"South-Southeast! Your next location is South-Southeast!" Matsuemon screamed.

"I heard you! I heard! Shut up and give me a break!" Nezuko yelled.

"PLEASE!!" A boy screamed.

"What the hell...?" Nezuko muttered, pinching her fingers around the crow's beak so it can't continue to yell at her.

She turned to see a boy in the dark brown slayer uniform with a yellow haori fading into orange, with white triangles scattered across it. He was hanging on another boy's yukata. 

"PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE MARRY ME! I COULD DIE ANY DAY YOU KNOW!? SO THATS WHY I WANT YOU TO MARRY ME! SO PLEASE! PLEASE! IM BEGGING YOU!" He exclaimed.

"What's up with him?" Nezuko whispers.

A small sparrow flies frantically towards her. 

"Hm?" She perks up, seeing the cute sparrow.

It flaps its wings frantically, chirping alarming words.

"Ah... Okay." Nezuko says.

"IM BEGGING YOU! THERE'S NO ONE ELSE! YOU'RE ALL I HAVE!" The boy begged,

"Okay. I see. I'll do something about it." Nezuko nods, the sparrow, who said his name was Ukogi, seemed to calm down and perched on her shoulder.

Nezuko walks over to behind him.

"PLEASE HELP ME! PLEASE MARRY ME! IM BEGGING—" The boy attempted to scream, he was cut off by Nezuko lifting him up by his haori's collar.

"Gah!" He exclaimed.

'Agh! Dammit! I used my broken arm to lift him up!' Nezuko thought, letting out the smallest wince.

"What do you think you're doing in the middle of the road!? Can't you see he wants no part of you!? And don't go making trouble for your sparrow, either!" Nezuko scolds him, ignoring the ongoing pain.

"Ah... that uniform! You're that girl from final selection!" He exclaims, pointing.

"I don't anybody who acts like you! I don't even want to know you, either!" Nezuko yelled.

"What!? But we met, remember!? You're the one with the head injury! Like the memory problems!?" He exclaims, squirming in her grip.

Nezuko suddenly remembers him, the boy who was talking about how he wanted to die at Final Selection. She lets go of his collar and scoffs, rubbing her broken arm lightly.

She turns her attention to the boy who the boy from Final Selection harassed.

"Okay. It's been taken care of. You can head home without any worries." Nezuko reassures.

"Thanks." He replies.

"HEY! STAY OUT OF THE WAY OF OUR MARRIAGE! THAT BOY WILL MARRY ME! HE LOVES ME—" The boy in yellow exclaimed, he was cut off by the boy he harassed slapping him across the face.

He continues to slap his head and face repeatedly. 

"Hey! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! That hurts!" He exclaimed.

"Hey! Calm down." Nezuko holds him back by grabbing his hands tightly.

"AHHH!" He screams.

'He isn't even hitting you anymore...' Nezuko thought.

"When did I tell you I loved you!? You were crumpled up on the side of the road crying! All I did was speak to you!" The boy scolded, not attempting to break out of Nezuko's grasp.

"What..? You mean you didn't reach out to me out of love? Only because I was upset?!" The boy in yellow exclaims.

"I'm not a gay freak like you! So not on your life! With all that energy, you must be fine, right!? Goodbye!" He breaks out of Nezuko's grasp and walks away.

"Hey!" Nezuko yells, planning to scold the boy for calling him something so mean, but he was already out of earshot.

"W-Wait! Come back! Come..." The boy in yellow screamed.

"Look! Cut it out! He called you a gay freak! He isn't worth it!" Nezuko scolded.

"Why'd you get in my way!? This has absolutely nothing to do with you!" He screams.

Nezuko gives him a face of disgust.

"What's with that look on your face!? Stop that! Why are you staring at me like I'm some sort of creature or something?! Hey, you! You're responsible for it! Since it's your fault that I missed out on getting married!" He screamed.

Nezuko face grew even more disgusted.

"Ah! Say something! Listen up! I'm going to die soon! During my next job! The thing is, I'm terribly weak, okay? I'm not kidding! You gotta protect me until I get married, okay!? What's your name?!" He sputtered between tears.

"Nezuko. Nezuko Kamado." Nezuko answered.

"That's good to know! I'm Zenitsu Agatsuma! Please save me, Nezuko!" Zenitsu screamed, clinging onto Nezuko's leg.

Nezuko kicked him off.

"What do you mean, save you? What was your reason for becoming a swordsman anyways?" Nezuko said coldly, "Why are you so blatantly shameless?"

This sent a chill down Zenitsu's spine, so he had to tell her why, "That's a harsh way to put it! Well, I got swindled by a man and racked up a whole lotta debt! The old geezer who took if over for me was a cultivator! Day after day, I had to go through hellish training! It was so bad I thought I would be better off dead! I was hoping I could die during Final Selection! But since I was lucky enough to survive, I'm still going through hell every day! Ahhh! I'm so scared! I just know I'm going to get devoured and killed soon by a demon! My brains are going to get sucked through my ears while I'm still alive! Please save me!" 

Nezuko didn't like this boy one bit. She shook her head in dissatisfaction.

Later, the two were walking down the road. Zenitsu had calmed down, so less trouble for Nezuko.

"I'm guessing you're calm now?" Nezuko asked him.

"Yeah. But I'm pretty hungry right now." Zenitsu muttered.

"You didn't think to bring any food with you?" Nezuko asked.

"Nope." Zenitsu said quietly.

Nezuko sighed and reached into her haori. She dug through a pocket until she found a piece of wrapped up onigiri. She held it out to Zenitsu.

"Here, take it." Nezuko sighed.

"Oh, really? Thanks." Zenitsu said politely.

He grabs the onigiri from her hand and starts to eat it.

"Are you not going to eat anything, Nezuko?" Zenitsu asked.

"Nope, that's all I had." Nezuko said.

"Oh..." Zenitsu hummed.

Zenitsu had a bright idea to gain her friendship because Nezuko clearly didn't like him. He split the onigiri in half and offered it to Nezuko.

"Here." Zenitsu smiled.

"Hm?" Nezuko notices the split onigiri being offered towards her.

"You eat half." Zenitsu said.

"Oh, thank you." Nezuko takes the onigiri and takes a bite of it.

The two continue on.

"I get what you mean when you say you're scared of demons, but you can't make trouble for your little sparrow." Nezuko told him.

"Huh? It was distressed? The sparrow? How can you tell?" Zenitsu asks a barrage of questions.

"Well, he says that you're always whining about not wanting to go to work, and you're always hitting on boys, and that you snore loudly, and that you always call him the wrong name, he's had it. So he says." Nezuko shrugs.

"He's saying that? You can understand bird language!?" Zenitsu exclaimed, getting riled up.

Nezuko nodded.

"You're lying, right?! You're just trying to get me to shut up!" Zenitsu exclaimed.

Matsuemon flies overhead.

"Start running! Start running! Nezuko, Zenitsu, run! Both of you head over to your next destination! Run! Run, Nezuko, Zenitsu!" The crow screeched.

"Ahh! That crow is talking—" Zenitsu was interrupted by Nezuko.

Nezuko grabbed a lock of his hair and pulled him forward, starting to run while pulling him with her good arm.

"Gah!" He exclaimed in pain.

Later in a forest, Nezuko and Zenitsu were walking through a forest. By now, Nezuko had let go of Zenitsu's hair. Zenitsu's head still ached.

"Hey, Nezuko, on second thought, I'm not going to make it." Zenitsu sputtered, "Even if I go along, I'll still be totally useless."

'The demon scent is getting stronger by the second. There's something up ahead.' Nezuko thought, ignoring Zenitsu.

As the two are walking, a mansion comes into view.

'What's that?' Nezuko thought, peering at the mansion.

Nezuko and Zenitsu stop in front of the mansion.

"I smell blood... but this particular scent..." Nezuko says to herself.

"Huh? You smell something?" Zenitsu perked up, glancing at her.

"Something I've never smelled before." Nezuko answered.

"I don't know about that, but do you hear that sound? Also, are you and I going to work together from now on?" Zenitsu ended with a question.

"Ah..." Nezuko turns to her right and sees a young boy and girl hugging each other.

Zenitsu seemed to see them, too.

"K-Kids?" Zenitsu muttered.

"I wonder what's wrong." Nezuko says, she walks toward the kids.

She kneels down in front of them.

"Hey, you two. What are you doing here?" Nezuko asks kindly.

'Whoa... That's the kindest she's ever been since she met me.' Zenitsu watched her calm down the kids.

"Ah..!" The young boy whimpers.

'They seem scared.' Nezuko thought, but she had an idea, "Okay, wanna see something cute?"

Nezuko reaches into her haori and grabs the sparrow, Ukogi. She covers him with her palm.

"Ta-da!" Nezuko smiles, revealing the sparrow.

Ukogi even did a cute little dance to help relieve the children.

"Isn't he cute?" Nezuko asks.

"Ah.." the children seemed to loosen up a little.

"Please tell me. Did something happen? Is this your house?" Nezuko asked seriously, but kindly.

"No... No it's not. This... This is... a m-monster's... house..." the boy replied, "our big brother got taken away. When we were walking down a road at night, this monster we'd never seen before showed up. It didn't give us a glance, it only took interest in our brother."

"And they went inside the house, right?" Nezuko pointed to the mansion.

"Yeah..." the boy nodded his head.

"Did you two follow him here? You did well." Nezuko said to them.

"We followed the traces of his blood. He's hurt!" The boy exclaimed.

'Hurt...' Nezuko said, "don't worry. We're going to defeat the monster and save your brother."

"Really? You will?" The girl asked.

"Of course!" Nezuko happily smiled.

"Nezuko..." Zenitsu grabbed her attention.

"What." Nezuko looked at him blankly.

"This creepy sound never stops. Is it a tsuzumi?" Zenitsu held a hand up to his ear.

"I don't hear a sound anywhere. You're probably fantasizing again." Nezuko shrugged.

Before Zenitsu could reply, a loud sound of a tsuzumi rang through everyone's ears.

"Ah...!" Everyone exclaims.

On the final beat of the drum's rhythm, the body of a boy comes flying out of a sliding door on the second floor.

"Ah!" Zenitsu and Nezuko exclaim.

The body hit the ground with a thud. Zenitsu winced when he heard the sound.

"Ahh!" The young girl screams.

"Don't look!" Nezuko instructs, rushing to the boy's side.

"Ah!" Zenitsu exclaimed.

"Are you okay?" Nezuko checked his pulse, it was slowing by the second.

Nezuko cradles the boy's upper body in her arms, ignoring the pain in her broken arm.

"Are you okay? Stay with me!" Nezuko exclaimed, 'The wounds are so deep... is this...?'

"Even though... I got out... Even though I made it out... Made it outside... Still... Am I going to die? Will I still die?" Those were the boy's last words.

Nezuko hugs the boy in his final moments.

'He's gone...' Nezuko thought, unknowingly gripping the boy harder out of anger.

"Nezuko, is there any chance that this boy is their..." Zenitsu trailed off, knowing that she would get the hint.

A furious flurry of drums rang through everyone's ears.

"Graaahhhh!" The demon lurking inside the house roared.

"Ahh!" The two young children exclaimed, hugging each other tighter.

"Eek!" Zenitsu jumped, grasping his haori in fear.

Nezuko just stayed silent and watched the house to make sure no more bodies flung out.

'I couldn't save him. If only I had gotten here sooner, I could've saved him.' Nezuko thought.

"Hey! Is this boy your brother?" Nezuko called to the children.

"It's not him. Brother's wearing an orange kimono." The young boy called back.

Nezuko nodded in reply, 'so it's captured more than one person...'

Nezuko lays the body down and prays for him.

"I promise to bury you once I kill the demon. Please forgive me, sir." Nezuko muttered.

Nezuko stood up and called to Zenitsu, "okay! Zenitsu, let's go in!"

"Ah... Ahh!" Zenitsu shook his head frantically while starting to tear up.

"You know, nobody can help them besides me and you." Nezuko used the guilt-trip method to get him to go along with her.

"Eek...!" Zenitsu kept shaking his head.

Nezuko lowered her head, she decided to use imtimidation as a last resort.

"Really? Okay then..." Nezuko said dangerously.

"Ahh!" Zenitsu screamed.

Nezuko turned to walk away from Zenitsu towards the house. Zenitsu ran over to her and clung onto Tanjiro's box.

"Ahh! Hey, come on! Why are you making that face at me?! Okay! I'll go!" Zenitsu finally gave in.

"I have no intention of forcing you." Nezuko lied.

"I said I'll go!" Zenitsu cried.

Nezuko kicked Zenitsu in the gut lightly, getting him to let go of Tanjiro's box. Zenitsu fell back in pain.

'What a drama queen.' Nezuko thought, shaking her head.

She removed the box from her shoulders and set it in front of the kids.

"In case of emergency, I'm leaving this box behind. Even if something happens, you two will be protected. But, please, be careful with it. It's more precious than my life. We'll be leaving now." Nezuko instructed.

Nezuko pats the box and turns for the mansion. She starts walking with Zenitsu following beside her, sobbing loudly.

When they enter the mansion, the walls are littered with scratches and paper with neat writing on it. Nezuko read some of the pieces and thought it was quite interesting. Zenitsu seemed to be even more scared from each step he took in the mansion.

"Erm... Nezuko. Hey! Nezuko. Ugh, Nezuko!" Zenitsu exclaimed.

"What?" Nezuko snapped a glare at him.

"You'll protect me, right? Right?!" Zenitsu asked, tears running down his face.

"Zenitsu. I have broken ribs, and a broken arm from my previous mission. None of which are fully healed yet." Nezuko said, pointing to her injuries.

"What...? What!? What do you mean, broken bones!? Don't go breaking bones on me! If you have fractures, you can't possibly protect me! I'm gonna die today! Ahhh! What am I going to do!? I'm going to die! Going to die! Ahhh! I'm a dead mean, 99.9% dead!" Zenitsu screamed, grasping his hair tightly.

"Zenitsu! Shut up! You'll be fine!" Nezuko shouted at him.

"Don't sugarcoat it!" Zenitsu screamed.

"Does it look like I am!? Zenitsu, you are such an... Ah..." Nezuko turned to the hallway behind them.

"Ah! No good!" Nezuko shouted.

"Ahhh!" Zenitsu hugged himself tightly.

The two young children from before ran towards Nezuko from the hall.

"You shouldn't be here!" Nezuko lightly scolded.

"M-Miss, we heard scratching from the box and got scared!" The boy cried.

"Even still, it pains me you left it behind. I mean, it's more precious to me than my own life." Nezuko rubbed the back of her neck.

A tremor shakes the mansion with a loud noise. 

"Urrhhh! Ahh!" Zenitsu covers his ears and falls to the ground.

He accidentally bumped the little girl and Nezuko into another room. 

"Ah! Hey!" Nezuko shouted.

"Ah! I'm sorry, Nezuko!" Zenitsu apologized, still shaking violently.

A tsuzumi is banged on once and Nezuko and the girl are teleported to another room.

"Huh?" Nezuko looks around at the changing rooms.

'It's a different room. Are we moving, or is this my imagination? Did we move to the beat of the tsuzumi?'  Nezuko thought, shielding the girl from harm.

The little girl shakes in fear.

"Oh. I'm sorry you got separated from your brother. But I'm gonna protect you no matter what. And that blonde brat will protect your brother. What's your name?" Nezuko said.

"Teruko..." Teruko responded, fiddling with her hair.

"Teruko? That is a beautiful name." Nezuko complements.

Nezuko whips her head through the doorway, sensing something. A demon appeared in the doorway. He had a tsuzumi on his left and right shoulder, and one on his stomach. He wears a purple kilt with a red tassel fastening it. Two drums were on his hips, too. His eyes were pure red with black markings on his face. He had brown hair going down to his shoulders.

Nezuko stayed silent and covered Teruko's mouth.

'Among all of these scents, this is the strongest. This one definetly is the master the house. He's devoured a slew of humans, too.' Nezuko observed.

In a hallway, Zenitsu is screaming loudly. 

"IM GONNA DIE! IM GONNA DIE! GONNA DIE! GONNA DIE! IM TELLING YOU!" Zenitsu cried, "NEZUKO AND I GOT SPLIT UP!"

"Teruko!" The young boy, Shoichi, called.

"Ah!" Zenitsu gasped.

"Teruko! Are you there?" He called again.

Zenitsu clings onto Shoichi's arm tightly.

"NO, NO, NO! DONT YELL LIKE THAT! IF YOU YELL AND THE DEMONS HEAR, IT WONT BE PRETTY! COME ON, LETS STEP OUTSIDE!" Zenitsu suggested.

"Wha... What? Outside? Are you trying to escape by yourself without your friend?" Shoichi questioned.

"H-Huh?" Zenitsu stammered.

"All this constant jabbering about dying... aren't you ashamed of yourself?" Shoichi scolded.

"Ah!?" Zenitsu gasps.

"Clinging onto a young person like me... don't you feel pathetic?" Shoichi asked.

"Erk!" Zenitsu sinks to the floor.

"What are you wearing that sword on your hip for anyway?" Shoichi pointed to the sheathed sword.

"Gah!.. Guh..!" Zenitsu fell backwards on his knees, "Those... Gah... Words cut so deep... Gah..."

After Zenitsu was done wallowing in self pity, he managed to get up and drag Shoichi along with him. He tries to head to the exit.

"That's not the exit!? I'm not going to be any use to her anyways!" Zenitsu groans.

"Hey! Let me go!" Shoichi shouts, trying to escape his grip.

"I'm going to summon a grown-up here, okay!? Because this isn't something us little kids can handle!" Zenitsu cries.

He opens a door, thinking it's the exit, but it ended up leading into a another hallway.

"Huh...? Gah..! You're kidding me!? I was sure that this was the front door! Where'd the outside go?!" Zenitsu runs to another door with Shoichi in his arms, "is it this one!?"

Zenitsu runs to many doors and opens them.

"It is this one!?" He slams open a door, "What about this one!?"

This room had an inhabitant. Zenitsu didn't get a good look at him, but he had the head of a boar with no shirt on. He was menacing for sure.

"ITS A MONSTER!!! AHHH!!!" Zenitsu screamed.

The boar-man ran out of the room, brushing past Zenitsu.

Zenitsu had fallen to the ground when he saw the boar. Shoichi looked down at him with disappointment, shaking his head.

"What the heck?! What's that look in your eyes!? Stop looking at me like that!" Zenitsu exclaimed.

Nezuko had learned the demon's name from his writing on the walls in the hallway earlier. He always signed his writing with his name, Kyogai. She is still holding her hand over Teruko's mouth firmly.

"If it hadn't been... if it hadn't been for their meddling..." Kyogai cursed.

"Teruko. You have to try not to scream, okay? Don't go into the hallway. Step back and hide behind the shelves." Nezuko whispered, removing her hand.

Teruko reluctantly nods and runs behind the shelves nervously.

"Curses! Curses! Thank to them, he got away! When he was my prey! Why is it? Why do they all keep barging into someone else's home?! It's infuriating!" Kyogai cursed.

Nezuko silently draws her blade.

"Curse them! Curse them!" Kyogai shouted.

"Hey, bastard! Listen! I'm with the Demon Slayer Corps, Rank Mizunoto, Rank Ten! Nezuko Kamado! I will slay you now!" Nezuko shouted.

"A child with rare blood that I found myself!" Kyogai completely ignored her.

Nezuko pulls her body back and launches herself towards Kyogai, with her sword prepared. 

'Got him.' Nezuko saw the opening thread appear.

The thread suddenly snapped as Kyogai beat one of his tsuzumi.

'Huh? The thread snapped.' Nezuko thought, looking around the room.

The room flips around.

"Ah!" Nezuko exclaimed.

"Ahh!" Teruko screamed, holding onto a shelf tightly.

"Ngh... Teruko!" Nezuko strained from pain.

Nezuko ran to catch Teruko in her arms.

'Now the floors are on the sides. The room has been flipped. So is this the demon's Blood Demon Art? This entire house is the demon's territory. Ah... what's this?' A musky scent wafted into Nezuko's nose, 'an odd scent is coming this way. It's... a human.'

Nezuko starts hearing rapid footsteps.

"Hahahaha! Hahahaha! Hahahahaha! Comin' through! Comin' through! Comin' through!" The man's scratchy voice yelled.

A figure who looked like a boar at first sight bursted through the papers doors behind Nezuko.

"Hah!" He laughed, holding jagged light blue twin blades.

'Who's he? He's wearing a boar's head. He's also wielding... Nichirn Blades.' Nezuko noticed his appearance.

As described earlier, he had a boar's head on, but also shirtless with the rest of his shirt hanging by his pants. Nezuko assumed the shirt and pants were part of a Demon Hunter uniform that he refused to wear.

The boar-man-thing looked her way. Nezuko held Teruko in her arms tighter. He looked back at the demon sharply.

"All right, you monster! Die on the battlefield and become my springboard so I can become more powerful and soar even higher!" He shouted.

'That won't work. Demons disintegrate when they're killed.' Nezuko thought, starting at him to watch his movement.

"Infuriating! Infuriating!" Kyogai exclaimed.

 "Here goes! Comin' through!" The boar exclaimed.