Demon Slayer: The Strange Demon

by Blackdrag-rose

Swordsmith: The Battle Doll

After speaking with Tecchin, and learning that they were still searching for Hotaru, one smith, a male based on their body, lead them outside and quickly lead the way to a carved stone path that went up into part of the forest, with a number of signs pointing the way to the hot spring. He also informed them that he and some of the others would be making dinner, as it was getting dark out and that meant Nezuko could come out if she wanted to, before mentioning that they were going to use matsutake mushrooms tonight, an interesting fact as he walked off to complete his duties. As they walked up the set of steps, however, Pinkamena focused her mind and started work on the barrier that would protect this place while she and Tanjiro were here, since they were a team and Kagaya likely knew that sending them to the same place was for the best, or at least that was an assumption. One thing she noticed was that in addition to all the signatures she discovered, which were the smiths, there were two more people on the path they were walking along and another one was somewhere else, but she was positive those three newcomers were Slayers, given what she was feeling.

Sure enough they ran into Mitsuri as she ran down the stone steps, only this time she was wearing a kimono that looked like it was designed for relaxation, meaning she must have been in the hot springs when they arrived at the village, though due to her large chest size it sure looked like her breasts were going to spill out at any moment.

"Ah, Tanjiro! Pinkamena!" the Love Hashira said, showing that she was pleased to see them, even though it was easy to see that she was upset about something that must have happened recently, though what lowered Pinkamena's opinion of the person was that she got on her knees and started crying when she neared them, "Listen, I got ignored! I greeted him and he ignored me! I don't know who he is, because when I asked him for his name he just turned around and ignored me! Isn't that cruel?! I'm one of the Hashiras, I shouldn't be getting ignored like this."

"I'm, um, sorry to hear that... but I know they'll be done with dinner soon, and they're using matsutake mushrooms in the dishes they are preparing." Tanjiro replied, as he wasn't sure how to react to this turn of events, especially since this was one of the Hashira that Pinkamena worked with, given that he had learned of his friend's ascension to the rank, but due to what he had heard previously he was sure the Love Hashira loved food.

Sure enough Mitsuri's mood changed at the mention of food and wandered off while doing her best to sing a happy tune, causing the pair to resume climbing the stone steps that were in front of them, which eventually brought them to a rather large hot spring, which seemed to be about half the size of the room Tanjiro and his friends usually slept in. Pinkamena quickly found the figure that Mitsuri had mentioned, the scarred male that had bullied Kagaya's kids at the end of the Final Selection, though it seemed that he was currently tearing out some of his teeth, given that one he threw hit Tanjiro's head before he caught it. She knew his name now, as one of the girls at the Butterfly Mansion called him Genya Shinazugawa, no doubt the younger brother of Sanemi when she thought about it, and the reason he was at the mansion was due to a check up on his health, just like the other times he had visited the place while Tanjiro and the others were resting. She had no idea why he was here in the Swordsmith Village, nor did she feel like asking to figure out what was going on, since that wasn't important to why she and Tanjiro had come here in the first place, even though she was more interested in who the third signature was, since they hadn't found them yet.

Tanjiro, on the other hand, tried to make friends with Genya, who told him to drop dead and then dunked him in the hot spring when her friend decided to strip and jump into the water to make friends with him, causing Genya to leave, though as Sanemi's brother departed Pinkamena gave Tanjiro some privacy so he could relax in the hot spring.

Once he was done with the water, using the time to consider why Genya didn't want to be friends and why making new friends was hard, Tanjiro and Nezuko joined her in heading back down to the village, where they were escorted to an area where guests could eat their meals. What they discovered was that Genya didn't join them for dinner and Mitsuri was, as Pinkamena expected, definitely at the table, allowing her and Tanjiro to find out that she was a glutton, as she ate and ate as if her stomach was a bottomless hole, or something to that extent. It was quite the surprise, since neither of them had seen her eat before this point in time, and while Tanjiro ate far less than Mitsuri did, in fact it was one plate compared to her eight plates, thirty-six bowls, three cups, and two large tea kettles, showing them that she was definitely someone who could put away food. Pinkamena found that they were fortunate that she wasn't a Demon, otherwise she would likely eat an entire town or settlement a day and all of Japan would have been lost in no time, though the smiths likely knew she was coming ahead of time and had prepared accordingly, or the Kakushi went out for supplies to prepare for her arrival, just to make sure the village didn't go hungry.

While they ate Tanjiro made small talk about Genya, allowing him and Mitsuri to talk about the fact that he was related, in some way, to Sanemi, even though the Wind Hashira claimed he didn't have any siblings, telling Pinkamena that they likely had a painful past that neither of them wanted to forget about.

"You know, I have five siblings and I get along with all of them." Mitsuri continued, as they had been talking about siblings for a time and Pinkamena had been listening to her and Tanjiro talk about their own families, or more like her talk about Sanemi and Genya while Tanjiro talked about his family, doing his best not to get sad over the fact that they were head, to which the Love Hashira shrugged, "Honestly, I have no idea why the Shinazugawa siblings are like this... though to be fair, both of them are pretty scary when they want to be. What about you, Pinkamena? You've been silent the entire time we've been talking."

"I... don't have any siblings." Pinkamena replied, though she wasn't sure if that was a lie or the truth, as she had been part of Pinkie Pie for a long time, where one could argue that they were sisters, which could mean that Pinkie's own siblings, in a sense, were hers as well, but she just wasn't sure about it and didn't want to commit to anything, though she did think that having four sisters and a brother would be nice.

"According to Sakonji, Pinkamena lost all of her Human memories when she became a Demon," Tanjiro explained, as that was the story that her mentor had come up with, to explain her interest in learning more about Humans and the land she had been living in for some time, and she had decided to roll with it, since it was far easier than trying to tell everyone that she came from another world.

"Oh, you poor thing. Hopefully you get your memories back and remember who you were." Mitsuri said, showing that she did have concern for others, which was more than what some of the other Hashira had, even though she switched from eating to playing with Nezuko for a time, another good thing since that meant she was on Tanjiro's side about her and not on Sanemi's side.

From there they went into a small conversation about how they would pack some leftovers for Genya, so he didn't starve while he was in the village, and Tanjiro even asked Mitsuri as to why she joined the Slayers, finding that it was so she could find a gentleman, basically a boyfriend, which caused the pair to sigh as a Kakushi approached them.

"Lady Mitsuri, your sword will be done very soon, and the smiths are asking for you to come to the workshop to make the final touches on it." the Kakushi said, confirming why she was here, she happened to be getting a new sword made, likely due to either her old blade breaking or she wanted something that wasn't the standard weapon, just like how Obanai and Tengen had special looking blades.

"Really? Okay, I guess I had better get going." Mitsuri replied, where she looked sad, as she liked hanging out with them and just chatting her spare time away, though as she said that, and her guide started to move so she could leave, the Love Hashira turned towards the three of them for a moment as she considered something else, "Tanjiro, I don't know if we'll ever see each other again, given what happened to Kyojuro and what could have happened to Tengen, but lets continue to do our best. I mean, you survived a battle with an Upper Moon Demon... there's nothing more valuable than surviving an experience like that, as that's equal to five or ten years worth of training, meaning you're already stronger than when we last saw each other. Pinkamena... well, there's not much I can say, as the experience boosted your power and pushed you into the ranks of the Hashira, which is extraordinary when you think about it."

"Mitsuri, we only 'won' because Tengen was able to counter Gyutaro and Pinkamena's power prevented us from falling to our enemies." Tanjiro said, as that was the truth, he knew that his strength at the time had been nearly worthless and that he needed to be stronger so he could face any of the remaining Upper Moons that were in the Kizuki, as there were five more and there was no telling when he'd run into another one, "I will work even harder than before and push myself even further, so I can take down Muzan at long last!"

Mitsuri glanced at her guide for a moment, who was squirming as she considered how to get the Hashira to move, before she drew up close to Tanjiro's ear and informed them that there was, according to a rumor she heard, a weapon in this village that could make someone stronger, which she encouraged them to find before departing. Tanjiro, upon learning of the existence of such a thing, got as much rest as he could that night, showing that he wasn't going to let this disrupt his sleep, all while Pinkamena glanced out at the village and the surrounding area from the roof, simply wondering what sort of weapon it might be. Since there was no telling how long they would be here this seemed like a good way to kill time as they waited for the smiths to track down Hotaru, so she was fine with Tanjiro going on a treasure hunt of sorts as the two of them searched for this weapon that could make someone even stronger. She had a few ideas as to what the weapon in question might be, since they were in a village of smiths who specialized in making swords, but until they found it she was going to remain silent as she maintained her barrier over the village, only glancing off to the side once as Mitsuri and her guides departed for her home.

When morning arrived, and breakfast had been downed, the pair departed from their temporary residence as they sought out the mystery weapon that was said to be here, heading into the forest since Pinkamena knew a few people were on the outskirts, two smiths in different areas and one who had to be yet another Hashira, which she was able to confirm in no time as she found Muichiro Tokito standing near a little boy with a smith mask on.

"I said go away!" the young boy said, where it was clear that they were having an argument over something, though as the pair approached where he and Muichiro were standing Pinkamena was sure that they found a clue as to where they might find the weapon Mitsuri had mentioned, "I'm not handing over my key to you, nor am I teaching you how to use it!"

In that moment Muichiro raised his right hand and struck the boy's neck with the edge of his hand, showing them that he didn't care much for what was being said right now, meaning he wanted whatever the boy had and certainly didn't care about what he was doing, as if all he cared about where slaying Demons and nothing else. In that moment Tanjiro rushed forward and demanded to know what was going on, all while gripping Muichiro's wrist as the Mist Hashira grabbed onto the boy's attire to continue whatever they were doing before hand, and from there it spiraled out of control as Pinkamena just watched the pair. Muichiro even attacked Tanjiro, hitting him in the stomach while his guard was down, since he felt that no attack would be coming his way, and when he reached for Nezuko's box Tanjiro actually swatted his hand away as he carried the boy off, which caused the Hashira to pause for a few seconds. Of course the boy didn't seem to appreciate being saved from whatever was going on, rather he seemed to be more interested in what he was withholding from the Hashira that had been talking to him, something that made Pinkamena even more interested in what they might discover over the next few minutes.

"I told you, I'm not handing this key over to anyone... even if you torture me for it, I won't hand it over." the boy said, once more showing that he had to be the one who could show them the way to where the mystery weapon was located, or to the first clue in a chain, before he considered something, "Besides, 'It' is going to break soon anyway."

"Have you ever endured torture? Not even adults can endure it, so someone like you wouldn't last long." Muichiro replied, once more confirming that he didn't seem to care about anyone else, save for his mission or whatever he was doing, like harassing one of the smiths who helped the Slayers out, "It seems like you're a dumb brat who doesn't know their place in the world. So what if it breaks? You and your family made it, so just repair it or make another one. You know, with all the time that we've wasted on your whining and grumbling, there's no telling how many people have died."

"That's why we have so many Slayers, as there are others hunting down and dealing with the Demons while we're here, in the hidden Swordsmith Village," Pinkamena remarked, causing Muichiro to turn towards her for a moment, with a look on his face that suggested that he had no idea that she was even there until she made herself known, though she stood there as she talked, showing her fellow Hashira that she wasn't intimidated by her senior, "No one can hold the weight of this world on their shoulders, as everyone is important to dealing with our ancient enemy, so don't act like you're superior to this young smith, before you aren't."

"Be quiet. An Hashira's time is important, which he'd understand if he thought enough." Muichiro stated, meaning he had either forgotten that she was the same rank or had chosen to ignore her ascension, just like she was sure that a certain Wind Hashira had done after the meeting was over, before he glanced at the boy, "Swordsmiths can't fight, nor can they save lives... they exist only to make us weapons, so we can go out, risk our lives, and slay Demons. Now, hand over the key that you're carrying."

In that moment, as Muichiro held his hand out for the key to whatever he wanted to use, Tanjiro turned on him and just slapped his hand with an annoyed look on his face, as he didn't approve of what was going on and likely had some words to share with the Hashira, or maybe he'd repeat what Pinkamena had just said.

"This... this just... doesn't sit right with me and I don't know why! What about consideration? You can't just forget to be considerate here, as you're being cruel." Tanjiro stated, as he really had no idea what to make of this situation, save for the fact that Muichiro had no idea that the smiths were important to what the Slayers did, just like Pinkamena had said before the figure told her to be quiet, "You're just being overly cruel, for no reason. Yes, everything you've said is more or less correct, but even if you aren't wrong about most of what you said, you're wrong about the swordsmiths, as they have an important and critical role in all of this. They possess amazing skills that are far different from what we, as swordsmen, possess, and without them making our swords, well, frankly we wouldn't be able to do anything but be food for the foes that linger in the shadows... we need the swordsmiths to be able to function properly..."

Muichiro decided that he didn't have the time to waste on the conversation and struck Tanjiro again, this time on the neck, knocking him out for a time and allowed him to approach where the boy was standing, though as Pinkamena got ready to move, to intercept him, the young smith handed over the wooden key he had. It seemed more like a small peg or item that could be inserted into something else, though with it in hand Muichiro turned and departed from the area they had been standing in, where Pinkamena watched as Hotaru, who had been hiding behind a tree, helped the young smith check on Tanjiro, before escaping once he realized his client was starting to awaken. As that happened Pinkamena decided to follow Muichiro, as she was interested in what the Hashira wanted the key for, only to find a clearing that looked like it might be a training ground of some kind, before she spotted what she was looking for and paused, as she hadn't been expecting the scene before her. What she was looking at was a near perfect replica of Yoriichi, back when he was alive, and it had most of his defining features, as his face was recreated with a surprising degree of accuracy, it was wearing the same attire she had seen the legendary figure wear in Tanjiro's inherited memories, complete with shoulder pieces, it had his long black hair, and it had both his earrings, which her friend was wearing, and his Mark.

The only thing that wasn't accurate to Yoriichi was the fact that the doll, as that was what it had to be, had six arms, three on each side, and none of the held his blade, rather each one held an ordinary blade in their hand, though right now she found that Muichiro was training against it.

Eventually Tanjiro and the young smith, Kotetsu she learned, arrived and witnessed the battle for themselves, where she discovered that this was a battle doll, a mechanical training dummy that his ancestors had created all the way back in the Sengoku Era, which they called 'Yoriichi Zeroshiki'. The reason behind why Zeroshiki had six arms, as opposed to two, was due to the fact that Kotetsu's ancestors had to have that number so it could actually use the movements of the man that it was modeled after, or the swordsman, since that was what he had been told. Apparently no one knew who Yoriichi was, a fact that saddened Pinkamena a little when she thought about it, so Kotetsu didn't have the information to share with the pair, but he did know that, with the passing of his father and his lack of skill, they wouldn't be able to create something like it, so it was going to be a lost art once it broke. During their conversation Muichiro's crow informed them that his Hashira was a genius, as he was a descendant of the Sun Breathing users, even though there was only one in history, not counting all of Tanjiro's family members, even though both she and Tanjiro knew that the Mist Hashira wasn't using Sun Breathing, otherwise he would have become that Hashira, annoying the crow to no end, especially when they talked about the idea of inherited memories.

When Muichiro damaged Zeroshiki, just a tiny bit anyway, Kotetsu ran off and Tanjiro followed him, though Pinkamena stayed behind to watch the Mist Hashira train, finding that his movements were good and that he could keep pace with his foe, but she had a feeling that there was more to Zeroshiki than what they were seeing, though when he broke off one of his arms, and dropped it to the ground, she stepped out as he picked the arm up.

"I broke the blade. Even though it is close to breaking it can still break our blades." Muichiro commented, due to the fact that his weapon had snapped in half in that final moment, because one half of it was attached to the handle that was in his hand and the other half was resting nearby, to which he collected the scabbard for the blade as well.

"I see that you want a replacement, and that's fine," Pinkamena said, where she approached the Mist Hashira and rested a hand on the shattered arm he was holding onto, where the figure seemed confused as to what she was doing, to the point where he remained silent as he waited for her to tell him what was on her mind, "but leave the arm behind."

Muichiro stood there for a moment before removing the shattered arm from the blade he was taking, allowing Pinkamena to take it so the other Hashira could depart from this part of the forest, causing her to sigh as she walked over to where Zeroshiki had fallen and started to tend to it. She knew that she had no talent in making or repairing battle dolls, in fact this was the first time she had heard of such a thing, and yet, despite that fact, her power over reality aided her in fixing it up, as she rested the arm where it was supposed to be and carefully mended it back into place. While she worked on the battle doll, making sure it was in the condition it had been in before Muichiro fought and damaged it, her ears twitched as she heard the sound of Kotetsu arriving to check on it as well, though she also set up a Room around them to prevent the incoming rain from degrading the insides any further. By the time she finished tending to Zeroshiki, with Kotetsu aiding her in making sure no lasting damage had been done to it, she was pleased to announce that it was back at the level that it had been in before Muichiro fought it, they just had to replace the stolen blade and it would be back at full power, which Kotetsu could replace since his family had a storehouse of supplies and spare swords for it.

In the following moment Kotetsu, having taken a liking to Tanjiro, ordered him to train with Zeroshiki so he could stand up to Muichiro and knock him down a peg or two, which Pinkamena approved of since it would allow him to boost his power as he waited for his smith to be found, and she was looking forward to killing some time as they waited to see what the future held for them and the village.