Tanjiro appeared beside Shinobu like a ghost, though she didn't freak out this time.
He scanned her entire body with Transparent World, focusing on internal injuries since her visible wounds weren't bleeding heavily. The blood on her head and feet was stored Marechi blood, not hers.
Across her body were only tiny scratches here and there. Nothing major could be seen through normal means.
That was why he relied on Transparent World.
"Your left hand and feet… They're broken. Was it the Blood Demon Art?" He crouched down, examining her closely.
Beside them, Kanae wore an extremely worried expression, talking nonstop to Tanjiro. "Ah, the Kakushi team will take too long to arrive. Tanjiro, can't you just carry her to the nearest hospital on your back? Please… She's clearly in so much pain…"
Hearing her pleading voice, he sighed inwardly. 'Hah, why go through so much… For whom do you think I'm saving those Senzu Beans?'
With a pained expression, Shinobu finally spoke in a broken yet soft voice. "That hand fan… It blasted a powerful wind at the end, ha… I was caught off guard, ha… Though I'll be alright after a few weeks of rest. It's just some broken bones, hah…"
As she spoke, her purple eyes looked at Tanjiro as if gazing at a living monster. 'Not even a scratch on his body… He casually defeated such a powerful demon all by himself. As I thought, my help wasn't needed at all… Ha, I must look so pathetic in his eyes right now. Hah…' She laughed dryly in her mind, feeling weak.
Tanjiro perceived her emotions clearly.
'Self-agonizing herself, huh…'
Thinking, he took out a gourd-shaped container from his uniform.
Shinobu and Kanae's gazes immediately locked onto it.
"What is it…?" Shinobu asked.
It was her first time seeing such a strange container, so she was curious. 'Some kind of medicine? Honey? Or something else? Is it for me… eh?'
Because Kanae had seen it once before, she spoke directly. "It's the good stuff you mentioned the other day…"
Hearing Kanae's words, Tanjiro wanted to chuckle but held himself back.
"Something you deserve… a magical medicine," he said mysteriously.
…Eh?
Shinobu's pained look vanished.
She watched as Tanjiro took out a single green bean from the gourd.
A blank expression appeared on her face.
"Tanjiro… Are you joking right now? Haa…" she said, slightly annoyed.
Faking a saddened look, he exhaled. "You still have so little trust in me… I don't know what to say, Shinobu."
"…" Did he really have to say that?
Who would take it seriously in her situation?
Except, there was one person — or rather, a ghost.
Kanae believed in Tanjiro completely.
Even if he had claimed the bean could revive the dead, she wouldn't have doubted him.
Seeing Shinobu speechless, he shook his head with a faint smile and brought the Senzu bean to her mouth. "Say ah…"
Shinobu's ears reddened instantly. Her eyes flickered in shame as she bit her lips in frustration.
Kanae, seeing the scene and despite her earlier worry, suddenly burst into laughter. "Hehe~ Look at her face~! Oh my God, she's so cute~!"
Tanjiro ignored the damn sis-con and spoke a few more words to the pouting girl. "Just eat it for once. And if it doesn't work, how about I listen to your every command for an hour? Is that good enough reason for you, hmm…?"
The moment his words left his mouth, all shame and hesitation vanished from Shinobu's face.
She lunged forward and snatched the bean from his fingers with her mouth, not caring about etiquette or feminine decorum.
"…" Tanjiro and Kanae raised an eyebrow at her in sheer amusement.
Look at her now… So desperate to make him hers.
Acting so unladylike despite herself.
Next, she chewed the bean for a moment and gulped it down.
Though she didn't believe in magical nonsense, when a warm feeling erupted from inside and spread across her entire body, her eyes immediately went wide.
Her spirit was startled.
"Ah, W-What's this…?" she shrieked in panic.
The sensation lasted only a few seconds before vanishing entirely.
Her pain? Gone.
Broken bones? Healed.
Exhaustion? Completely recovered.
Even her mind felt rejuvenated.
Tanjiro saw her comical expression and couldn't stop himself from laughing. "Heh, now shall I have the first command, my lady?" he said with a funny grin and joking voice.
A somewhat surprised Kanae began to giggle at his teasing.
Shinobu's face blushed as she stood up, feeling the miraculous effect of the green bean.
She didn't mind his ridiculing tease and asked directly, her face betraying her seriousness. "What kind of medicine are you carrying? How does such a thing even exist? Where did you get it? How many more do you have?"
Her barrage of questions came rapidly.
The poor girl was extremely confused.
She had begun to doubt her own capabilities after being with Tanjiro for a few days, especially after experiencing these sequence of events.
Just what kind of person was he?
He could thrash an Upper Rank alone and heal broken bones with beans… Not to mention he was only thirteen.
Should she just retire from the Demon Slayer Corps now that he was here?
Tanjiro set the jokes aside and answered her questions calmly. "Well, you know what kind of medicine it is now. It heals wounds, restores stamina, and keeps you full for over a week. Next answer: demons exist, so why can't a miracle medicine? Where did I get it? In a random cave I found on the mountain. As for your last question, there are still twenty-nine left. It's limited and can't be cultivated, so I was saving it for situations like these."
Shinobu and Kanae nodded in understanding.
After staying silent for a few seconds, the healed girl asked further with a suspicious smile. "Anything else you're hoarding secretly, mm?"
Showing a secretive smile of his own, he replied, "Can Shinobu keep secrets?"
Her heart skipped a beat. She nodded seriously. "If you want me to."
So he still had something on him?
Kanae also wore an anticipated look, excitement building to know what else Tanjiro was hiding from her.
Observing both girls' reactions, he could only laugh inwardly. 'Will they get scared? Heh…'
And so, a few hours passed silently~
....
Infinity Castle.
Within the flesh abomination hanging in the air, Muzan's pissed growl could be heard.
'Hantengu is dead…' He understood the situation.
Because he was still in the recovery process and solely focused on amassing his strength, Muzan wasn't keeping tabs on his subordinates, not even the Upper Moons.
Though he could still feel their presence through his cells.
Earlier, his connection to Hantengu, Upper Rank Four, had been severed.
From the scared and terrified emotions of his cells resonating with Hantengu, he realized who the perpetrator was.
"Hanafuda earrings… It's that monster again!"
Thinking so, he discarded any pointless thoughts. He didn't care about anything except himself and the Blue Spider Lily.
As long as he was alive… any life could be forfeited.
The idea of summoning the Upper Moons to the Infinity Castle came to his mind, but he threw it away instantly.
He was not recovered yet.
It would still take ten days to regain his original power.
Until then, he would quietly focus on himself and nothing else.
Those pawns of his were just pawns after all.
If they died, so what?
He would simply make more of them in the future.
No matter how much he hated change, any change other than his own state of perfection could be cast aside without much thought.
Ceasing unnecessary thinking, his meat tentacles caught a few Marechi stored in the castle and began the healing process.
....
After flying for two hours straight, Shiori finally arrived at headquarters.