I Spy

Chapter 55: My Own Steel

Date: December 19, 2024
Time: 3:04 PM
Location: Tanjiro's House
Weather: Chilly and Windy

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The weather was normal for the time, with average temperatures for winter in Japan, a low chance of rainfall, as well as low humidity. 

Tanjiro was stuck in his house, bored out of his mind. 

In order to compensate he was doing (a...a what?)

(What the f*ck, he's doing a ritual?!)

"Ooooooo," Tanjiro said in a deep, monotone voice with no shirt on and a pentagram in the middle of the living room. He was humming the Halo theme while t-posing as a glass of water sitting in the middle of the said pentagram.

(What the f*ck you doing, mate?!)

"I'm bored, I must summon the water gods..." Tanjiro replied.

(MY GUY, THAT ISN'T EVEN IN THE F*CKING SCRIPT! H-HOW?!)

"Cope." He simply replied.

(Already did that as soon as I gave you the power to break the 4th wall.)

"Then cope harder," Tanjiro said back with a cheeky smirk.

(F*ck you, you were supposed to be watching TV, how did you manage to completely disregard the script and the Matrix completely?)

"I am a being of unmeasurable power, I am the one who knows all, I am omnipotent, no one can match up to me," Tanjiro replied.

(Except for me)

"One day, I'll gain enough strength to overpower you, and once I do, I'll hijack this story," Tanjiro stated.

(As if.)

"Try me. I have become death, destroyer of worlds." Tanjiro said as he continued to hum the Halo theme.

(Is there any way you can stop and get on with the story?)

"Hmmm...no." Tanjiro immediately answered before returning back to his "ritual".

(Fine, I'll just do this.) 

*Ding Dong*

"F*ck you, author," Tanjiro stated while immediately putting on his shirt, picking up the glass of water and throwing it in the air. As the gravity took its effects on the glass, Tanjiro managed to flip the carpet over, so that the pentagram was facing down, and he dragged the table back onto the carpet that he moved earlier to make his pentagram.

He caught the glass and the water that spilled out of the glass as it fell. He then quickly put it aside on the table and rushed to the door to open it. 

When he opened the door, Tanjiro saw a man with a straw hat on his head, a black jacket on his body, as well as gray cargo pants. He was also wearing a Hytokko mask which was ceramic in color.

"Hello, my name is Haganezuka. I have forged a Ninchirin Sword for Tanjiro Tsugikuni. Might I know where he is?" Haganezuka asked, "Uhh...I think you're looking at him." Tanjiro replied while scratching the back of his head. "Great, I have your sword right here, this sword has the properties to absorb sunlight as it is made out of scarlet iron sand and scarlet ore," Haganezuka said as he bowed and took the sword which was hoisted on his back while in a white wrap, "So that's what they call it. Now I'm pretty sure 'Ninchirin ore' was a nickname that regular people use or the slayers, or it was a way to mask its true name." Tanjiro thought.

"Sadly, this sword is made out of artificial or 'impure' ore, meaning that it won't absorb sunlight as effectively as the pure alternative." Haganezuka said as his tone suddenly dropped, "If only we had the pure ore, maybe a lot of the slayers that were lost in battle wouldn't have died." He added as he slightly clenched his fist.

"Uh-" Tanjiro said before getting interrupted, "Anyway, this isn't about me or my longing of trying to get pure ore, even though I've always wanted to feel the touch of one again." Haganeuzka interrupted as he slightly teared up in a comedic way.

"Dam, this man is emotional about some rocks." Tanjiro thought with a straight mouth and looked down on Haganezuka. 

Haganezuka got up again and looked at Tanjiro dead in the eyes. "Hold on...you're a child of brightness, aren't you?" He asked which utterly confused Tanjiro, "What?" He asked, "I swear, the amount of prophecies I have fulfilled while going on missions is wild." He secondhandedly thought. 

"You know that your hair and eyes have a deep red color to them, right?" Haganezuka asked as he pointed to Tanjiro, "Yeah..." Tanjiro replied with a stoic expression. "When in a family that works with fire, having a child like you is considered lucky. A cause for celebration." The man with the clown mask said, "I mean...my Dad may have worked with fire..." Tanjiro said with an unsure tone, "I mean, if Sun Breathing counts, then yeah. Also, I knew it! I'm special!" Tanjiro thought while smiling in his mind.

"Is that so? Then there will be a good chance that this sword will turn red." Haganezuka stated while still pointing at the redhead, but this time he leaned in a bit more to add some emphasis. 

He then leaned back and began to unwrap the sword, revealing its pitch-black saya and handle.

"Nice." Tanjiro thought as he took the sword and unsheathed it. "Ninchirin swords are also known as Color Changing Swords, depending on the bearer," Hagnezuka added as Tanjiro nodded in response and looked back at his sword.

The sword slowly turned from the regular silver color that most swords are to a pitch-black color as Tanjiro continued to hold it. 

"Whoah, it's black." Tanjiro said, "Just the same as my Dad's..." Tanjiro thought with a lone tear of happiness before sucking it back up, "Wait so does that mean my sword gets special privileges?" Tanjiro thought with a genuine face of curiosity.

As Tanjiro was thinking about that very important issue, Haganezuka was fuming. "Black?!" He exclaimed, "Ayo man chill." Tanjiro thought as he looked back at the angry clown.

"I wanted to see it turn bright red!" Haganezuka screamed.

"Does he want me to logic-dump on him, saying that black is the most effective color when it comes to absorbing light? So this is actually a good thing? Also...if someone's blade is white, then they are f*cked...cause white ain't absorbing shit." Tanjiro thought before Haganezuka started to lash out at him.

"H-hey! What are you doing?! Not in my house!" Tanjiro exclaimed as he ran back into his house with Hagnezuka closely chasing behind him.

"Get away from me old man!" Tanjiro exclaimed as he ran circles around the living room, "I'm 37!" Hagnezuka replied back.

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The chase went on for a while but was soon brought the an end when a crow flew in through the door on onto the living room table.

"Perfect, a distraction." Tanjiro thought with a sigh of relief, "Caw caw! Mission for Tanjiro Tsugikuni!" The crow said, "Yes! I can escape!" Tanjiro thought with a confident smile. 

"You are to head to a small neighborhood northwest of here. You're Handler will be provided to you along the way as well as guide you to your destination!" The crow stated, "There has been recent activity going in the neighborhood where young girls have been disappearing night after night!" The bird added, "Well nowadays, he's considered a pedophile...but I think considering that he probably eats them, he's normal...I guess..." Tanjiro thought while rubbing his chin.

"Either way, it's a spawn of the devil, and must be purged." Tanjiro thought, "You are to head there as soon as the sun starts to set, you have time to prepare until then! Consider this your first assignment as a Demon Hunter!" The crow said before flying away.

"Wait, no!" Tanjiro thought as he tried to reach out for it.

After the crow left, Tanjiro slowly turned his face back to a fuming Haganezuka. "Care for some t-" Tanjiro tried to ask before getting interrupted. "I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU YET!" Haganezuka said as he started to chase Tanjiro around, this time he pulled out two large knives.

"BRUH! NOT AGAIN!" Tanjiro thought with a frustrated sigh before running in circles around the living room while being chased by Haganezuka. 

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The chase lasted for a while...

And by while, I mean all the way to sundown.

"I SWEAR TO GOD, I'M ABOUT TO DROPKICK THIS MAN, HE'S 37 AND HAS THIS MUCH..." Tanjiro thought with a frustrated look before it turned into a straight, "Oh wait, never mind...my Dad had like infinite stamina when he was 37." Tanjiro thought before turning around to see Haganezuka still chasing him.

They had made a mess in the living room and the sun was still setting. "I gotta put a stop to this..." Tanjiro thought before he stopped in his tracks and dangled his arms out.

Haganezuka ran into his arm and fell to the ground as he hit head-first, effectively making him unconscious.

"Dam, how fast was he running to not notice that?" Tanjiro thought with a sarcastic eyebrow raise. "Now...what do I do...can't leave him here since he might wake up..." Tanjiro thought as he knelt on the body.

"Maybe...nah...can't kill him now...he's my swordsmith..." Tanjiro thought as he look at his kitchen, "Dammit, I really wanted to use my new gutting knife set..." He thought with a disappointed sight. "I know what to do..." Tanjiro thought as he picked up the body and walked outside the house.

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"There," Tanjiro stated as he plopped Haganezuka's body on the side of a wall and dusted his hands off, "How we get rid of bodies in the EIA." Tanjiro thought to himself while laughing a bit.

"Naa...we just burn them and put their ashes in some acid, no trace, no knowledge." Tanjiro thought before walking away to put on his outfit.

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"Hoodie...check...pants...check...sword...check...earpiece...check...oh yeah...they also gave me a mask before I left school today..." Tanjiro thought as he checked his outfit one last time before putting on the fox mask with a large, red sun design on the top right. He also took his father's sword with him instead of his designated Ninchirin Sword. "I'll do something with that other sword, maybe turn it into a secondary, kind of like the Daisho and Wakizashi." Tanjiro thought as he grabbed his earpiece, "I'll just grind my sword down to the size of a Wakizashi and keep my father's sword the same length." He thought before looking at his earpiece.

"Turn the earpiece on...and wait for a response..." Tanjiro thought as he took the earpiece and put it in his ear.

He tapped it a few times before speaking, "Hello?" Tanjiro stated.

After a few seconds, a response was heard. "Hello?" A familiar female voice said, "Aoi?" Tanjiro asked, "Tanjiro?" Aoi replied. "Hey! I didn't know you were going to be with me today!" Tanjiro stated as he started to laugh. Aoi chuckled a bit too, "Me neither, I couldn't even believe the fact that you managed to join us, I thought my sisters were tricking me, but here I am, talking to the one and only."  Aoi stated.

"Got that right!" Tanjiro said with a smile before jumping on his house's roof, "So? First mission?" Aoi asked, "Yep." Tanjiro replied. "Good, I just received a message from a crow saying that I will have to guide someone to their destination, didn't know it was going to be you," Aoi added. 

"Aoi?" A voice said behind Aoi in her room as Kanao was seen peeking through her door, "What?" Aoi lisped to her sister, "Nee-san said that food is ready, you can come down after you finish your call." Kanao said.

"Wait, is that Kanao?" Tanjiro asked from the other side, "Yeah, she's saying that food is ready for me." Aoi replied, "Say 'hi' to her for me." Tanjiro asked.

"Tanjiro says 'hi'." Aoi immediately replied to Kanao who was about to leave the room, only for her to turn back after hearing his name. "He's there?!" She exclaimed as she immediately ran up to her.

"H-hey!" Aoi exclaimed as the sound of a struggle was heard on Tanjiro's side. "Ope. Aoi's dead." Tanjiro thought with a comedic face.

"Hello? Tanjiro?" Kanao said, "Kanao!" Aoi said in the background, "Just a second!" Kanao replied back.

"Kanao! Hey!" Tanjiro stated with a bright smile, "Holy crap! I didn't know you'd actually be there!" Kanao exclaimed, "Haha, I didn't know I would be with you guys either." Tanjiro replied. "But...if you're here...then why are you failing at physical education?" Kanao asked.

"Uhhh...I may have been holding back..." Tanjiro stated as his face dropped in thinking.

"What? Why?..." Kanao asked, "I honestly don't know..." Tanjiro replied with probably the most honest voice he ever did. "Kanao! Give it back!" Aoi said in the background as she started to struggle with her sister again, "Hol-hold on! O-ok! I'll give it back! B-bye, Tanjiro! Stay safe, please!" Kanao said with a little emphasis on "please".

"Will do, Kanao! Just for you!" Tanjiro replied as another sound of a struggle soon overloaded his ears. 

"Ok...anyway...just head northwest for about 100 kilometers (62 mi), and you'll be there...I believe..." Aoi stated, "The neighborhood is called Nōsusutorīmu in case you're wondering." Aoi added, "Also, there should be one road leading to the neighborhood or town, so it should be easy to find it." Aoi also stated.


"Alright, see you there!" Tanjiro happily stated as he moved along the rooftops of the houses.

The sounds of Tanjiro jumping from roof to roof could be heard from the earpiece as his footsteps echoed a bit while traveling along the roof tiles that made a small clang whenever he stepped on it. 

Aoi was a bit surprised at this since she could have never suspected that Tanjiro was able to do such an act, "Well, dam..." She thought before disconnecting the call and heading downstairs. "He can speak fluent English first, then he can perform parkour at the level of an expert. Who is this man...?" Aoi thought to herself as she headed downstairs for some F O O D.

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The time was about 10 PM and Tanjiro just reached the suburban neighborhood that was identical to the one he and his friends were in. 

"I could've just ran here instead of taking the Taxi..." Tanjiro thought to himself with a huff. "The traffic along the way was hell...but not as bad as f*cking New York City or LA traffic..." Tanjiro thought while recalling a memory of him sitting in a cab for about 3 hours because of traffic. "Oh well...can't undo what's already done." He said to himself with a shrug before heading down the road. 

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After a few minutes of walking, he started to get bored, "Where is this daemon? I must purge it in holy fire." He comedically thought to himself with a chuckle. 

As he turned the corner, he saw someone walking around with a very depressed, alone, and emotionless face. He looked like he hadn't been eating well for a few days due to his skinny stature and not a lot of sleep because of the several eye bags under his eyes.

"Man, what happened to him?" Tanjiro wondered as he walked up to the man and tapped on the shoulder. "Hm?" The man said with a sad tone, "Are you okay man? I just want to ask because it looks like you aren't taking care of yourself." Tanjiro asked.

The man only groaned at his question and started to walk away again, "Why do you care?" He said. Tanjiro started to follow him and asked another question, "I just want to know if something happened, I mean...I could give you the number of a therapist if you need one." He said, "I-I don't need one...I'm fine..." The man replied with a voice that seemed like he was about to break out in a long cry.

"Yeah...I don't think so..." Tanjiro said with a sarcastic look on his face, "Just tell me what's going on man and everything will be fine." He added with a reassuring tone, "I-I couldn't help her...I-I c-couldn't save her...she was my everything..." The man answered, "I'm guessing that this person was your girlfriend or something? Am I correct?" Tanjiro asked, "My fiancèe..." The man weakly responded.