********

" Ice Hashira sama! I've brought concerning news! "

A Kakushi came running towards Douma. An hour had passed after all the commotion settled down in the place and he was having a chat with the community elders before leaving. The Kakushis had just appeared with medical help and others.

"The injured girl of the Kocho family turned into a demon and escaped!"

This sudden development surprised him . " Wait- are you sure? I thought it was her sister who wounded her- not the demon moon. Not every demon can turn humans into demons ."

" Well... I don't know the details sir...but there were witnesses. She has killed a man and ran away in the mountains. Even some of my coworkers saw her!

Douma had already stood up " Well, let's hurry then, we may still get some lead."

He ran fast in said direction and the Kakushi followed. The people who had clamed down, started to panic again.

" She went that way!"

" No the girl went in the mountains!"

" I swear she went further inside the village!"

Oh please- Douma scoffed.

Could there be another demon moon? No... i patrolled the area well . Then again, another night maybe they masked themselves so well that I couldn't find them. A very powerful demon? Or perhaps...

"Sachi! Sachi saw her first! "A young boy pointed at a girl.

The elderly woman asked the girl, whom she told to take care of Shinobu, " What happened Sachi?! You were treating her wound right? "

" Oba san. I came with more bandages Oba san, Shinobu was dying...but Masoku..." the girl was shaking violently.

" What happened Sachi? "

" Masoku tried to choke her!" She cried out. " And then-

Sachi's face was pale, the recalling made her insides hurl.

"Then what Sachi?" A man put his hand on the shivering girl's shoulder.

" She- she gouged his eyeballs out! "

In the end Douma couldn't find any lead. No one was sure of which way she went, and she didn't leave any trail behind. He searched a little in the tree lines of the forest - no footprints, no bush or grass upturned , not a trace that someone passed by.

There's no point in going deeper in the woods. He could tell he wouldn't find anything now. He looked up at the sky. Faint light was starting to color the horizon.

 It'll be dawn soon.

*******

 " I see... so the fiance- Masoku, had eyes on the property; and just couldn't wait to own it so he wanted to get rid of the youngest daughter too. People would've thought she died because of the injury."

" He needn't really do that. Because according to the girl who was treating her- there was very low chance of her making out of it, if she didn't turn into a demon. The man just brought Karma upon himself," the Kakushi remarked.

A day later, Douma was sitting lazily in front of Keizo sensei's dojo. The dojo served as a training ground for the lower ranking demon slayers and the Pillars would demonstrate their techniques at times. Douma had returned from the village yesterday after patrolling and a Kuskushi was reporting the aftermaths of the event.

" Any anomaly last night? " Douma asked.

" No. As ordered we a few Kakushi, with some Hinoe rank slayers had stayed there and everything was normal. But the villagers were insisting that you had stayed there yourself. In fact they requested another night's stay of the slayers."

"Hmm... I doubt that's needed. I don't think she will return to the same place...

 Yes it's rare for demons to appear in the same place right after Hashira tackles there. Douma had been thinking-

A wild explanation had came across in his mind after that event. Did the girl willingly escape? What are the chances that it wasn't a demon moon... but him? The only one capable of turning humans into demons by persuading them with his power.

 But there was no certainty... and even if the king of the demons had really appeared, he wouldn't return to the place any time soon either. Kagaya Ubuyashiki- was too cunning to do anything that may reveal his whereabouts.

" Poor girl though, I couldn't send her to the Wisteria manor either because of the road and distance." Douma clicked his tongue expressing sadness. 

" Indeed "- the kakushi nodded.

" That reminds me, I wonder what happened to the little girl? " Douma asked. " The little girl, who was the only one alive from the house. She was their adoptive sister right? I wonder how she's doing. Such an unfortunate soul to loose their family in such a ghastly way. "

Although he said it as if he was extremely hurt by her misfortune, in reality he wasn't being sympathetic .

Something about that tiny girl piqued his interest, she was... odd.

He normally approached people by mirroring what their situation, showing what they logically needed guessing their emotions. It was funny - Douma thought, how he was incapable of feeling anything yet he knew how to express most of them. This often had two outcomes. Either they were infatuated, thinking he was really considerate or- they'd know he was a total jerk.

For short- Douma never had trouble approaching people or engaging in a conversation with them. Whether by  touching their heart or getting on their nerves. 

But that little girl he saw the other night- she was different. He asked her a lot of questions but she didn't answer a single one. When he grabbed her hand to bring her out of the house she didn't resist. All the time when he talked with other people and handed her to them she was silent. And she kept staring.

Her eyes... are what made him curious.

The staring was blank, as if the girl wasn't seeing anything. There was no life in them.

She had to be shocked- and she was a bit stiff, he noticed when he held her small hand. But when he tried to tug her, she just let him- as if she was a doll with no free will.

 " The child? I guess I saw her... but I don't know much about what happened to her ." the Kakushi scratched his head. " No one really interacted with her much really. I saw her sitting silently in a corner."

" Hmm... well, master has finalized that we don't need to stay on guard there anymore but I'll go pay a visit. " Douma stood up and fixed his robe. " I don't have anything better to do anyway, and the Oba san were really nice to me. I ought to go once even as a formality ."

*****

" Did you hear? Shinobu ne chan died! "

" No, she became a demon and ran away."

The Hachiko family kids informed Kanao first. She just stared blankly at them, trying to understand what she was told.

"Quit bothering her you two", the mother scolded her twin children. " The poor thing's been through so much."

" Mom, she's sitting here all day! She didn't even had breakfast."

" Kanao... are you hungry dear? " The woman asked. But Kanao said nothing.

" Leave the brat alone Hina," her husband shouted from behind. " If she's hungry she'll come on her own. And besides- we don't know if she's infected!"

" What a cruel thing to say"- the woman remarked, but she did drag her children away .

In fact, Kanao was hungry- at least her body wanted food. She didn't have any food last night either. Her little stomach was grumbling. But her mind didn't react.

 It was a survival instinct she developed, after being physically tortured at a very young age, her mind cut off connections with her body.

" There you are Kanao... you came back here again."

It was granny, a neighbor of theirs who is one of the eldest in the community. She had let Kanao sleep in her house last night. When she didn't see her she knew she'd probably be in the same place. Where she departed from Shinobu- at the doorstep of the Kocho house.

Kanao noticed that she wasn't alone. The man... the man who slayed Kanae was with her.

" Hello again little girl. So your name is Kanao ? Quite a cute name." Douma said in a gleeful tone.

" I told you slayer san. She has become just like the time she had arrived in the house. She had started to communicate a little bit but I'm afraid the incident may have scarred her for life now. " Tears started flowing down her chin.

" Hmm... I guess it can't be helped." Douma crouched down close to Kanao. " Ne, Kanao chan. Would you like to come with me? "

What? Kanao looked carefully at his eyes.

" Well this house will be sold. You can't stay here anymore. I'm really sorry for your loss- but you'll have a new family there. Things will get better, I promise- kay? "

Does it Matter? Kanao couldn't care less about anything that was happening around her anymore. People could drag her away- she wouldn't care.

But Shinobu said wait.

 The inside of Kanao's head was once again beginning to rift apart. Somehow she knew she lost them for good, but should she go with this man?

" Kanao dear... I would've kept you but I'm a spineless old hag. I can't do a single thing against my family, I don't even know how much time I have left." The woman cried in a low voice.

"Don't cry Oba san. "  Douma assured her. I understand no one wants to take care of this child- I'm sure our rehabilitation center is capable of being a home to her.I wanted an affirmation of her but it seems-

The coin was still in her hand. Kanae nee chan's words came in her mind.

" Flip the coin when you want to decide."

And Shinobu's urge- " No matter what you do, make you decisions for yourself. It's alright with that coin too, but don't let people tell you around and force you to do stuffs."

It doesn't make much difference... but still...

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I'm sorry if the chapter is a bit slow paced and sloppy.But thanks for reading! Special thanks to 6969onetwothree & valtivque  for keeping me motivated with their comments ♥♥ Hope you have a great day/night!