldly, eyes locking onto the Wind Hashira.
He knew Sanemi's tragic backstory—his mother had turned into a demon and slaughtered most of his siblings before he and his little brother barely survived thanks to his rare blood. That kind of pain explained the guy's hair-trigger hatred of demons.
Shuya felt some sympathy for him… but only some. The Kamado family had been turned into demons by his own hand using Muzan's blood. While the original goal had been to earn Nezuko's goodwill and get Sun Breathing from Tanjiro, he had still agreed to let them come here with Giyu.
Letting them get killed right in front of him would be a direct slap to his own face.
So no, he wasn't in the mood to be polite to this walking landmine.
"What? You wanna fight me?" Sanemi snarled, instantly ready to explode.
Shuya waved him off, looking bored. "Forget it. You're too weak. Go play somewhere else."
"Indeed," Giyu added quietly, remembering how easily Saeko had dominated him and how Shuya had handled Shinobu. He didn't want Sanemi to provoke Shuya and get himself humiliated.
He turned to the Wind Hashira with a deadpan face. "He's not like you."
"You bastard!" Sanemi roared, now fully pissed at Giyu instead.
At least Giyu's blunt honesty had successfully redirected the explosion.
"Everyone, we are comrades," the gentle giant Stone Hashira Gyomei said, placing a massive hand on Sanemi's shoulder to calm him. "Arguing in front of the Master is unbecoming."
Sanemi lowered his head. "My apologies, Master. I was out of line."
"But the Demon Slayer Corps exists solely to hunt and kill demons," he continued, still seething. "I cannot accept sparing them just because of their connection to Sun Breathing."
Ubuyashiki didn't answer right away. He simply turned his calm gaze toward Shuya.
"You people seem to be misunderstanding something," Shuya said, noticing the upset look on Nezuko's face. His tone grew impatient. "I don't remember ever saying I would hand them over to the Demon Slayer Corps for you to deal with."
The courtyard fell silent.
Shuya had just casually reminded every Hashira present who was really in control here.