MeowthTL
patreon
Hunter x Hunter: The Sun Breathing Zoldyck - 17
🕑 Added 2025-09-30 18:44:35 +0000 UTCChapter 17: The Kamado Brothers Ready to Depart X Thousand-Year Legacy
"Two days... does it really have to be that long?"
Nezuko smiled, her eyes crinkling like Kie's—gentle and considerate. "Nii-san, I don't need new clothes. It's better to save the money to buy food for our younger siblings."
"We need to buy clothes, and we're not lacking food at home for now." Having just slaughtered a pig yesterday, they wouldn't need to worry about meat for half a month.
"But that's still too long..." Kie looked at Roy with concern. "What are you going to Mount Sagiri for?"
Just selling charcoal, the town at the mountain's base was enough to consume the Kamado family's two days' worth of accumulated stock.
"To learn something." Roy peeled open a dumpling and took a light bite. "Tanjiro's old enough to help with work now. The family doesn't really need two coal miners. I want to go down the mountain to see if I can learn a trade to supplement our household income."
He couldn't mention demons and certainly couldn't speak of the Demon Slayer Corps. There were still Takeo, Shigeru, and Hanako at home—he didn't want to frighten them.
But having lived under the same roof for so many years, all connected by the same bloodline, Roy's explanation could hardly satisfy Kie and Tanjuro, let alone Tanjiro, who had experienced the demon attack.
'Nii-san is lying.' Tanjiro kept stealing glances at Roy.
When Roy glared at him, he quickly lowered his head and pretended to drink soup.
"You don't need to supplement the household income. Nezuko and I can both weave baskets. We can exchange them for some pocket money in town—enough to buy several new outfits."
"Yes, Nii-san... I've already learned to weave rattan." As Nezuko spoke, she pulled out a handbasket from under the table. Inside were needlework supplies and such, woven very beautifully. The patch on her sleeve was obviously her own handiwork as well.
"Our Nezuko is so capable." Roy generously praised Nezuko, then looked up at Tanjuro, who had remained silent, and finally insisted to Kie, "No, I must go. Perhaps I can find a way to cure Father's illness down the mountain."
Kie opened her mouth but ultimately said nothing. Tanjuro's illness had always been the Kamado family's heartache. If they could truly find an effective treatment, it would be the family's blessing.
Nezuko and Tanjiro quietly glanced at their Father. In the silence, Tanjuro picked out a needle from the woven basket, held it in his palm, and stood up.
He said gently to Roy, "Eiichiro, come with me."
Heavy snow bent the pine forest. Tanjuro led the way down the veranda in his thick coat, followed by silent Roy.
Father and son walked around the wall corner to the back of the house. The two sets of footprints they'd just made in the snow were erased by the wind, disappearing again.
"Hold out your ear. Bear with it—don't mind the pain." Tanjuro revealed the thin needle in his hand, gesturing for Roy to present his earlobe, and pierced it with one thrust.
A brief sharp pain, like a mosquito bite, passed in an instant.
Then Roy watched Tanjuro remove the sun earrings inherited from Yoriichi Tsugikuni and put them on him, adjusting the position while saying, "Father is useless and can't give you much. These earrings passed down in our family, I entrust to you."
"May the Fire God bless my child with good health and peace."
"Whir... sway..." The earrings hung below Roy's earlobes, swaying in the wind.
Tanjuro smiled as he looked, just as his father had looked at him in his youth, saying with satisfaction, "Very good, very spirited."
Roy's throat felt somewhat dry, wanting to say something. For some reason, it could only become a dry promise: "I will find a way to treat Father's illness."
Tanjuro patted his shoulder and smiled. "Let's go."
He turned, leaving him a thin silhouette. The young man lingered behind, standing silently for a while. Suddenly feeling his neck grow cold as wind-blown snow from the trees fell into his collar, he took a deep breath and followed.
It was now 6:55 in the morning. The two stupid chickens kept in baskets hadn't yet learned to crow.
The Kamado brothers were already ready to depart—baskets on their backs, tea packed, dumplings prepared, and two sharp axes at their waists. Since Yukigakure couldn't be brought in through "reverse materialization," they could only use axes for protection.
When encountering difficult paths, they could also chop through thorns and carve out a route.
Mother Kie helped tuck in Tanjiro's clothing one moment, then tightened the scarf around Roy's neck the next, chattering with instructions:
"Go slowly on the road... If you encounter danger, never stick your neck out, and don't gawk around crowded places... At night, rather spend money on an inn than enter the mountains..."
Tanjiro, straightforward and frank by nature, blurted out, "Mother, Nii-san and I aren't leaving forever. You don't need to worry."
The boy was going down the mountain for the first time and excitedly patted his axe, confidently adding, "If we encounter danger, I'll protect Nii-san first!"
"You not dragging your big brother down would be good enough." Kie rolled her eyes at him, then looked deeply at Roy. "Take care of your brother..."
Roy made a soft sound of agreement, his gaze sweeping over Kie, Tanjuro, and Nezuko before settling on Grandmother, who came out holding Hanako.
"Aba... aba..." Hanako stretched her arms toward Roy.
The little girl had just woken up with an unwashed face and sleep in her eyes. Roy didn't mind, walking forward to kiss her tender little cheek and smiling at Grandmother. "Wait for my return."
Grandmother smiled and nodded, sitting on the veranda with Hanako to see Roy and Tanjiro off. Her eyes grew warm, and two streams of tears flowed down.
"My dear, why do I feel that once he leaves, we'll never see him again?"
Kie stood in the snow, wiping tears with the back of her hand. "I'll go check on Takeo and Shigeru. Those two little ones will be upset when they find out their big brother left without calling them."
With that, she didn't answer Grandmother's question, turned away, and disappeared into the courtyard.
The snow fell more heavily and urgently. In the vast courtyard connected to the entire mountain forest, only Tanjuro remained standing in the snow, staring blankly for a very long time.
Until he could no longer see those two small figures.
Tanjuro raised his hands and began the Hinokami Kagura. "Dance," "Clear Blue Sky," "Raging Sun," "Fake Rainbow..."
With graceful dancing movements, he was like a flame spirit stirring up clouds of flying snow.
Only this time, no earrings accompanied him. Those objects symbolizing the thousand-year connection between Yoriichi Tsugikuni and the Kamado family had now followed their new master, embarking on a new journey and, likewise, a new life.
A magnificent life that even Yoriichi Tsugikuni's spirit could never have imagined!
