Demon Slayer: My breathing technique went awry after Nezuko pushed me down.

I'm even less willing to believe that ghosts really exist in this world... and that they don't eat people!

because......

After his mother became a ghost, the first people she wanted to eat were him and his younger brother.

because......

To protect himself and his brother, he killed their mother with his own hands.

The only light in that dilapidated home, filled with domestic violence.

For this, his brother hated him, and he hated himself.

If... if ghosts really didn't eat people...

If Nezuko could control herself from eating people because of family ties and love...

Why did his mother eat them?

Could it be because... Mom doesn't actually love them at all?

Or perhaps... he himself killed his mother, who could have been redeemed...?

He didn't dare to think!

That's why he vehemently denied it.

Fight with all your might!

Shirakawa Yu's gaze changed, though the disgust remained.

But... there was a hint of sympathy mixed in.

Under the wide-eyed gaze of the Pillars, Shinazugawa Sanemi's body slowly floated up and drifted in front of Shirakawa Hare.

"What?! Let me go!"

Sanemi panicked, waving his hands and feet, which were wrapped into cylinders.

But her already weakened body was even less able to escape the control of the Crimson Arrow.

Shirakawa Yu pulled him in front of her and looked him straight in the eye.

"Don't believe me? I can show you."

He held up his finger and breathed on it.

Pink energy flowed around her fingertips, then she gently swept it across Shimi's arm.

The bandage tore open, and blood seeped out.

Shinobu was completely exasperated. "Kawaba-kun, please stop bleeding Shinazugawa."

Shirakawa Yu turned her head and replied, "Don't worry, I won't die."

Then he looked at Sanemi again.

“You have rare blood, so you should be well aware of the attraction your blood has for demons. If Nezuko doesn’t even glance at you, are you willing to believe that demons can do without eating people?”

"impossible!!!"

Shinazugawa Sanemi glared fiercely at Shirakawa Yu, his eyes bloodshot as if they were about to burst.

"No ghost can—not eat people!"

"If it weren't for Nezuko, I really wouldn't have had confidence in my experiment to turn demons into humans. But..."

With that, Shirakawa Yu pulled Nezuko to his side.

Upon seeing this, Sanemi immediately revealed a smug smile that said, "I'm about to expose your deception."

"Hahaha! You asked for this!"

He laughed wildly, staring intently at Nezuko.

"You devil! Come on! Eat! I know you're hungry! Eat!!!"

His voice grew louder and louder, almost a roar.

"Tell everyone—a ghost is a ghost! A man-eater! It will never turn back into a human!!!"

However......

"Huh?"

Nezuko tilted her head with a normal expression.

Veins bulged on Sanemi's forehead instantly.

"What the hell?! Dinner's ready! I'll let you bite me!"

Duang~!

Shirakawa Yu gave Shinazugawa a sharp rap on the head.

"Don't yell at my Nezuko."

"Tch!" Sanemi spat, and without saying a word, activated the Breath of the Wind.

He didn't care whether he would die or not, and stubbornly forced the small wound open, letting the blood gush out.

The stench of blood immediately filled the air.

"Is this alright? Come on, you evil spirit, bite, bite me."

Shinazugawa's face grew paler and paler, and his expression gradually became distorted.

This is a hundred times more perverted than the pervert who uses goldfish to lure young girls.

Nezuko tilted her head, looking at him with a puzzled expression.

Its big pink eyes blinked, showing no interest in food.

There was even a hint of...disdain in it.

Sanemi Shinazugawa's smile gradually froze.

"How...how is this possible..."

He looked at Shirakawa Yu, still unwilling to give up, "Are you cheating? Does this female ghost have something wrong with her nose?!"

was saying,

Suddenly, Nezuko made a move.

Golden light burst forth from Shinazugawa's eyes.

You couldn't hold back any longer, could you? Finally, you've had enough—

Uh.

He stared in astonishment as Nezuko stretched out her little hand and pulled a small cookie from her haori.

With a mix of heartache and reluctance, I placed it towards Sanemi's dazed lips.

"Awoo~~"

Nezuko puffed out her little cheeks and made a cute chewing motion, then stretched her chubby little hand forward.

He gestures to Sanemi, "Eat, it's delicious!"

Sanemi was dumbfounded.

He stared blankly at the bear-shaped biscuit in front of his mouth.

biscuit?!

A ghost...eating cookies??

Cookies taste better than my blood???

His mouth was slightly open, but his eyes gradually lost their luster.

Could it be... that I was really wrong?

My brother... he's right... I am... a murderer...

I...killed...my mother?

Sanemi's heart is broken...

That mother who once loved him the most, the mother who shielded him from his father's violence with her own body...

Suddenly, Sanemi's lips twitched...

sweet......

So sweet...

It tastes like sakura mochi...

Coming to my senses, I saw Nezuko's adorable little face before me, her mouth...

It's that bear-shaped biscuit...

He instinctively took a bite of the sweet flavor, and Nezuko's smile grew even brighter.

"Mmm~ Mmm~"

Nezuko reached out her little hand and touched Sanemi's hair, as if as a reward for his good behavior.

This is what Ms. Tamayo did to her every time she had her blood drawn for an experiment.

If you bleed, eating a small biscuit will make up for it.

Touch your head, and the pain will go away.

Little did they know... it was such a simple action.

But what a huge upheaval was stirred in the heart of this fiery hot pepper who lived her whole life in guilt and lacked love since childhood.

Sanemi's vision began to blur.

In his eyes, Nezuko, who was feeding him sweets and gently stroking his hair, slowly overlapped with the deepest, most profound figure in his memory.

That was the comforting words my mother offered after each instance of domestic violence from my father, tinged with guilt.

Sanemi, don't be afraid... Mom is here... Mom... has always been here...