Kanroji Mitsuriâs Secrecy
IâM DONE WITH THIS, FINALLY, BANZAI.
Okay, hereâs my surprise (and Christmas present) for everyone. This is chapter 3 of the second novel of Kimetsu no Yaiba (Kataha no ChĆ). Each chapterâs the story of one character, so itâs not like you missed part 1 and 2 of Mitsuriâs story.
I apologize it took double the time I thought it would take me, I honestly thought about giving up many times ohohoho. But hey, here you have it.
This is a mid-quality translation, I do believe itâs readable, but thereâre some parts I didnât give too much thought and left them as short or simple sentences. I tried, okay?Â
This is a fantranslation, there could be mistranslations. Read at your own risk.
Also, typos, grammatical errors, whatever there is, just leave a relpy and Iâll try to fix it as soon as possible.Â
 Last thing: if you want to put this up on another website or translate it to another language youâre free to do so, BUT LET ME KNOW, OK?
One Winged Butterfly
Chapter 3: Kanroji Mitsuriâs Secrecy
1.-
The first time I met her I thought âwow, such a pretty girlâ.Â
Pure white skin and clear violet eyes; stunningly beautiful and delicate; kind and doesnât discriminate anyone.Â
But, can create things like poison to kill Demons.Â
Strong and intelligent, cute, brave⊠a lovely girl.
I would be very happy if we could be friends. We are both girls, so there should be a lot of things we could talk aboutâŠ
Thatâs why, when I heard about it, my head went blank and couldnât think about anything.
âKochĆ-samaâs parents were killed right before her eyes, and on top of that her sister Kanae-sama too⊠dying in such a wayâŠâ
AhâŠ.
I didnât know.
Shinobu-chan. I didnât know.
âWell you see, I joined the Demon Slayer Corps to find a gentleman who would marry me for life. For a girl, itâs actually better someone whoâs stronger than themselves, no? We want to be protected. Hey, Shinobu-chan, donât you think so?â
If Iâd known, Iâd never said that.
Such a frivolous reason.
If I had known Shinobu-chanâs past, I wouldnât have been able to say it.
Ah, how stupid of me.Â
When I told her that, how did she feel?
She was a little startled, but then she answered with the smiling face she always has.
âI see⊠Who knows. Iâm sure Kanroji-san will find someone wonderfulâ.
It must have been really unpleasant and annoying, right?Â
Did she think she didnât want to be together with such a simpleton?
Hey, Shinobu-chanâŠ
Iâm.
You see, IâŠ
2.-
âKanroji-sanâs acting weird?â
KochĆ Shinobu tilted her head to the side at her coworker who came so suddenly.Â
Theyâre currently inside her office at the Butterfly Estate, where she âas the Insect Pillarâ lives. This is a place where poison effective against Demons is developed and Slayers are treated or nursed after being wounded in battle. Therefore, most visitors are wounded people.Â
However, her coworker Iguro Obanai came here without a single scratch and as soon as they met, he started to talk anxiously about the Love Pillar, Kanroji Mitsuri, with a serious face.Â
âIn what way is she acting weird?â
âEverything, sheâs weird all around. You havenât noticed?â
Iguro makes that question and looks at her as if accusing her for something.
As some sort of signal, the snake wrapped around Iguroâs neck sticks out its long tongue. Itâs Kaburamaru, the Snake Pillarâs beloved snake.
âHmm, wellâŠâ
Shinobu with the tip of her index finger softly traces around her upper lip. She tries to remember Kanrojiâs behavior in the last Pillar meeting, howeverâŠ
âNothing in particularâ.
âJust where do you have your eyes attached to?â Are those stupidly big eyes of yours blind? Or maybe just decoratives?â
After some nagging, Iguro made a big sigh.Â
Shinobu stopped herself from speaking her thoughts out loud âunlike you, I donât exchange letters with her frequentlyâ and just smiled and apologized.
âOh my, Iâm very sorryâ.
Even though itâs daytime and Demons canât move around, each Pillar should be very busy as they shoulder a lot of heavy responsibilities. However, he pushed all of those aside and came here, so he isnât doing this just for show or on a whim. Despite his appearance, Iguro cares about his colleagues more than others.Â
âItâs fine if theyâre things you saw from your own scope, so could you please tell me whatâs so strange about Kanroji-san?â
Once Shinobu asked again, Iguro nodded with an obedient look.Â
And thenâŠ
âJust fiftyâ.
âYes?â
âNormally, she would eat a hundred of those dango sticks, but she only had fifty. You hear me? Just fifty. That Kanroji. Her favorite dangos.â
ââŠâŠâ
Being stared fixedly by his bloodshot eyes right in front of her, Shinobu unconsciously stepped back. Contrary to her, Iguro leaned forward.Â
âMoreover, she replies coldly to my letters. Her letters are awfully plain and seem to be written to a stranger. Why? Itâs weird. Anything and everything is weird.â
âAoi, Iguro-sanâs already leaving.â
Shinobu turned her back to Iguro, walked to the roomâs door and said âIguro-san, the exit is over there.â
âItâs not just thatâ.
Despite Shinobuâs sarcasm, Iguro kept talking.Â
âIn the last Pillar meeting, Kanroji didnât even try to look at the eyes of any Pillar. And not only the Pillarsâ, Oyakata-samaâs too.â
Shinobu turned around with a surprised face.
Every Pillar respects and loves dearly Oyakata-sama âUbuyashiki Kagayaâ from the bottom of their hearts. Mitsuriâs not the exception, she also cares about Oyakata-sama. As far as Shinobu knows, Mitsuri has never opposed his will and would even put him above everything else. It was certainly strange for someone like her to avert her eyes from Oyakata-sama .Â
âAnd after that, TokitĆ picked up a handkerchief she had dropped, but when he tried to talk to her she jumped high enough to reach the roof and ran away.â
âYes, that seems strangeâ.
If Mitsuri was herself, her heart would have throbbed and expressed her gratitude honestly by saying âthank you, MuichirĆ-kunâ.
âWas it then when you first noticed something strange on her behavior?â
âNo, she was already acting weird 12 days before that.â
Shinobu was full of retorts at him answering immediately and with such detail, but that aside, this meant Mitsuri has been like this for nearly half a month.Â
By all means, this was worrisome.
âThere could be something wrong with her health. Iâll try to ask her indirectly, you think about something too. Got that, KochĆ?â
After voicing everything he wanted to say and seeing Shinobu nod, he left the Estate. Shinobu, left alone in the examination room, sat down on the chair. There was no need for him to go all the way to visit her, he couldâve just wrote a letter and sent it with a crow. Itâs quite charming that Iguro cares about Mitsuri to that extent, butâŠ
âGood grief. When it comes to Kanroji-san, Iguro-san immediately becomes unreliable.â
Relaxing her body, Shinobu let out a short sigh. It came to her mind the cute face of the only other Pillar of her same gender, Kanroji Mitsuri.Â
âShinobu-chan, Shinobu-chan.â
Sheâs older than her, but has an innocent smile and becomes attached to others just like a kitty would. Thinking about the face that had crossed her mind, Shinobu gently narrowed her eyes.
Outside the windows, the wind blew against the cherry blossom trees and shaked its branches, now with only leaves left on them.
3.-
A thin and soft katana ran in a moonless night, almost as if it was alive.
âBreath of Love, First Style: Shivers of First Love!â
A greatly bended sword cuts a huge Demon up to pieces at lightning speed, its head rolled over the ground.Â
Mitsuri exhaled slightly, for some reason she felt her body heavier than usual and her katana wasnât cutting as sharp as it should. It was distressing, her head was like in a haze.
âThank you⊠thank you very much!â
The couple she had saved was thanking her, the man was bowing his head over and over again while the shivering woman asked her
âAre⊠are you okay?â
âHuh? What do you mean?â
âWell⊠Youâre hurtâŠâ
âOh, no, Iâm notâŠâ
Mitsuri noticed the woman was looking at one of her cheeks and wiped it with the back of her left hand. There was blood on it. Seeing this, she finally understood sheâd been injured.
âFor our sake⊠because you protected usâŠâ
âWeâre really grateful, thank you so muchâŠâ
The woman apologized while crying and the man lowered his head once more. Mitsuri waved both of her hands flustered.
âAh! Donât worry about it! This is nothing at all, nothing! Iâm sorry for making you frightened. But, Iâm happy youâre both okay.â
Mitsuri smiled at them and the man was suddenly moved to tears.
âTo tell you the truth, my wifeâs actually pregnant.â
âUh⊠really? Youâre having a baby?â
Surprised, Mitsuri looks at the woman who finally shows a smile. Her cheeks which were wet with tears shyly transformed into a smile.
âYes, the due date should be in around 3 months.â
Her belly did seem plump.
âI see, congratulations. Take care of your body.â
âWe owe you our lives, thank you very much.â
The man says his thanks again and afterwards, the couple cuddled close together and disappeared into the night.Â
Mitsuri, while watching them until they were out of sight, lifted her hand to her chest.Â
Thump thump, her heart pounded.Â
If that Demonâs attack had cut that womanâs belly instead of my cheekâŠ
As soon as she imagined it, she found herself terrified.
That Demon wasnât weak, but it wasnât very strong too. If I had been myself, Iâd have saved them without getting a single scratch.
(And everything would have ended well, without that pregnant woman making such a faceâŠ)
The wet night wind caressed her cheeks. Mitsuri gently ran her fingers over the wound.
There was almost no pain.
But she couldnât help but feel like something very important was falling and spilling over from that opened wound.
4.-
âSighâŠâ
Finishing her night round and exposed to the brilliant sunlight, Mitsuri dragged her heavy body through the city.Â
She went in her favorite restaurant and ordered some tempura rice bowl, cold soba with dipping sauce, grilled fish with rice and miso soup.
It seemed quite a lot to eat as a breakfast, but for Mitsuri this amount was like a tenth of what she would usually eat.Â
Shortly thereafter, tea was brought to her and she sipped it absentmindedly.Â
She gave a sigh again.Â
Since that time she became eager in disciplining herself and made sure to not have any superficial feelings towards anyone.
In short, she sealed away her love. Sheâd to give up finding someone who would marry her for life and committed herself to forbid her heart to flutter every day.Â
However, it seemed like someone was mocking her because things that would make her heart flutter happened one after another.Â
(I wonder why⊠itâs only at times like this⊠)
The timing was so bad that brought Misturi to the verge of tears. The last Pillar meeting was specially the worst.Â
That day she and the Flame Pillar, Rengoku KyĆjurĆ, ended up at the same place by looking for a shelter from the rain and he told her âYouâre going to catch a cold! Put this on, Kanroji!!â, covering her with his haori. She also saw an unexpected side of the Rock Pillar, Himejima GyĆmei, saying âNamu. Cats are cuteâŠâ while carrying in his arms a kitten. Then, she met by accident with the Wind Pillar, Shinazugawa Sanemi, just when he was feeding a stray puppy. On top of that, she spotted the Water Pillar, Tomioka GiyĆ«, taking a nap in the open corridor and waking up with a sudden jerk. Moreover, she tripped but Uzui catched her in his arms before falling to the ground telling her âbe careful, donât go tripping so plainly.â And finally, Iguro inviting her to a newly opened udon shop.
Mitsuri was depressed because she had to suppress her heart from throbbing every time, but she just couldnât help it.Â
⊠In the end,
âMitsuri, is something troubling you? If you donât mind, you can talk to me.â
(I even made Oyakata-sama worry⊠and when I was leaving, MuichirĆ tried to tell me something but I just ran away.)
This is the worst.
I got too nervous around Shinobu and couldnât even look at her face.
(What⊠am I doing?)
And the final blow: she got hurt while fighting an enemy who wasnât even part of the Twelve Demon Moons.
Mitsuri dropped her shoulders dejected and restlessly ate her tempura rice bowl brought by the waitress.
(Is it really okay to keep on like this?)
Thinking absentmindedly, she dropped the tempura she had picked with her chopsticks into the bowl. Inside of it there was still more than two thirds of rice left. She should be hungry, but she didnât feel like eating. In fact, everything she tried to eat was tasteless and felt like chewing sand. She hadnât felt like this since her first marriage interview was broken off.Â
âKanroji-san, your body shape is the same as other people, but youâve eight times more muscles than them. In other words, your muscle density is quite high.â
The one who told her this was none other than Shinobu.
âThatâs why, you have to eat a lot. People who have more muscles have a higher basal metabolic rate. So please, do at least eat eight times more than a regular human does.â
âBut, for a girl⊠to eat that much, um⊠wonât people be disgusted? wonât I be disliked?â
âYou donât have to forcibly stick with someone who would stop you from taking the nourishment you need. You should just do this to that kind of people.â
Saying that and keeping that lovely smile of hers, she made as though she was hitting someone with her fists.
âRight?â
âGeez, Shinobu-chanâŠâ
Mitsuri had no idea how much those words and smile had saved her.
A few days after this exchange with Shinobu, Mitsuri went with Iguro to have some lunch. She timidly ordered what she wanted to eat. Iguro, who ate the least among the pillars, only asked for tea and something small to eat. In spite of Mitsuriâs fears, Iguro did not reproach Mitsuri for her gluttony, on the contrary, he insisted her âeat this tooâ and ordered more food.
He was also the one who casually gave her those long striped socks without asking for anything in return when she was too embarrassed to use her uniform, which showed too much skin, and wasnât able to burn it right in front of the tailor like Shinobu had done.
âKanroji, so you were here after all.â
Mitsuri lifted her head in surprise at the sound of a familiar voice and saw the very face of the one she was thinking about just now.
She was taken aback by this.
âI, Iguro-san!? Whyâre you here!?â
âI was looking for you to talk about something.â
As if it was the most natural thing to do, Iguro took the seat in front of Mitsuri and, for some reason, frowned deeply.
âKanroji, what happened? ThatâŠâ
âUh?â, without thinking, she looked down at her rice bowl flustered.Â
âDid I drop some rice?â
Or was she eating sloppily? Oh no, did she have food on her face?
Mitsuri was getting really nervous, however Iguro had questioned her because of something entirely different.
His next words were colder than ice.
âWhy is there a wound on your cheek?â
âAh! This? This is from yesterdayâs night round⊠I got careless andâŠâ
As soon as she replied in a flurry, Iguroâs eyes became immediately slanted.Â
Iguro was rather a cool-headed coworker, but seeing him for the first time making such a grim face made her break out in a cold sweat.
(Heâs angry. He must be disappointed with me getting injured when I wasnât even fighting one of the Twelve Moons. What should I do? Is he fed up with me?)
While Mitsuri was earnestly trying to make herself as small as possible, Iguro suddenly jumped to his feet.
âWhere is it?â
âUwaa!â
Mitsuri could only shrug her shoulders as a reflex.
âWhereâs that trash.â
âEh?â
âThe trash that ruined your rosy cheeks.â
âEhâŠah, wellâŠâ
Mitsuri was about to answer him she had already beaten it, but Iguro interrupted her groaning with deep hatred.Â
âThat trash deserves certain death. Iâll go now and cut him into small pieces.â
Mitsuri stopped him in a hurry as he was already trying to leave the shop.
âW, Wait, Iguro-san! Itâs already gone. Umm⊠You see, I cut its neck that same night⊠soâŠâ
ââŠâ
Finally coming to his senses, Iguro stopped his bloodlust and went back to sit in front of Mitsuri again. Then, he covered his forehead with a hand and apologized.
âSorry.â
And muttered a few words very embarrassed.
âMe of all peopleâŠlosing my mind in anger.â
ââŠIguro-san.â
(So, you were not angry with meâŠ)
On the contrary, he was really worried about her.
She felt her heart slowly getting warmer.
Come to think of it, Iguro has been kind to her ever since she joined the Corps, he would help her whenever she was troubled with something. He, who would awkwardly address her
âKanroji.
âThereâs something troubling you, no?â
âEh?âŠâ
âIf youâre okay with me, Iâd like you to tell me.â
âIguro-sanâŠâ
âI want to help you, Kanroji.â
â!â
Her chest tightened and her heart made a loud noise at his sincere voice and serious gaze, but at that instant, Shinobuâs face came to her mind.
ââŠ!! I canât!â
âKanroji?â
Mitsuri jumped to her feet and Iguro looked up at her dumbfounded. She couldnât look at him in the eyes.
âI, I just remembered I have some stuff to do! Sorry. Iâm leaving, okay?
Coming up somehow with those words, she thrust her money at the shopkeeper and almost tripped rushing out the shop.
(Iâm sorry, Iguro-san! Iâm so sorry.)
Even though you are worried about me.
Even though you want to help me.
But, that will only make my heart leap for himâŠ
If that happened, instead of getting help, I would just get stuck in an awful situation. I canât always rely on him.Â
She left the shop as if she was running away from it.Â
Several buildings away, she finally calmed down.
(This is something I have to do alone. I canât rely on Iguro-san forever.)
She slapped her cheeks with both hands with energy.
However, the haze in her head wasnât cleared in the least.
And then, a few days laterâÂ
âHaaaahâŠ.â
Mitsuriâs condition, instead of improving, only got worse day by day. It felt like she was extremely suffocated and her body was as heavy as lead. Maybe this was the reason behind not being able to use the Breath of Love properly. It was clear it has weakened.Â
(I really wonder whatâs wrong with meâŠ)
Can I keep on as a Pillar like this?
In the end, Iâve only been feeling miserable and got a message from Shinobu to boot.
Please, come to the Butterfly Estate whenever it suits you.
Mitsuri would normally be happy with this kind of invitation, but this time it only troubled her even more.
(What would Shinobu-chan want from me?)
Itâll be too awkward to see her now⊠but I can'tâ ignore her.Â
Just when she had started to walk heavily towards the Butterfly Estate, she heard an âah!â coming from behind her.Â
âThe Demon hunter⊠sis*?â (nee-chan*)
She turned back at the perplexed voice.
âYeah, I thought so! Itâs sis!â
Some time ago, Mitsuri had saved a boy and his mother from a Demon. Today that boy was standing in front of her, with a smile in his tanned face.
âIâm glad. Iâve been looking you forever, sis.â
âMe?â
Mitsuri blinked her eyes.
âWhat is it? Some advice? Is something troubling you?â
ââŠâ
Suddenly, the boyâs behaviour changed and became aware of his surroundings. Lowering his voice he told her:
âActually, the restaurant where my mom works is close by.â
It seems he doesnât want her mother to know about whatever he wants to tell me.
âMom will get mad if she hears this.â
A mere child just talked as if he were a grown up man.
âOh myâŠ.â
Holding back a laugh, Mitsuri decided to take him to her favorite teahouse which was some distance away from there.
Sitting right outside the teahouse, the boy happily stuffed his mouth with dangos.
âHave you been well? Youâre all grown up! Youâre a lot taller now.â
âIâm like 15cm taller since that time.â
â15cm. Boys surely grow up fast.â
Mitsuri smiled with a wide grin. She had a younger brother around the same age as this boy and couldnât help but see him in this child.Â
âSo? What did you want to talk with me?â
The boy gulped down the dangos and slowly opened his mouth.
âYâknow, I want to be a carpenter.â
âOh, thatâs good. Are you good at making things?â
âYeah, kind of. My deceased dad was a carpenter.â
âOhâŠâ
She wasnât sure how to reply.
However, the boy was attentive to her and kept talking.
âItâs okay, my dad died 3 years ago already.â
He fixed his deep dark eyes on the sky.
âHe got swept away by the river and drowned when he was building a bridge. He was a skillful carpenter, but he was a poor swimmer.â
âSo thatâs what happenedâŠâ
Mitsuri lightly bit her lower lip and looked at the boyâs tanned face.
Her mind strongly recalled his mother when she saved both, holding his son with large tears running down her face. Even now she remembered vividly how she kowtowed, bowing her head over and over again.
âThank you so much for saving my son. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.â
Now that sheâd heard what had happened to the father, that memory became a heartrending one.Â
âBecause of that accident my mom wonât let me become a carpenter, it makes her remember about father. She says she wants me to become an apprentice and live in a haberdashery or kimono shop⊠but, I donât want to become one of those. I want to be a carpenter.â
The boy tightened his grip of his hand and continued.
âIâm keeping it a secret from mom, Iâm planning to become an apprentice of a boss who was an acquaintance of my fatherâs. Everythingâs been arranged.â
â⊠Why are you telling this to me?â
Mitsuri asked him confused. They boy hesitated at first but then answered brusquely.
ââCuz, sis, you were super cool when you saved me and mom.â
âEhâŠâ
She was extremely puzzled. At that time, she had just joined the Corps and was a lower ranked Slayer who only had her strength to boast, but wasnât competent at all. She got cut all over and it took her a lot of time to chop off the Demonâs head. Anyways, she had been desperate. She hadnât been in a state in which she should receive some flattery or even be called cool.
âBut, yâknow, I was really weak then! Like, I could only reach a lame victory and⊠I wasnât cool in the sligh-â
âYou were cool!!â
The boy shouted, cutting off her words.
âYou fought with everything you got, for us, for complete strangers. Despite being a woman, you went so far as getting all battered⊠sis, you were cooler than anyone.â
The boyâs honest words pierced her heart.
Maybe because of his excitement, the boyâs earlobes were turning red as the sunset.
âSeeing you like that it made me think. I want to be like that too, doing what I really I want and be of help to others. I donât want to give up or regret anything. Thatâs why, it doesnât matter how much my mom cries for it, Iâm going to become a carpenter and show everyone I can make a bridge that surpasses my fatherâs.â
ââŠâ
âI was looking for you forever because I wanted to tell only sis about this. Okay then, thanks for the dangos.â
Saying that, they boy ran off. There wasnât even time to call him out.
His back grew smaller and smaller until he dissapeared in the crowd.Â
ââŠâ
Mitsuri stared in a daze at the spot she last saw himâŠ
5.-
âKanroji-sama, thank you for visiting us. Shinobu-samaâs waiting for you.â
After arriving at the Butterfly Estate, Kanzaki Aoi guided her to the training area with a troubled face. Mitsuri tilted her head while trembling.
(Why at the training area?)
Just as the name implies, that place is a dojo where injured soldiers go through a training regiment to boost their recovery process and also where Shinobu trains herself and her Tsuguko.Â
Mitsuri had visited the Butterly Estate before, but this was the first time she was called to the training grounds.
With a worried face, Aoi left her alone and she timidly opened the sliding door to the dojo.
âUmm⊠Shinobu-chan?â
âHello, Kanroji-san.â
And there she was, at the center of the vast dojo. She was sitting with two bamboo swords at her side. However, she wasnât smiling as usual.Â
With a frosty look, she grabbed both swords, stood up and tossed one of the swords to Mitsuri.
(âŠEh?)
She caught it with her hand reflexively.
Shinobu, still stone-faced asked her.
âCould I ask you for a match?â
Despite making a request, it seemed that Shinobu had no intention of listening to her answer as she readied her bamboo sword and pointed it towards Mitsuri.
âEh?⊠Wha- Eh? Shinobu-chan?â
While Mitsuri was confused and not able to understand the situation, Shinobu gave her a sidelong glance and rushed in without making a sound. In the blink of an eye, she closed the distance between them and knocked the sword in Mitsuriâs hands off.
The low pitched sound of the sword hitting the floor resounded in the dojo.
âJust nowââ
 Shinobu glanced sharply at Mitsuri who stood still and dumbfounded.
âYou donât even have half of your strength. If you were yourself, it wouldnât have mattered how low your guard was, youâd have dodged that easily.â
ââŠAh⊠UmâŠâ
Shinobuâs voice had a strict tone, almost as if she was reproaching her. Mitsuri became flustered.Â
âIt looks like you canât use the Breath of Love properly.â
âTh- thatâs⊠UmâŠâ
What she said was exactly correct and made Mitsuri more and more dispirited.Â
Shinobu let out a soundless sigh and lowered her sword. She directed a chilly look to Mitsuriâs body.
âYou look pale and your cheeks are hollow. You havenât been eating enough to keep your muscles healthy, have you?
â!!â
âIâm not strong as a swordswoman, however Kanroji-sanâs different. What makes you an excellent swordswoman is your talent to use a longsword as it pleases you without worries, your incredible flexibility, the strength you got by birth and, above everything else, your overwhelming honesty.Â
Mitsuri fell completely silent.
âKanroji-san.â
Shinobu addressed her emotionlessly.
âWhy are you trying to make yourself weaker?â
Her heart jumped from the shock.Â
She fearfully looked at Shinobu, who was already looking back at her.Â
Mitsuri gulped, but the sound of it felt like another person had done it.Â
If she was going to talk, now was the moment.Â
ButâÂ
(No⊠I canât say itâŠ. I just canât.)
If she said it frankly, it would just hurt Shinobu. She would make her remember unpleasant and sad thingsâÂ
No, wrong. In truth, she was scared of saying it. Mitsuri was deceiving herself by thinking it was all for Shinobuâs sake, when it actually was for her own. She was too afraid of being hated by her precious friend if she confessed, of destroying their friendship and losing a friend.
Mitsuri casted her eyes downwards to avoid Shinobuâs eyes and squeezed her hands.Â
(What should I do⊠Something else, I could tell her another rea-)
At the instant she thought that, a voice sounded in her ears.
â You were cool!!
AhâŠÂ
Mitsuri lifted her head energetically.Â
That boy told her she was cooler than anyone when she was still a novice. She had felt a huge relief and was happy they were alive.Â
Sheâd thought she finally found a place where it was fine to stay, aside from her family.
Thank you.
It was actually Mitsuri the one who wanted to say those words.Â
(I canâtâŠ.I mustnât tell lies.)
If I do it, I wonât be able to stay here anymore.
I wonât be able to face Shinobu ever again.
(I have to tell her properly⊠my feelings.)
She shut her eyes tightly, then opened them and looked directly at Shinobuâs eyes.
ââShinobu-chan, IâŠâ
Just by saying those few words, her mouth went dry. She knew she was speaking in a shrill voice.Â
âI⊠heard itâŠ. from the KakushiâŠ.about Shinobu-chan.â
ââŠ.â
Shinobuâd been watching her, still with a cold expression. Even now, there couldnât be seen any change in her emotions.Â
If she really had complete control of her emotions, just how much training did she go through to reach that?
A girl whose parents were slaughtered by Demons right before her eyes and whose beloved sister was snatched away too.Â
The pain and sorrow almost made Mitsuriâs heart falter, but she eagerly fought them back.
â⊠I, was embarrassed at my reason to join the Corps⊠to find someone special and love⊠I felt sorry for Shinobu-chan. I thought I shouldnât be like this, I needed to pull myself together⊠But,â
Sealing away her love made her surprisingly weak. The connection between her heart and the Breath of Love was deeper than sheâd thought.Â
âI finally got it now. I canât do that. I have to become stronger being myself. If not, I wonât be able to protect anyone.â
She became afraid of being hated by those precious to her and as a result she neglected those she was supposed to protect. She unreasonably weakened the power and strength given to her by birth and tried to live in falsehood. All when sheâd supposedly decided to live somewhere where lies were not needed and use this power granted by her parents to save as many people as she couldâŠÂ
âThis is me! This is Kanroji Mitsuri!! My heart leaps for many kinds of people, I eat a lot and Iâm really strong! ⊠But⊠I, Iââ
ââŠ..â
âShinobu-chan⊠I really love you, okay?â
Saying that and before she could close her mouth, Shinobuâs pure white throat started to move slightly.
âAside from me, thereâre a lot of members in the Corps who had their parents snatched away from them by Demons.â
Mitsuriâs heart throbbed in pain at her calm voice.
âAoi, Sumi, Kiyo and Naho too. Their families were killed by Demons and had nowhere else to go, so they live here with me.Â
Mitsuri was hanging her head again, but a soft voice reached her hears.
âHowever, me and those girls would never be jealous of your situation or loath you because of your reasons for joining the Corps. But, well, I was surprised at first when I heard it.â
âEh?âŠâ
Mitsuri heard a giggle slip out in the last sentence, she lifted her head in surprise and saw Shinobu with a smile playing on her lips. Their eyes met.Â
With Shinobuâs cold expression gone, Mitsuri was warmly wrapped in with her usual gentle smile.Â
âEveryone here harbors hatred and grief, and despite licking each otherâs wound, we canât move forward. For us, Kanroji-sanâs cheerfulness and smile is what always saves us.â
âShinobu⊠chanâŠâ
In Shinobuâs eyes, she could see herself ready to burst into tears.
Her deep violet eyes looked the same as the first time they met, they were the most beautiful thing in the world.Â
âSo, please, donât do things like lying to yourself. I really like you as you are.â
Unable to endure it, she clinged to Shinobu who was way smaller than herself. Lukewarm tears were shedded one after another.Â
âShinobu-chanShinobu-chanShinobu-chan!!!â
âIâm sorry for testing you like that.â
âNo, itâs fine! Really fine⊠I was being stupid.â
Still clinging to her Mitsuri shook her head, tickling Shinobu and making her laugh.Â
âPlease, from now on you have to eat properly, okay?â
âYeah, I will! Iâll eat a lot. And get stronger!â
âIguro-san was worried too.â
And added a few more words in a whisper.
âTo the point of being a little overprotective.â
âYeah, Iâll apologize to him too. And to MuichirĆ-kunâŠÂ
Wahhhh.
Mitsuri cried like a child and Shinobu softly patted her back with her small hand, in the same way one would do it to a baby.Â
Then, she murmured.
ââTo tell you the truth, I was always jealous. Jealous of your constitution.â
âEh?â
âIf I too had muscles like you, if I was taller⊠ThenâŠâ
âShinobu⊠chan?â
âI said too much, please forget it.â
She muttered in her arms.
What was she going to say after âthenâ?
Mitsuri felt like the words left unsaid were full of feelings strong enough to be heartbreaking, feelings which would rather burn down everything.
The only swordsman who canât cut off a Demonâs head among all the Pillars.Â
The body she was holding now felt so fleeting, or rather it was like a childâs, that it made her cry loudly once more.
She promised herself again.
That sheâd live without making lies.
That sheâd kill as many Demons as possible.
And sheâd protect as many smiles and happiness as she could.
So that she can live proudly with her cherished friends in this precious placeâ.Â
6.-
âKanroji-san, why did you join the Demon Slayer Corps?â
âUh? Me?â
In the corridor of Tecchikawaharaâs mansion, Kamado TanjirĆ asked her a question.
This boy, who joined the Corps to turn her sister back to a human, had fiery red eyes. They were really pretty.
He was looking at her straight into her eyes, it almost made her shrink back.
âItâs kinda embarrassing⊠Oh, what should I do. You wanna hear?â
Mitsuri fidgeted.
Nezuko, who through her Demon Blood Arts had shrunk her boy to the size of a child, looked up at her curiously. Mitsuri gently brushed her black hair.Â
âYou seeâŠâ
â Kanroji Mitsuri continued her story with a smile in her face.
FIN
TL:SoMeBoDY kILL ME