6. storm in a peach teacup.

The Former Roaring Hashira's estate is in the deep crests of a vast peach orchard. It's a beautiful place, the smell of peach blossoms fragrant and soothing in the spring. Looking up was the sight of pleasant pinks, and looking down bore sight of the flickering leaf shades.

Rui rests on one of Kanata's shoulders and under the wicker hat, chewing on one of the overripe peaches that they'd found on the ground.

He didn't want to steal one from the trees.

It probably wasn't safe for human consumption, but Rui would be fine. Even if peaches didn't sate a demon's hunger, Rui had been curious about the taste. He didn't get peaches when he was a child.

"It's sweet," he says, like it's a marvel.

When Rui pushes the peach into his cheek, Kanata relents and takes a bite out of a safe-looking part of the fruit. It's very sweet. And kind of sour because it's overripe, but still mostly sweet.

"It is," Kanata agrees.

Kanata covers his face again with the hyottoko mask.

He looked up again, and thought it was such a crying shame that Rui could not gaze up at this perfect scenery. Kanata spread out his fan, to catch the mosaic-like shadows upon its screen. Rui observes it with interest, but doesn't reach out, not wanting to be burned.

"It's beautiful, isn't it? The daytime."

Rui considers that.

"I have seen peach blossoms when I was alive, never again once I've been a demon," Rui says. "I don't know if they're beautiful. I just know it means winter is over."

Kanata's content with that. "That's good enough."

For children that died in winter, spring will always be beautiful.

"It's so peaceful..." Kanata sighs pleasantly. Walking down a gorgeous peach orchard, Rui in his arms and nothing in his way— it's blissful, almost. Like the war with the demons isn't happening— it's so quiet and soothing, that Kanata wished this road would never end.

That he could wander down this path forever, and forget everything.

"DIE, DEMON!"

Yeah, what did he expect?

Luckily, his fan is already open, so it's not all that difficult to divert the trajectory of the coming blade, find the hilt, and twist it out of the boy's grip. He finds the boy's wrist and pulls him forward—

—and then snags him by the neck.

Kaigaku chokes violently at the rough handling, blade falling out of his hands as Kanata raises him above the air. It's a second of falter before Kaigaku's instincts kick back in, legs raising skyward and missing Kanata's face by a hair.

It succeeds in getting Kanata to let him go, though.

Kaigaku coughs, landing on his hands and feet and trying to locate his sword again— and then he realizes the demon is no longer in Kanata's arms.

Rui's wearing the oversized wicker hat, sitting on a tree stump, still chewing on his half-rotten peach. Unimpressed.

"You—" Kaigaku snarls, "you're a swordsmith! What the hell are you doing, travelling with a demon? And bringing one here?"

Kanata's a little confused.

"I have come to deliver a sword for Kaigaku," Kanata reports, stoically. "I have Oyakata-sama's permission to travel. Former Hashira Kuwajima-sama is more than capable of handling any issues that occur."

Kaigaku makes a loud noise of disbelief.

He finds his sword and raises it before him again. Ah, it's got a worn blade— it's probably a training blade, or the blade apprentices take to Selections.

"You asshat, I'm not worried about Master!" he sheathes it, and moves into position for another attack— Thunder Breathing is iaijutsu. Kanata knows how annoying that is to deal with. "This is the sacred training ground of those that seek to learn under the Master, how could you bring a demon to this place?"

Kanata spends a moment in confusion.

And then it finally clicks.

"Oh, you're worried about your junior apprentices because they're too weak to handle demons," he says, like it all makes sense. Kaigaku lets out an unholy blushing screech of NO I DIDN'T SAY THAT and Kanata ignores it. "Don't worry, Rui is a good boy."

Pause.

Rui reaches up to cover his own ears.

Kaigaku shrieks, "the FUCK do you MEAN HE'S GOOD? It's a FUCKING DEMON! HOW THE HELL ARE YOU NOT DEAD YOU MORON??"

Wow, Sanemi would love this one. There's not enough noise pollution in the Wind Hashira Mansion yet, is there?

Rui pipes up, "is it a Demon Slayer thing to shout all the time?"

Kanata sourly says, "I don't know, Rui. I don't know."

Kaigaku is not accepting this. "You! You're a swordsmith! What do you think you're doing, taking him around and— swordsmiths are usually non-combatants, are you suicidal??"

"Hey..." Kanata says, even though Kaigaku's grabbed his collar and started swinging him back and forth at this point, "isn't that sword too short for you?"

Kaigaku freezes.

"You put your sword on your back. That means the draw is longer than if it was at your side, and since your blade draw is a downward slash, rather than an upward rise..." Kanata gestures vaguely with his hands as he thinks all of this, "This means you move your body in a slight curve when you strike. You don't do the one step, straight line lightning bolt stride Kuwajima-sama is known for."

Thunder Breathing strikes are impossible to control because they're so fast.

Kanata is actually very impressed. Uzui's roots are in the same place, but he sacrifices speed for control and impact— and here Kaigaku is, trying to achieve both speed and impact while fighting for control against all odds. It's impressive. He's very stubborn. So stubborn he's fighting a whole damn sword style for dominance because he can't figure out why it's not working for him.

"Uhm. Wait," Kaigaku begins. "I barely attacked you once and—"

"Kuwajima-sama likes the wakizashi better because he's not tall, but the standard sword length is a good choice for trainees. You're controlling it a lot better, but the fact you're trying to control it at all is making every other technique in Thunder Breathing a little harder... And it probably takes more effort to make sure those high-speed attacks actually reach your targets. You have to get very close with your sword," Kanata continues.

"Can you stop for a second—"

"So have you tried an Oodachi? They're much longer. I think they'd suit you better."

Kaigaku erupts. "SHUT UP SWORD NERD! BE QUIET! STOP TALKING FOR A SECOND! STOP GIVING ME ADVICE I DIDN'T ASK—!!"

"Oh I have one here right now actually do you want to try killing me with it?"

"I SAID BE QU— wait. What did you just say? Yes. Yes!"

-

"Hey, Zenitsu! Weakling, where ar eyou?"

"Huh? Oh, Nii-chan, are you okay to get up now? I thought Grandpa asked you to rest a little m— WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT GUY'S CLOTHES? THOSE ARE LIGHTNING BURNS OH MY GOD DID THE SKY GOD STRIKE ANOTHER PERSON—"

"Shut up! I did that. And don't call me that. I'm not your brother."

"Oh, that's okay then," Zenitsu sighs in relief. Then it registers, "wait, THAT'S NOT OKAY AT ALL!"

"Shut up! Just help him!"

"Nii-chan, did you kill a man?!?! What happened to his face?? KYAAA!!"

"That's a MASK!" Bonk. "And don't call me that!"

Kanata sighs, holding onto his charred haori. Is it a Thunder thing to be shouting all the time? They certainly live up to the Roaring Hashira's namesake, but oh, his ears...

(Rui is currently still where he'd been left, chewing on his peach, wicker hat on his head, and sitting atop Kanata's duffel bag and waiting to be picked up.)

-

"...so I will be reforging Kaigaku's nichirin blade. I will return in some days."

Kanata bows politely. It's standard to speak a lot when on a swordsmith visit, but for some reason, he's ended up speaking a lot today.

"Oh, don't worry about it, stay here," Kuwajima says. Completely loose of formality. "I spotted one of your safehouses a while back and had the Kakushi move it up to my orchard. You can work there."

...you did what to my safehouse?

Kanata stares at Kuwajima, hoping for clarification, but unfortunately, Kuwajima has Rui on his knee and he's preoccupied with peeling and cutting them.

Rui seems to like the peaches. He really likes it. He hasn't stopped eating them. And Kuwajima, clearly endeared by this interesting creature, hasn't stopped giving him more. He's going to upset his demon stomach.

Kanata's lap feels very lonely right now.

"Zenitsu will be mending your haori in the meantime," Kuwajima says. "That boy's very much a wimp in many sword-related matters, but he's good with his hands. It'll be good as new when he's done with it."

Kanata wants to leave.

"Can you just give me back my s— I mean," he clears his throat. Polite, polite. Be polite. You can't let your swordsmith upbringing get in the way of everything you learned on your independent journey. "Kuwajima-sama. With all due respect, I have other work to do."

"Oh, then go on," Kuwajima says, "with your skill, you can go and come back by daylight, wherever it is. I'll have Kaigaku prepare the workstation. He may be quite a rebellious tyke, but he's diligent in cleaning. I'll take care of Rui-kun while you're gone, then your trip will be much shorter as well."

Kanata considers that.

Yeah, no.

"Kuwajima, just give me back my son."

-

"...so in short, since I won, Kanata is my son now," Kuwajima declares, keeping the expensive Karuta cards into a neat pile. "And Rui is now my grandson. Boys, greet your new big brother and younger brother."

Kaigaku and Zenitsu, despite their polar opposite personalities, now donned matching looks of absolute bafflement.

And then synchronously, "HUH?" as they drop everything in their arms.

Kanata sips on his tea, Rui in his lap now happily discovering the wonders of peach tea. Kanata isn't wearing his mask, and his eyes look dead to the world as he stares into the far wall, reconsidering his life decisions.

"Rui..."

"Hm?"

"Remind me never to play a speed-based card game against a Thunder Breather ever again."

"Yes. That was foolish of you."

-

"GAH! Why do I have to let a demon nurse my wounds?! That's the opposite of my job! That's the exact opposite of my job requirement!"

"Careful," says Kuwajima's voice from outside. "There's a thin spiderweb at the doorway, if you run out like that you're coming over in ten pieces."

He skids to a stop right before it, catching himself at the door frame and just barely getting the edge of his bangs trimmed for his efforts.

He whirls back, "ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?!"

To which Rui, making a butterfly with his cat cradle strings, dryly states, "the idea is to stitch you back together. You were nearly bisected by whatever demon you encountered before me. The field stitches of you humans aren't made to fix wounds this bad."

"You can't stitch my wounds if I'm in ten more pieces than when I started!"

"...is that a challenge?"

"FUCK! FUCK! NO! MASTER KUWAJIMA! HELP!"

The door slams shut. Kaigaku violently bangs on it.

Sitting by the doorway, smoking, Kuwajima Jigoro sighs. "How many times have I told you, Kaigaku? Call me Grandpa."

-

"Uhm... Kanata-san? I've mended your haori."

Kanata smears away the sweat under his chin, the warm dirt remnant on his glove staining his cheek with a brush of coal. He looks back at the red hot nichirin steel on the workspace, and sighs out his exhaustion.

He's done processing the steel, now he needs to shape the blade...

(It's a Thunder Breather's sword, so it needs to be sleeker. The dull of the blade needs to be firmer, and blade as precise as he can. Most Thunder users only have one chance to get the killing strike in, so it's completely the fault of the swordsmith if he's unable to cut through the neck because of an incompetent blade.)

(So much to consider. It's very different from forging for versatile Water Breathers, or violent Wind Breathers. The latter in particular tend to focus more on how sturdy a sword is than how sharp it is. They break swords even more often than Stone Breathers do.)

Zenitsu watches Kanata think through all the specifics of swordmaking deeply, and he stands there, in awe.

"You're very serious about your work, Kanata-san... uhm. Would you like some tea? You've been working nonstop for eight hours now."

Kanata hums. He accepts the tea when Zenitsu hands it to him, though, and then Zenitsu goes to hang the haori up.

"Zenitsu..."

Zenitsu jumps. "Eek! Don't suddenly speak up! You're so quiet! It startled me!"

Kanata is much too tired right now to deal with that. He needs to conserve his energy to power through this sword smithing or he'll die in the polishing process. So sipping desperately on his tea, Kanata continues. "Your Final Selection... when?"

Zenitsu blinks, a little confused.

Then, nervously, "G- Grandpa said... in three years. But I don't think I can! I mean, it's the Final Selection, I'm not nearly anywhere strong enough! I'm terrified of demons, I'll die the second I'm out in the field!"

Kanata takes off his mask.

"AND THAT! THAT!" Zenitsu switches instantly into feral beetle mode, "why the hell are you wearing that dumbass mask when you have a face like THAT! Apologize to all the men of this world this instant! And the women while you're at it!"

Kanata puts his mask back on. Not doing that again.

"Zenitsu, tie my hair back for me."

Zenitsu has to do a double take at the sudden request. Flabbergasted, he moves to do just that, grumbling all the way.

"Sheesh, you keep changing the topic. You're a serious guy, but I just can't get a read on you at all! It's not like you're hiding your thoughts either, you just don't have much thoughts to begin with! You're so weird!" his hands weave Kanata's hair easily into a braid, and Zenitsu tied up the last bit with a ribbon that looked to be a part of Kanata's haori belt. Complete with a bell at the end.

Magical.

"Ah, we couldn't save the belt, but if it's fine with you, Grandpa wanted me to make you a new sash out of the Kuwajima traditional fabric, if that's fine?"

Kanata thought that over.

The haori he currently has— white to reddish-brown in a speckled gradient of ginkgo leaves— was given to him by the Kochou sisters. They're definitely going to notice if there's suddenly a new pattern on it.

But oh well.

"Can you make Rui something, too?"

Zenitsu balks. "I'm not a seamstress! But okay."

-

Kanata quite liked it. The red sash was drawn over with white triangular patterns, the occasional silver spiderweb laden across it. It didn't clash too much with the rest of his haori at all.

"It seems strange to put a demon in bright red," Kaigaku says. Rui is in his lap, entirely against his will but he's physically incapable of doing anything about it.

"Officially my grandson now," Kuwajima says, like that's some sort of crowning statement.

Zenitsu sighs, helping Rui put the kimono on with an annoyed sigh.

"Hey, do I do left-over-right or right-over-left? One's for the living and one's for the dead, but technically which one is a demon supposed to be?" he asks, entirely rambling but he's already decided on a direction so he's just ranting and doesn't expect an answer. "And is it my imagination or did you get smaller since I last measured you, Rui-kun?"

"Conserves energy."

"Ah yes that explains everything, that explains NOTHING!" Zenitsu snaps. "Tell me that earlier! Take that off, I'm readjusting the length!"

"Just leave it," Kaigaku mutters sourly.

"He'll trip over it!" Zenitsu growls.

"Don't give me attitude, you shit!"

"I've been doing everything in the house these days, Nii-chan, you don't get to talk!"

"You wanna see how useful I can be, you little asshat?!"

"Sit down, you fucking invalid! If you make Rui dirty his new clothes I will break your new sword even if it makes Kanata-san mad at me!"

"You would NOT!"

"TRY ME!"

Ah, so peaceful.

Kanata sits by the foyer, really getting addicted to the taste of peach tea at this point. He might steal a pack for his journey. All that's left of the sword is to test the length with the actual user and finish tying the tsuka-ito, so he'll be able to leave soon.

(...this domesticity is nice, though.)

-

Usually, after forging a sword, Kanata rests for a day before delivering them.

But since he's doing a full job at the Kuwajima Orchard, Kaigaku gets it the second it's done. If Kanata's honest, he's very proud of that one. He went all out with it, carving lightning streaks into the blade and everything, and tying the pattern of the tsuka as carefully as he can. He even carved a proper guard for them, and was intending on making them in reversed colours when it came time for Zenitsu's blade to be honed.

Needless to say he kind of wants to spend the next two days sleeping, but alas.

"This is... amazing, holy shit."

Kaigaku draws the Oodachi, and it's much longer than his old one. It stands just about as tall as him— and since he's fairly tall, that's perfect. The rim of the blade morphs a bright, crystal gold against the black lightning streaks carved into the forte.

"It's beautiful."

Kanata stays on his knees as he witnesses this, as is ceremony, and bows, as he always does. "The swordsmith village is honoured to offer a sword for the Demon Slayer Corps. May it serve you well, young warrior."

Kaigaku can't wait to try it out. He's been holding that temperamental brat expression the entire stay, since he didn't even want to rest at home to begin with— but the second he laid his eyes on the sword, his gaze shone with childlike innocence.

And Kanata liked that.

"I've made two more accompanying pieces as a token of my gratitude for your hospitality," Kanata adds, setting down two shortswords with their scabbards. "As Kaigaku wears the Oodachi on his back, these two shall serve as counterweights for his load, as well as secondary weapons."

"Woah!" Kaigaku reaches for them quickly, unsheathing them and watching similarly enchanting marbles of lichtenbergs bleed through the blade.

"No need to thank us," Kuwajima says. "You are always welcome, Kanata."

Kanata accepts that much. He knows better than to argue with this stubborn old man at this point.

Kaigaku, however, is preoccupied with excitement. Sheathing all his swords and getting up with them cradled in his arms. "Can I go try it out?"

"Of course," Kuwajima says. "But before that... your manners, boy."

It's really a statement to how much Kaigaku likes the sword when he, without any complaints at all, exclaims a loud "thanks, Kanata-san!" and charges out the door.

Even Kuwajima was baffled by that one.

Kuwajima's eyes leaked with tears.

"That... That was the first time that boy ever smiled at me. And said thank you to anyone. Kanata, did you see that? Kaigaku said thank you to someone!"

Kanata is questioning this man's legal right to parent.

-

Kaigaku had been training with Kanata's sword the moment he was cleared to regain his strength, so he adapts very quickly to the new sword. He's actually doing better than before, and even Kuwajima's impressed by his progress.

"It seems you've managed to clear a slump he's been in for a long time. At this point, I think if he attempted it again... he could perform the First Breath of the Thunder."

Kanata observes Kaigaku going through styles two to six in a routine, always pausing at the last and then starting disoriented at the second. He doesn't attempt to perform the first, and Kuwajima does not force that from him.

And Zenitsu fidgets, each time he sees it.

"...Kaigaku-niisan is so cool, isn't he?" Zenitsu says. "He's strong, he's got the resolve... and he actually wants to be a Demon Slayer. I could never catch up to him."

The Thunder disciples were flawed. Kaigaku could do all the styles except the first, and Zenitsu could only do the first. Only together were they the perfect inheritors of Kuwajima Jigoro's role as the cultivator of Thunder Breathing.

(If Kaigaku surpassed the border, would Zenitsu become obsolete?)

Zenitsu watches on, concern painting his features— and Kaigaku sighs, looking back. Sheathing his Oodachi to his back, he tucks the Tanto to the opposing side, strapped horizontally across the gap of his back.

Then, Kaigaku unsheathed the Oodachi with one hand, and a Tanto with the other, holding it backwards as one would a dagger. He attempted this movement several times, before sheathing it once more. Winding back his feet, taking a breath—

Thunder Breathing, Third Form: Thunder Swarm

雷の呼吸・参ノ型　聚蚊成雷

The lightning razed the target in two clean slices as he launched himself over the target. The Oodachi slices the target clean in a monk's robe cut travelling through the neck, and the Tanto shreds it off near the eye.

Kaigaku lands on the ground, sheathing his swords once more with a huff of dissatisfaction.

"Missed," he murmurs.

Kuwajima laughs heartily. "Got a ways to go, boy! You're not ambidextrous like Zenitsu, so you're getting ahead of yourself trying to dual wield, idiot!"

Kaigaku clicks his tongue, clearly annoyed.

Zenitsu blushes at all that. "Grandpa, what are you saying?!"

"Fine." Kaigaku grumbles. He marches up to Zenitsu confrontationally, and Zenitsu squeaks, ducking behind Kanata. "Shortsword's an emergency knife. I don't need the other, then..."

And Kaigaku shoves the second shortsword at Zenitsu.

"Have it, dimwit," Kaigaku snarls with all the friendliness of a wet raccoon. "It's deadweight to me, so it fits you just fine, right?"

Zenitsu takes the sword, holds the important weight in his hands— and his eyes teared up. He cradled it preciously.

"Okay," he chokes out, "I will."

As much as the Thunder Brothers were an awful combination of the worst parts of each other, one could not deny that when they were congruent, they made up one perfect set of disciples.

Kuwajima Jigoro is incredibly proud of them.

He pats Kanata on the back. "Thank you, Kanata."

The swordsmith had a feeling that gratitude wasn't about the swords, but he wasn't about to try and dissect that.

-

Kaigaku is wearing the blue, triangular-patterned haori as he leaves on his next mission. He's disgruntled to be seen off, but he bows in what might have been curt politeness to Kanata. And then he inclines his head so Rui can pat him on the head placatingly— and then, he's off.

"Ah— have a safe trip Nii-cha—"

"Don't call me that!" Kaigaku barks.

Zenitsu squeaks. "H-Have a safe trip!" Very very softly, his petty rebellion, "Nii-chan."

Kaigaku considers that with such intense scrutiny Zenitsu would've folded in on himself if he wasn't clinging to Rui like his life depended on it.

Then Kaigaku relents, "I'm off."

Kuwajima Jigoro beams brightly as he goes off with his crow.

And then, it was Kanata's turn to go. He picks up Rui in his arm, the wicker hat hanging by his neck since the moon has come up. With lunch, peaches, and warmth, he sets off as well. Yashahane lands on his shoulder with orders for his next sword delivery.

"It's been a pleasure to have you with us, Kanata," Kuwajima says. "I already think of you as my own son. So please, visit this old man when you have the time, alright?"

Kanata nods.

"Of course, Rui as well. Rui can come even if Kanata doesn't."

Rui hums. "I liked the peaches."

Kuwajima beams, "Hearing that makes this old man the happiest grandpa on earth!"

Zenitsu smiles nervously. "Please stay safe as well, Kanata-san. And uh... if you see that dummy Kaigaku out there, can you make sure he's not reckless? You wouldn't believe how bad he was when he was ordered by the corps to come here to rest!"

Kanata could figure. If you're sent home instead of the Butterfly Mansion, it's basically the Slayer equivalent of your teacher calling your mom during school hours for punching people in class.

"And... and uh," Zenitsu speaks up again, "if I... when I... if the time comes for my sword to be made too... will you forge one for me, Kanata-san?"

Kanata is very endeared. He's not even that much older than Zenitsu, but he already wants Zenitsu to have the world.

"Of course," Kanata says.

Zenitsu's smile at that moment could supply the city with enough power for days.

Rui waves at them as they depart, to their next destination. Kuwajima and Zenitsu see them off until they're no longer in sight, and soon, the bustling few days of warmth and family feels like a distant memory.

"Did you like them, Rui?" Kanata asks. Just in case.

Rui probably spent more time bullying Kaigaku and ordering Zenitsu around than anything else, though.

Rui nods, resting his chin on his shoulder.

"They're nice."

Kanata would like Rui to experience every facet of a family. Every type of this warm, exceptional love. It didn't matter if he'd had it, lost it, and failed to understand it— Rui deserved to have good things after being lost in this confusing state of grief for so long. And Kanata wanted him to have it all.

"Hmm..." Kanata looks up to the moon. "Maybe, let's go visit the Swordsmith Village on our next break. I haven't gone home in a while."

Rui nods.

Rui doesn't mind where Kanata goes, as long as they're always together.