16. Inoske Hashibira

The room changed again, and again, and again, until Hana found herself in a hallway. She looked around carefully, then began to walk forward, turning a corner with caution.

A familiar scent reached her, and she turned sharply to see Tanjiro carrying someone on his back.

"Hana! I'm so glad you're okay!" Tanjiro beamed.

Hana exhaled in relief. "Tanjiro..."

"Who...are you?" the boy on Tanjiro's back asked weakly.

"This is my older sister, Hana," Tanjiro said proudly.

"Hello, nice to meet you. You must be the older brother, right?" Hana said warmly. The little girl nodded and smiled.

"Tanjiro, I'm fine. But I smell blood outside. We need to get out of here quick," Hana said firmly, striding ahead.

Outside, they were met with another chaotic scene.

"Take this! Move it! Draw your sword and fight me, you spineless punk!" the boar-masked man shouted, kicking Zenitsu, who lay bloodied on the ground.

"Hana, Tanjiro... I protected it. Because you said... this was more important than our lives," Zenitsu said, clutching Nezuko's box tightly.

Hana's eyes softened at his words. But as the boar-masked man stomped on him again, anger boiled inside her. How dare he...

"Enough! If you won't move, I'll cut you along with that box!" he shouted, raising his sword.

Hana stared at the man, her eyes widening at the scene. She clenched her fists so tightly her knuckles turned white, sudden flashes of her dead family haunting her, before lunging at the man.

"That's enough! Knock it off!" Hana yelled, dashing forward. Her punch connecting with a sickening crack, sending the man flying.

"She broke his bones!" Zenitsu shrieked.

Hana's gaze darkened as she glared at the sprawled figure. "Aren't you a Demon Slayer? Do you even understand why Zenitsu refuses to fight back? We're forbidden from turning our blades on each other for no reason! And yet here you are, beating him senseless. Are you enjoying it? You're the lowest of the low!"

Slowly she knelt beside Zenitsu and gently wiped the blood from his face. "Are you okay?" she asked softly.

"I'm fine...my head hurts a little," he sniffled.

Hana smiled warmly, patting his head. "Thank you for protecting this."

Zenitsu's squeal of delight made her chuckle. "Anything for you, Hana-chan!"

The boar-masked man stirred. "In that case...let's fight barehanded!" he said as he lunged at Tanjiro.

Hana's glare cut through the air.

"No! You don't understand! We must not fight each other!" Tanjiro called, dodging the man's wild punches and grabbing his shoulders in panic.

"It's time you calm down and leave us alone!" Hana yelled, stepping forward. Her kick him in the face, sending him staggering back. His mask fell, revealing a surprisingly feminine face emerald eyes and hair that faded from black to dark blue.

"Huh? A girl? What?" Zenitsu exclaimed.

"What the hell? You got a problem with my face?" the boy snapped.

"I-I'm not!" Zenitsu yelped, ducking behind Hana.

"It's... actually kind of attractive," Tanjiro said honestly.

"Say that to my fist! Come at me, both of you!" the boy shouted.

"I'm not going to attack," Tanjiro declared firmly.

"I only stopped you from hurting each other," Hana added, stepping between them like a shield.

"Then try kicking me again!" he dared.

"Yeah? Is that so?" Hana replied coolly, taking a step forward.

Tanjiro tried to calm both of them, but the boy puffed his chest proudly.

"Hey! Mr. Forehead and Miss Pretty, my name's Inosuke Hashibira! Don't you dare forget it!"

"How do you spell that?" Tanjiro asked, bewildered.

"Spell? Spell?...Inosuke gasped "I don't know how to read or write! My name's on my loincloth!"

Suddenly out of no where, Inoske started shivering violently and fainted.

"Ahhh! Is he dead?!" Zenitsu shrieked hiding behind the three siblings.

"He's not dead. Probably just a concussion," Tanjiro said, turning to Hana. "Did you... kick him too hard?"

Hana shrugged, folding her arms looking away. "He deserved it."