After returning, Hiru instructed the Wisteria House not to approach that mountainous area and to wait until Yoriichi came back to handle it. After that, he asked for the largest crate available, packed everything up neatly, and returned to the river valley, planning to take Tanjiro to see Tamayo for proper treatment.
However, when he arrived at the river valley that night and saw Tanjiro sparring with Yuichiro and Muichiro, Hiru fell into complete bewilderment.
[I was gone for just one night and you already exposed everything?]
[I worked so hard to hide you for nearly three months, and you just blew it all up?]
Kitaro, who had been watching Tanjiro the whole time, was the first to notice Hiru standing there in a daze. Flapping his wings, he landed on Hiru's shoulder.
"They were already here when I came back last night, caw. But I chased off the other Kasugai Crows, so you only need to explain things to your two boys."
Hiru's voice rose slightly.
"They already fought yesterday?"
"To be precise, they'd already finished fighting and started talking when I arrived, caw…" Kitaro tilted his head. "So what are you going to do now? One of them won't be easy to fool, caw?"
"…What else can I do?" Hiru watched everyone stop sparring and turn toward him, the corner of his mouth twitching. "Just deal with it."
Tanjiro waved happily.
"Hiru! You're back!"
"Big Brother Hiru!" Muichiro ran straight over and threw himself at Hiru. "Long time no see! I missed you so much! You didn't finish that story last time—what happened to Chijin and Niko in the end?"
Hiru reached out and caught Muichiro, lifting him up with a helpless expression.
"Yeah, long time no see. As for Chijin and Niko… I'll continue the story after I see them again next time, alright?"
"Eh—how can you do that—"
"Since you're back, shouldn't you give us an explanation?" Yuichiro sheathed his swords and looked up at Hiru. "Aren't you the one who always says we shouldn't pity demons? What's going on with Tanjiro?"
"Well, there are a lot of reasons…" Hiru strolled over leisurely. "I'm too lazy to explain them one by one, so I won't."
"You two didn't tell anyone about this, right?"
Yuichiro sighed, though he didn't seem surprised by Hiru's response.
"If Kitaro hadn't come back, this would already have spread through the Demon Slayer Corps by way of our Kasugai Crows. By the way, does Yoriichi know about this? Did he agree to it too?"
"Yeah, he knows. He even helped." Hiru casually ruffled his own kid's hair, then looked toward Tanjiro. "Get ready. I'm taking you to see a doctor."
Tanjiro straightened his posture.
"Yes! I'm ready! I can leave anytime!"
"The reason I brought you back was to let your family motivate you—to push your will to survive to its absolute limit." Hiru stopped in front of Tanjiro, his expression serious. "Because of certain circumstances, my friend has always researched how to destroy demons rather than save them, so be prepared to be tormented by medicine until you wish you were dead."
"Of course, I won't let you die easily."
Tanjiro froze slightly.
"…Is that because of you?"
"Yeah. It was indeed at my request."
This time, Tanjiro's expression grew even stranger. He glanced at Yuichiro and Muichiro, then at his family approaching from nearby, before cautiously speaking up.
"Um… there's actually something I wanted to ask…"
"Hmm?"
"Well… that… doesn't anyone know?" Tanjiro struggled for a long time and still couldn't find the right wording. "I mean, about you and Mr. Yoriichi… does nobody know?"
"Ah… yeah, that's hard to explain." Hiru immediately understood what Tanjiro meant. "I've said it plenty of times, but no one ever believes me."
"How can that be…? What you said is the truth, right?"
"Of course. But sometimes people just don't want to believe the truth."
"Then it must be really hard for you, Mr. Hiru… telling the truth and no one believes you…"
"Ah, yeah. Extremely hard." Hiru wiped at the corner of his eye. "These past few years, I've been suffering from being forced to lie…"
"Finally, someone understands me…"
"But you smell like—"
—like you're enjoying it.
"That's not important."
Yuichiro watched the two of them talking in riddles, arms crossed, messy hair sticking out in all directions.
[Just what did this kid named Tanjiro do? For Hiru to trust him this much… This is still really suspicious.]
"Mr. Hiru…" Nezuko walked over slowly. "May we visit my brother during his treatment?"
"Hm—better not." Hiru set Muichiro down. "Besides my physician friend, there's also another resident there who's a bit difficult to get along with. And Tanjiro's condition needs to be evaluated once we get there—it's not even certain whether he'll be able to stay."
"Then if he can't stay, where will my brother be sent?" Nezuko looked visibly anxious. "Will we be able to write letters?"
"Sure." Hiru stroked his chin. "Just write to my brother. Other than me, he's the only one who can help keep an eye on things."
"Who knows, he might even witness history."
"But Big Brother Hiru is always hunting demons," Muichiro looked up. "Wouldn't it be more convenient for you to bring Tanjiro along? Compared to Big Brother Yoriichi, you have more reason to travel with a demon, right?"
"That won't do. I'm constantly surrounded by unstable factors. It wouldn't be good if Tanjiro got dragged into that." After explaining with a smile, Hiru looked back at Tanjiro and patted the large box on his back.
"If you're ready, get into the box now. Or do you want a bit more time with your family to steel your resolve?"
Tanjiro looked at his worried family. After a brief pause, he shook his head slightly, a smile forming at the corner of his lips.
"Let's reunite after I turn back into a human! I have confidence in myself!"
"But… how am I supposed to get into the box? Isn't it a little small?"
"Ah, true. Even though I deliberately got the largest one, it might still be small for a complete demon…"
Tanjiro stared at the box and fell silent.
[…I'm not going to be taken apart again, am I? Will I even fit back together afterward?]
Muichiro walked around to look at the box on Hiru's back.
"Yeah, it really does look kind of small…"
"Haha, it only looks that way." Hiru smiled reassuringly at Tanjiro, who was retreating with a horrified expression. "Even a two-meter-tall, burly demon can squeeze inside by breaking its limbs and neck."
"But demons can change their size. Why don't you try it too, Tanjiro?"
"Oh, right. If you don't want to deal with the awkward situation of not being able to put your clothes back on, you should change into a kimono first. Clothes don't change size along with your body."
Tanjiro: ...(゜-゜)
[Hiru really knows everything about situations like this… amazing.]
Today as well, Tanjiro felt deep admiration for Hiru's ability to calmly handle all kinds of bizarre situations.