Arrival at Mount Sagiri
After leaving the temple, Tanjiro, Nezuko (in her box), and Kanami continued their climb until they encountered an elderly man wearing a carved Tengu mask: Sakonji Urokodaki.
Urokodaki's Scrutiny
Urokodaki's intense focus was immediately fixed on Kanami.
"You are the young man Giyu spoke of," Urokodaki's voice was deep and muffled. He then inhaled a long, slow sniff of the air around Kanami. His masked head tilted in confusion.
(Urokodaki's POV)
Sakonji Urokodaki was deeply disturbed. This stranger smelled intensely human, with the strength of a seasoned fighter, yet beneath it was a rank, lingering stench of massive, raw demon blood. His breathing was erratic, it was a form of Total Concentration, but it felt wrong, wild, like a fire struggling to be contained. He looked to be the same age as Giyu, yet I have never heard a single report of him. He is a mystery, and a potential danger.
"Sakonji Urokodaki-sama, thank you for agreeing to see us," Kanami said, bowing respectfully. "I am Kanami Reire. I am accompanying Tanjiro Kamado and his sister."
Urokodaki merely grunted, his gaze fixed on Kanami for another tense moment before he turned away. "Follow me."
The Test Begins
They soon arrived at Urokodaki's small house. Tanjiro gently laid Nezuko down, where she immediately fell into a deep, necessary slumber.
Urokodaki turned to Tanjiro. "I will test your worthiness, boy. I have laid out traps on the path up this mountain. You must avoid them all and return to this house by sunrise. If you succeed, I will train you."
With that, Tanjiro, axe in hand, started his climb.
Kanami knew this test was crucial. He had to be a guardian, not a helper.
> SYSTEM (New Objective): Ensure the Protagonist's Success. Do Not Directly Intervene in the training, but observe and be ready for emergency extraction.
> Reward: 10 Dp
"I need to ensure no other demons have encroached on the mountain, Urokodaki-sama," Kanami stated, ready to leave. "I will scout the area."
Urokodaki looked at him. "Go, then. But remember, young man. Your scent and your power are a great burden. Control them."
Kanami nodded and vanished into the fog.
Kanami Observes
Utilizing his enhanced Speed and Dexterity, Kanami found a parallel path up the mountain. He moved silently, soaring above the trees, leaping from branch to branch with unnatural ease. His Heavenly Demonic Devouring Breathing Style kept his muscles fueled and light, enabling him to track Tanjiro without being detected.
Kanami winced as he watched Tanjiro struggle, tripping over snares and falling into pits. He was clumsy and driven by desperation.
"He is so reliant on his nose," Kanami thought, watching Tanjiro fail to spot a simple weighted log trap. "He needs to train his eyes and his will. He can't get out of this world without that stubborn drive."
As Kanami continued his vigil, keeping his powerful red and yellow transformation safely dormant, he noticed something strange below him. Tanjiro was struggling to free his leg from a rope snare, frustrated and breathing heavily.
Suddenly, Kanami's vision glitched slightly. A faint, near-transparent ripple of movement caught his peripheral sight below, near Tanjiro.
It was two ghostly, translucent figures, a boy with a scarred face and a girl with flowers in her hair. Sabito and Makomo.
"They're here," Kanami realized, a cold wave washing over him. The specters of Urokodaki's dead students were appearing earlier than they did in the manga, already drawn to Tanjiro's pure spirit. Kanami knew he still could not intervene, but their presence was another clear signal: the timeline was unstable.
Kanami settled back on a thick pine branch, becoming a silent, hidden sentinel, ready to protect the main character from any unforeseen dangers.
The Ascent and Descent
The Spectral Guidance
From his perch high above the trees, Kanami watched Tanjiro struggling with Urokodaki's traps. He saw the spectral figures of Sabito and Makomo observing Tanjiro as well. The ghostly boy, Sabito, shook his head with a critical, yet empathetic energy. The girl, Makomo, moved subtly, a translucent hand briefly touching a tripped wire, guiding Tanjiro's eyes toward a hazard he'd missed.
Kanami watched for only a short moment as the figures communicated something silent to Tanjiro, then, as if their task was complete, the translucent forms shimmered and vanished.
Tanjiro didn't seem to notice the ghostly intervention, but he did suddenly take a deep breath and start moving more cautiously.
The Test Concluded
Kanami continued to shadow him, satisfied that the protagonist was back on track.
"Oh I forgot that I have 3 free stats, I should put it on strength and speed just incase."
[Str: 15 + 2] [Spd: 15 +1].
"So far, so good, this kind of thrill distracts me and forget that cheating b*tch... sigh"
Mean while
Tanjiro struggled until the last moments, but his natural tenacity and heightened senses finally kicked in, allowing him to navigate the traps.
Just as the sun began to dip below the horizon, painting the sky in crimson and gold, Tanjiro stumbled down the final slope toward the house. He was drenched in sweat, covered in bruises, and utterly exhausted, but he was victorious.
Kanami leaped down from the final tree branch and rushed to assist Tanjiro, catching him before he collapsed completely.
"You made it," Kanami said, his voice laced with genuine respect.
Urokodaki stood by the entrance, his arms crossed. "You are back before sunrise. You pass." He then looked at Kanami, his head tilted. "You were observing, weren't you?"
"Only to ensure no actual demon had trespassed," Kanami replied smoothly, helping Tanjiro inside to see Nezuko.
A Feast and a Question
While Tanjiro rested and Nezuko slept, Kanami declared he would secure their meal. Using his phenomenal Strength and Speed (Total: STR 17, SPD 16), he vanished into the forest. He returned shortly, carrying a massive wild boar carcass effortlessly slung over his shoulder, a clear indicator of his inhuman physique.
That evening, as they ate the freshly cooked boar, Urokodaki sat by the fire, his gaze fixed on Kanami.
"Reire," Urokodaki started, his voice serious. "Who are you, really? Your power is too great for a lone swordsman, and your scent is deeply concerning. You smell of blood, but also of something that should be ashes. Why does a human reek of demon?"
Kanami took a deep breath. This was the moment to establish his fake backstory. He looked down, allowing his carefully crafted narrative of pain and revenge to surface.
Kanami's Origin Story: Heavenly Demonic Devouring
"I am an orphan, Urokodaki-sama," Kanami began, his voice low and solemn. "When I was seven, my family, they were traveling traders. Our carriage was ambushed by a pack of demons. My parents and siblings were slaughtered."
He paused, letting the silence hang heavy. "A Demon Slayer Corps unit arrived too late, killed the demons, and left, thinking all the victims were dead. But I wasn't."
Kanami continued, painting a desolate scene. "I woke up alone, half-dead, surrounded by the smell of blood and ashes. I found a sword, a standard katana the slayers had dropped. From that day, I was driven by one thing: hatred."
"I practiced with that sword until my body broke and healed, full of that rage. I practiced to survive. Years later, I finally tracked down one of the demons responsible, a wounded brute on the brink of death. When I stood over him, ready to take my revenge, I had a flash of memory."
Kanami fabricated a perfect explanation for his system-given skill. "In our family's trading shop, I once saw an old, foreign scroll depicting a Breathing Technique that had no name, it was simply a drawing of someone inhaling immense power. I realized my hatred and my sword were lacking."
"As I watched that demon die, I breathed in the stench of its blood and pictured what it was: a creature that devours humans to become powerful. I decided then that to kill demons, I had to become something like a demon, yet greater than them. I pictured my sword as the Heaven that would Devour the demons. That day, when I finally cut that demon, the technique was born. I call it the Heavenly Demonic Devouring style. The scent you smell is the residue of their consumed blood and essence, powering a human body built on pure revenge."
Urokodaki listened in absolute silence, his masked face betraying nothing, but his senses reeling from the emotional turmoil in Kanami's voice. The story was desperate, plausible, and horrifyingly unique.
"It is a dangerous path you walk, Reire," Urokodaki finally stated. "But your strength is undeniable. I will train the boy. And I will keep an eye on you."
> System: Congratulations Host, you successfully convince the Old... I mean, the previous water Hashira, you acquired the title: Scammer
"What scammer!!? I just need a valid story to convinced him! (screaming inside)"
> System: Apologies, due to error the title goes off.
Title: Story Manipulator