Yosuke quietly listened as Tsugikuni Yoriichi recounted his memories. Even though his voice was calm, the anger in it was unmistakable.
"But in the end, I still let everyone down. I betrayed my destiny. I, who was meant to slay demons… failed."
The sake cup in Yoriichi's hand shattered into powder under his grip.
Yosuke glanced at his own empty cup and asked,
"Then… will you return to the Demon Slayer Corps?"
Yoriichi fell silent for a moment before replying,
"No. I've betrayed the trust of the Master. I am nothing but a sinner, a man of no worth, unfit to be a swordsman of the Corps. Starting tomorrow, I will leave this place… and begin my journey of atonement."
As the two spoke, a man suddenly burst in, interrupting them.
This man wore Yoriichi's hanafuda earrings, his long crimson hair flowing, and his red eyes shining with determination.
Yoriichi looked at him in confusion.
"Tanjuro?"
Tanjuro's eyes brimmed with tears as he cried out to Yoriichi,
"Yoriichi-sama! Your life up to now has never been meaningless! Please don't ever think you are worthless. I won't let anyone speak of you like that! I swear upon my life—I will ensure your earrings and the Breath of the Sun are passed down forever!"
Yoriichi stared at Tanjuro, stunned. Then, a warm smile spread across his face.
"…Thank you."
The next night, Yosuke and Yoriichi parted ways. Yoriichi set out on his new journey.
From afar, Tanjuro and his family watched him go. Knowing this farewell was forever, their tears spilled uncontrollably. Tanjuro gently touched the earrings hanging from his ears. Gazing at the child in Suyako's arms, he swore to cherish the life Yoriichi had protected and to carry on the legacy.
That was the last time Yosuke would ever see Yoriichi.
A hundred years passed in the blink of an eye.
Now, in Edo, the city was bright as day, the streets lit with countless lanterns.
Yosuke had thought that with his intervention, he could change the outcome of history.
But after everything—after all the detours and struggles—he realized that nothing had changed at all.
This left Yosuke lost and adrift. If no matter how hard I try, the result remains the same… then what meaning did all my efforts ever have?
As he wandered aimlessly through the night streets of Edo, a strong stench of blood suddenly reached his nose. But strangely, there was no trace of a demon's aura.
His curiosity piqued, Yosuke followed the scent until he arrived at a dojo.
Inside, over sixty mutilated corpses lay scattered about, all beaten to death.
Only a single maid remained, her mind broken.
Drooling at the mouth, her eyes vacant, she muttered the same words over and over again:
"Soryu Dojo… Soryu Dojo demon…"
Driven by curiosity, Yosuke went to the dojo she had spoken of.
Within the Soryu Dojo, a young man—no older than twenty—sat weeping bitterly as he held two lifeless bodies in his arms.
He had short black hair, blue eyes, faint pink eyelashes, and three dark-blue tattoos marking his forearms as a criminal.
"Koyuki… Master… please, wake up… I'm begging you…"
The young man pounded the ground with his bloodied fists, his voice breaking.
"Why… why did you have to kill the ones most precious to me? Damn it all! Why wasn't I here in time? Why am I the one left alive? Is there no one… no one who can save them? Even if it costs me my soul, even if I must become a demon, I'll pay the price!"
Yosuke's sealed memories stirred—he recognized the man before him.
This was still the human Hakuji—the one who would one day become Upper Rank Three of the Twelve Kizuki, the demon Akaza, feared as the Demon of Combat.
Yosuke stepped forward, and Hakuji looked up at him.
"Your master is already gone beyond saving. But your beloved still clings to a thread of life. You yourself are gravely wounded—your organs are destroyed, and you won't live much longer. But… if you wish for resurrection, you and she will both become demons. Do you accept?"
Hakuji, driven mad by grief, clung to the only hope left to him. For Koyuki, he would accept anything.
"I accept! Anything—I'll do anything! As long as Koyuki can live, take whatever you want from me!"
Yosuke slit open his palm. Drops of the Demon King's blood fell into Koyuki's mouth.
Her body began to change—the black hair turning as white as snow, her skin pale and luminous like frost.
Then Yosuke dripped his blood into Hakuji's mouth. His body convulsed, his short black hair fading into pink, his eyes turning golden, his skin paling into ghostly white.
Koyuki's life force grew stronger. Slowly, she opened her eyes. Seeing Hakuji weeping, she reached out and wiped the tears from his face, asking softly,
"Hakuji… what's wrong? Why are you crying?"
Hakuji embraced her tightly, terrified she would slip away again if he let go.
"Koyuki… I promised you, I promised Master, that I would become stronger than anyone, that I'd protect you both for life… but I broke that promise. Master is dead, you were gone, and I lost my mind… I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…"
Koyuki's heart ached when she saw her father's body beside her, but she swallowed her grief and gently patted Hakuji's back.
"Hakuji, this wasn't your fault. Father would never blame you."
Then Hakuji brought Koyuki with him and bowed deeply before Yosuke.
"My lord, thank you… thank you for saving Koyuki. I swear upon my honor, I will follow you."
But Yosuke shook his head.
"I don't need your gratitude, nor your loyalty. All I ask is that you never harm humans without cause."
Hakuji pressed his forehead to the ground stubbornly.
"You saved Koyuki. You restored me when I was shattered. As a man, I must keep my word. Please, don't refuse me."
Koyuki lowered her head beside him.
"My lord, I beg you as well. This is Hakuji's vow as a man, and I will stand by him without question. Please accept us both."
Yosuke looked at the two kneeling figures and sighed. He had saved them only because, unlike other demons, he could not bring himself to hate Hakuji. In fact, he admired him.
Even as a demon stripped of memory, Akaza never harmed women. Only in the throes of hunger did he ever turn on humans.
"…Very well. Stay with me for now. If the day comes when you change your minds, you may leave freely."
He paused.
"My name is Ubuyashiki Yosuke."
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