The Shadow of the Insect

~Chapter One~

Neltha is one of the Hashira under Oyakta-samas wing. He is the most feared of the Demon Slayer Corps and is a grim fellow. Although Gyomei Himejima is taller and older than the Shadow Hashira, he has great respect for the somewhat too small Hashira. The only ones who are not afraid of him are the Hashira except one...the Insect Hashira, Shinobu Kochou. She is a very strong woman but being alone with him scares her. Neither of these two Slayers exchanged words with each other.

Shinobu can still remember the time when Neltha and her older sister Kanae were on missions to save people in demon areas.
One of the few reasons why she is afraid of him is his aura that surrounds him. It feels like death itself is in front of you and takes your soul out of your body. She always thought she had the greatest hatred for the demons but he...he's in a different level, working with such hatred and brutality that her blood freezes in her veins.
She had seen him fight once. She couldn't believe it with her own eyes...but it looks like he is a powerful demon himself.

Flashback four years in the past.

The first time they met was when her older sister became the Flower Hashira. At this moment she was only 14 years old and was also a disrespectful little girl, Kanae was 17 years old. "Big sister! I'm very proud you, you finally did it!" roared the little Shinobu and hugged her sister. Kanae showed her beautiful smile and patted her head. "Ara Ara, I finally did it Shinobu. Please don't be so loud in front of Ojakata and the other Hashira." Ojakata is the head of Demon Slayer Corps and has the absolute respect of the Hashira. "I welcome you, Flower Hashira. You have done a great job of maintaining the rank of a Hashira." Kanae bent down and thanked him and Shinobu did the same. Ojakata spoke again: "I hope you give them a warm welcome too" and looked at the others. Each of them knelt even lower and answered with a "Yes!"

The meeting with the other Hashira is over and Kanae spoke to Mitsuri Kanroji the Love Hashira. Shinobu hid somewhere in the back where no one could see her because she felt out of place. Each of them strong and have their own techniques, she only knows that uncle Himejima is the strongest of them.

She thought so...She went to the Rock Hashira, so as not to appear so alone. "Uncle Himejima, are you actually the strongest of the Hashira?" Himejima smiled and patted her head. "No, I'm not the strongest. The strongest is not here. He only appears when it is important or when he just feels like it." "But my sister became a Hashira, that's something important!" The Rock Hashira just laughed. "I think he will be here any time soon." At that moment, the doors opened and three Kakushi came running. "Bad news! Or is that good news? No matter, Shadow Hashira is soon here!" Everyone has stopped talking. They looked around and waited. Iguro Obanai the Serpent Hashira whispered to the others: "He is here." With a loud bang came the notorious shadow Hashira. Shinobu winced and fell when he stood in front of her. She knew straight away what kind of caliber this man is. He has jet black hair that has been pulled back, red-brown eyes and a scar on his left eye. His skin had a slight dark nuance, his clothes were like those of the other Hashira but his Haori also had a unique pattern. It's gray and black with dead branches that looked like skeletons. How macabre, the guy has absolutely no taste for things. Mitsuri Kanroji raved in her head how cool he is. Rengoku Kyojuro the Flame Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa the Wind Hashira and Uzui Tengen the Sound Hashira went into attack position. "You bastard, what's wrong with you? Can't you come through the door like a normal one?" said the scarred man. Kyojuro with his loud voice said: "I agree with Shinazugawa!" Neltha looked at them as if he were going to kill them right on the spot and uttered only one sentence. "I'm not interested in small fishes like you." Sanemi wanted to attack him but was held by Rengoku and Uzui. "What did you say, you fucking bastard, I'm gonna kill you!" Neltha just ignored him and looked at Shinobu on the floor. Their eyes met...

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Authors Note:
I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. I'm just super tired ... exams are just around the corner. Let me know if you enjoyed it. Remember, it's not my mother tongue.
Bye bye~ till next chapter.