18 Asakusa, Tokyo

Holding his sword, Hiroto saw that the color started changing. A deep red started flowing up the blade all the way to the point. Little streaks of fire were seen embedded into the blade as it travels up the length.

Looking at the scene, everyone was silent at the sight in front of them. Atsuhiko looked at the blade and was frozen in place.

"Red… I've finally seen a red blade…" Haganezuka muttered softly.

"What's so special about a red blade?" Hiroto asked, holding his sword.

"Each color is said to impart certain properties to the blade. Like Tanjiro's the black Nichirin blades are not well understood, causing them to be a bad omen that the Demon Slayer will not go far. But this is due to them dying before more could be learned about the blade." Atsuhiko explained.

"From what has been told about a red Nichirin blade, it is said that it can prevent Demons from regenerating damage done by the blade. By clashing a Nichirin Blade with other Nichirin Blades will also turn them red, giving them the same qualities." Haganezuka said, with tears coming from the side of his mask.

"It is every swordsmith dream to see a natural red Nichirin Blade, I can now die peacefully." He said,

As the group was talking, 2 crows started to fly into the home and stood on the ground, before talking.

"Kamado Tanjiro! Here are your orders. Make your way to a town to the northwest!" The crow said, Hiroto just thought to himself, 'crows can talk?'

"Kamado Hiroto!" The next crow said. "You are to head to Asakusa, Tokyo! Rumors of a demon lurking there! Gawk!" The crow said before both started flying out the window.

Looking at each other, Hiroto and Tanjiro nodded to each other. Hiroto, having decided long before said, "Tanjiro, we'll be separated for a bit, but I have a feeling we'll meet up not long after."

Standing up and walking over to him, Hiroto put a hand onto his head and said, "I'll be leaving Nezuko's safety with you ok? You'll take her with you, and once we meet up again I'll take over."

Tanjiro, looking up at his brother's eyes, could tell that this would be a big responsibility for him. He asked, "But shouldn't she be with you, brother?"

Shaking his head, Hiroto said, "I'll most likely be facing more dangerous Demons than you, and with her being with you I won't have to worry about anything. You're strong enough to protect her now, Tanjiro."

Tanjiro nodded his head in resoluteness. "Don't worry, I will."

[Late Afternoon]

Both Hiroto and Tanjiro got changed into their Demon Slayer uniform. It is said to be highly durable and light-weight and cannot be easily damaged by minor Demons. Tanjiro wore his usual green and black checkered haori, while Hiroto put on his black and white patterned haori.

Urokodaki nods towards the two boys seeing them in uniform. Next to him was a box with straps on it, meant to be carried on their back.

Nezuko could be seen peeking through the door crack under her futon, "Hmm" She muffled to herself.

"Take this." Urokodaki placed the box with an opening on the front. "It's a box for you to carry your sister in during the day. Built out of an extremely light wood called "Cloud Mist Pine." I coated it with rock lacquer to reinforce its exterior, and to make it even more durable."

"Thank you very much." The two boys said to him.

Tanjiro lifted the box and said in surprise, "It's so light Urokodaki-san."

We then walked into the bedroom where Nezuko was peeking at us from under her futon.

Hiroto went forward and held her hand before saying, "You'll be going with Tanjiro. I'll be going on a separate mission, so I won't see you for a few days."

Nezuko put the hand on her hand before squinting in bliss. Hiroto smiled and obliged her, before saying. "Tanjiro will carry you during the day and protect you. Once we meet up again I'll tell you everything I did."

Turning to Tanjiro, Hiroto nodded towards him. Tanjiro placed the box in front of Nezuko, opening it and saying, "Nezuko, get inside this, will you?" Nezuko looked between Hiroto and Tanjiro. Hiroto nodded towards her and she started to shrink and crawl inside of the box. Tanjiro closed it and sealed her shut.

Hiroto thought to himself, 'Wouldn't you get bored sitting in a box all day?'

Standing outside of the house, the two were ready to set off as Urokodaki came forward. "Hold on for a second." He said, before fixing both of our top buttons.

We both turned to walk away, giving one last look before Urokodaki was out of sight.

Hiroto turned to Tanjiro and asked him, "Why does it feel like I've forgotten to do something?"

Tanjiro looked questioningly towards his brother, not knowing what to say.

As the two left, another person could be seen standing next to Urokodaki. "They didn't even say goodbye to me," Botan said, looking towards their back.

"You were constantly beating up Hiroto, you think he would want to see you?" Urokodaki said.

"Tsk, they better come back with a souvenir…" Botan said before walking off.

'Tsundere…' Urokodaki thought to himself.

[An hour later]

As the two kept walking on, they came to a fork in the road. Looking at the sign, they knew this was where they had to part. Looking at each other, the two boys hugged each other.

"Be safe, and take care of our sister," Hiroto said hugging Tanjiro.

Tanjiro, tearing up a bit, said, "I will don't worry. Nothing will happen to her with me around."

Hiroto separated from him and ruffled his hair, before turning to walk away. Tanjiro looked at his older brothers back for a few seconds, before turning northwest and continued walking.

[A day later]

Hiroto was walking through a village as he headed towards Asakusa. 'I wonder what big cities would look like.' Hiroto thought to himself, feeling excited at getting the chance to explore. A crow was following above him as he continued his journey.

By the second night, he finally arrived in the city. The lights that were shining in the streets were almost blinding to Hiroto, who stared at them not knowing what they were.

"Whoa, are cities this advanced now?" He said looking towards a tram rolling along the streets and people wearing western clothing. Around him were hundreds of people minding their own business, various types of bars, restaurants and shops littered the streets as Hiroto went down the street.

Hiroto was now wearing a long cloak to conceal his katana. Before arriving inside the city, people that he met along the road told him that katana's that weren't certified by the government was illegal to carry around.

*grumble* Hiroto's stomach sounds out. 'I should get some food before looking around for some clues.' Hiroto thought to himself.

Walking around, Hiroto was too overwhelmed to step into one of the shops and decided to walk further away, hoping to get somewhere less crowded. Leaving the city center, Hiroto arrived in the suburbs and saw an Udon stand, being attended by a bald man who was smoking.

Walking over to it, Hiroto said to him. "Excuse me, a bowl of udon with grated yam on top please." Hiroto, unsurprisingly, has the same taste as Tanjiro, well the same as the rest of his family.

"Sure thing." The man said.

The bald man served Hiroto a bowl. "Thank you for the food," Hiroto said before digging in.

Hiroto started planning on how he would find clues about the Demon rumors that he was told. "Excuse me," Hiroto said looking back.

"Yes?" The bald man asked.

"Did you happen to hear any weird rumors around lately?" Hiroto asked him.

Pondering to himself, the man said, "Hmmm, can't say that I have. People tend to keep to themselves these days…"

"Is that so…" Hiroto said looking crestfallen.

"Well, there was this one rumor I heard. Something about a businessman being killed in an alleyway on his way back home after a night of drinking. They said that he was missing some body parts, almost like they were bitten off by some wild animals. Probably fake, since what animal exists like that in this city" The bald man said.

Narrowing his eyes, Hiroto asked the man, "Do you happen to know where this happened?"

"Ummm, I guess so. I heard it happened in an alleyway on Tokugawa street, next to the Nishinorin bar. Say, why are you so interested in this kid?" The man asked skeptically.

"Hahaha," Hiroto laughed scratching his head nervously. "It's a hobby. I like chasing ghost tails and supernatural things."

"A kid like you should be playing with friends his age, instead of chasing around ghost stories. Say, shouldn't you be home with your parents by now? They would probably be worried about you being out this late at night." The man said, reprimanding him.

Hiroto flinched at the man's words which stung his chest like an arrow. Looking down sadly, Hiroto paid for the meal before walking off. "Thank you for the food."

"Did I say something wrong?" The bald man said, scratching his bald head while looking at Hiroto's back.