Doom & Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Xover

Chapter 24

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Tanjiro was carried to the village by several Kakushi who swapped off at intervals set by the current route. Once the boy had arrived in the village, he was greeted by the sight of tall buildings inside of the old village. He was able to smell a hot spring nearby as well. Tanjiro couldn't help but be mesmerized by the sight of the Swordsmith Village, it was a visual spectacle unlike anything he's witnessed before. The nature of this village was still preserved and was enhanced by the buildings around it, it was a very pleasant sight for the boy. Once the boy had said his goodbyes to the Kakushi and looked around, he noticed someone watching him from a distance. It looked like a man in a red haori, a black hakama, and long, spiky black hair kept in a ponytail. It was difficult for Tanjiro to discern the rest of the details but he curiously waved at the person watching. The man moved out of sight behind a building. This prompted the boy to chase after the man and once he arrived at the corner, the man was out of sight.

Tanjiro looked all over the place, trying to figure out where the man could've gone but his attention shifted to some commotion happening nearby. He raced towards the action to see a man trying to rip a mannequin away from a small child. They were both residents of the village so their faces were obscured by pink masks. The man was tall and skinny with short, brown hair. He wore a long, white robe with a black shirt underneath accompanied by sandals. The boy has messy, black hair and wears a simple, striped yukata. The man screamed at the boy, "LET GO, KID, I PROMISE YOU, IT'LL BE REAL QUICK, WE ONLY NEED TO BORROW HIM FOR A COUPLE MINUTES!" The young man tugged at the mannequin but the boy had wrapped himself around the doll's legs to impede the stealing process.

The boy refused to let the man have his way, crying out, "If this doll breaks, I won't be able to fix it! Let it go!"

"HOLY SHIT, KOTETSU, LET GO, ALREADY! WE'RE NOT GOING TO BREAK IT, FUCK!" Tanjiro had seen enough, he stepped in and placed his hand on the man's arm to grab his attention. The man cocked his head towards Tanjiro out of annoyance as the boy called out:

"Sir, just let Kotetsu, here, keep the doll! Why do you need it so bad, anyways?!"

The man shook the doll repeatedly out of frustration as he explained, "We need this thing to test some new shit we've created, but this kid won't let go already!"

"We? Who are you talking about?!"

"The Hellwalker, dipshit! NOW LET GO, KOTESTU! I'VE GOT PLACES TO BEEEEEEE!" The man was screaming like a hyena at that point, it was as if he was angry because he was being denied his excitement.

Tanjiro was surprised to hear that this man was acquainted with the Hellwalker, but he had to put his shock aside for now and deal with the present situation. Tanjiro forcefully grabbed the man's arms and yanked them away from the mannequin, his face was stern as he scolded, "Sir, give Kotetsu a break, he'll give it to you when he wants. That time isn't now, so just back off!"

"DAMN IT, WHY DO YOU ALL HAVE TO BE SO DAMN ANNOYING?! I'LL BE BACK FOR THAT THING, JUST YOU WATCH!" The man angrily stormed off which left Tanjiro alone with the boy who was still holding onto the mannequin tightly. Tanjiro knelt down next to the boy and called out:

"Is everything alright? I hope he didn't hurt you."

Kotetsu stopped shivering and muttered, "No, he didn't. Sagetsu and I know each other. It's just, I didn't want him to break this thing. I don't know how to fix this thing like my father does and he's dead. There's no one left that really knows how to fix this thing so I've been trying to keep this thing safe."