Recently discovered Demon Slayer despite having seen it pop up everywhere and I can't believe it took me as long as it did to watch it, but at least season 2 is just around the corner.
Just a warning, this story will diverge somewhat from both Naruto and Demon Slayer cannon.
Tamayo found she quite enjoyed walking in the rain when it wasn't pouring, and it was only recently she was beginning to remember just how much she loved the scent of freshly wet earth. With it fond memories of her childhood resurfaced in which she would play in the rain for hours on end, much to the chagrin of her parents, she remembered with a smile. She would always come in after splashing in puddles, tracking in mud and with water trailing her kimono.
What fond memories indeed.
Yushiro blushed at his master's beautiful smile and just how close they were to one another beneath the black umbrella they shared, one with sakura petals printed in neat patterns along the surface. He strived for moments like the one they were currently sharing; moments away from the ungrateful and lowly humans she so loved to taking care of.
"Yushiro," Tamayo's serene smile remained ever-present but her tone was enough to make her apprentice stiffen. "Whatever it is you're thinking, please refrain from doing so."
"Naturally, Tamayo-sama, I was only thinking about the weather," Yushiro was quick to refute.
They were currently traveling beneath the safety of night to the village of Kyoto, where a rash of demon attacks were being reported as wild animal encounters. Considering the occurrences had been happening for close to six months, it was evident the Demon Slayer Corps had yet to send a slayer to put a stop to the attacks. As such, Tamayo decided to take the initiative and investigate for herself exactly what was happening.
Their journey had been a long and arduous one thus far as remaining hidden from both Muzan and his demons, along with the Demon Slayers themselves, was becoming burdensome to conducting her research. She often times considered finding a place to settle down as a base of operations but life as a demon hunted by both sides wasn't easy and they weren't allowed to get comfortable in any one place.
Yushiro for his part was trying his very best to make his master proud by perfecting his demon arts. His own powers manifested in his ingenuity when it came to creating seals for many uses. He was currently working on one which would completely conceal their location from both sight and scent but it was growing increasingly difficult to conduct his own research and practice when they had to move so often.
Both abruptly came to a stop and were pulled from their respective thoughts when a sudden change in the wind carried with it a particular scent through the air.
"Blood?" Yushiro looked to his master.
"Yes, human and very fresh," Tamayo confirmed, feeling the horrifyingly familiar sensation of hunger ache in her belly. "Locate and report."
"Of course, Tamayo-sama," Yushiro handed the umbrella off to his master and disappeared in a flash as soon as it exchanged hands.
He found the human easily enough and the condition in which he did confused Yushiro. Boulders were shattered, trees toppled, and the earth was upheaved and cratered around a young man wearing the tattered remains of an orange suit. His hair was a bright shade of blond where his blood hand't soaked, running down his battered face and through a set of peculiar whisker like scars on his face, possible birthmarks with just how symmetrical they were.
He was also still alive, as evident by the slow rising and falling of his chest, which was marred by scars old and some still pink. There was no sign of a Nichirin katana and he didn't wear the uniform, so it wasn't likely he was a Demon Slayer. Yet it looked like he'd just been through battle. He was clearly wounded but there was no scent or otherwise to indicate a demon attack, or that of an animal for that matter.
Considering he carved through the forest and ground, it was hard for Yushiro to come up with a and educated assumption as to exactly what had occurred to him, or even what he was. He was no demon and yet, humans short of the strongest of the Demon Slayers simply weren't resilient enough to withstand upheaving earth and destroying trees without they themselves becoming little more than a splatter.
The wind carried the smell of his blood and the rain only amplified it, confirming he was in fact human. It also hungered Yushiro considering it had been days since his last feeding and it was becoming difficult showing his restraint despite trying his best for his master's sake.
"Compose yourself," Tamayo soothed, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Yushiro's lavender eyes widened at her sudden and undetected appearance. His head fell in shame at being found lusting for blood.
"Do not fret, Yushiro. We will eat soon enough but for now, we must help this young man," Tamayo said, speaking with great sympathy for her apprentice, along with buried regret.
Yushiro was too distressed to detect the movement until he was being pushed away by his master.
Tamayo tried clawing at the young man's iron grip on her throat but found she was unable to pierce his skin as he hoisted her level with his wild blue eyes.
"What are you?" The young man demanded, his voice hoarse. "I sense death from you."
Before Tamayo could even attempt to speak, Yushiro reappeared ready to strike. The human surprised both by moving faster than Yushiro, snatching him out of the air without removing his attention from Tamayo, now holding master and apprentice in his hands.
Yushiro tried to use his own enhanced strength to break free of the human's grasp but found the vice on his neck tightening the more he struggled. He wildly grasped at the human's neck, taking him into his hand much in the way he held them, but no matter how hard he tried to tear away his throat, there was no give.
"W-We do not mean you any harm," Tamayo gasped. Her elongated claws now rested against her own forearm, ready to use her demonic arts.
"Your eyes," the wild look on his face seemed to settle down ever so slightly.
To Tamayo's surprise, she found there were tears building in his own eyes.
"Your eyes," he repeated softly, his grip loosening until he released them both. "Are you a Hyuuga?"
There was reluctant hope in that question.
"A Hyuuga?" Tamayo cautiously asked. "I'm afraid I don't — "
"How dare you touch Tamayo-sama!" Yushiro charged at the man as fast as he possibly could and with every intent to kill the human for his transgression.
"Yushiro don't!" Tamayo watched hopelessly as the young man, despite being hurt and never once taking his eyes off her, once again caught Yushiro's attack, catching and crushing his hand easily.
He moved quickly, throwing her away to slam Yushiro into the ground using his own momentum against him, the sheer force of his attack burying her apprentice into the ground. A sphere of beautiful blue light appeared in the young man's right hand. Without knowing what the attack was, Tamayo knew it would momentarily kill him should it connect.
"What the hell are you?" The young man demanded again as he held Yushiro down with his foot.
"I don't have to answer you, human filth!" Yushiro involuntarily spitting blood at the young man, his attack having inflicted great internal damage. "You touched Tamayo-sama and for that you must die!"
"Wait!"
The spiraling ball stopped mere inches from Yushiro's face but he didn't stop glaring at her downed apprentice.
"We're demons but we won't hurt you!" Tamayo shouted despite the situation thus far being in the stranger's favor.
"Demons?" He seemed even more confused but thankfully stepped off and away from Yushiro, canceling his attack, the blue ball shattering in strings of brilliant white wisps.
Despite the situation, Tamayo was incredibly curious about this human boy. Having reached a similar realization as her apprentice, she observed the young man's overwhelming strength. A strength only typically possessed by either demons or their slayers, and he was clearly neither.
"As in real demons?" The man asked as he cautiously looked between the two.
"Yes," Tamayo answered just as cautiously. She pointed at her apprentice, who was clearly readying himself for another attack. "Stay down, Yushiro."
Being demons he couldn't kill them in the typical sense, but he could hurt them until daybreak, which wasn't too far off and she wasn't entirely confident they could defeat him, even wounded. This alone greatly intrigued her but the situation called for diplomacy.
"My name is Tamayo and he is Yushiro," Tamayo began calmly, cautiously approaching the young man. "And like I said before, yes, we are both demons but we mean you no harm."
Something seemed to come together in the man's eyes, his hardened expression softening into something nearing defeat.
"Am I in hell then?" He muttered, more so to himself as he took in the surrounds of the damp dark forest. "Am I dead?"
"Hell?" Tamayo could hear the anguish in his words. "Dead? Why would you think that?"
Instead of answering, the young man abruptly fell to a knee. He covered his mouth, trying to hold in a cough, resulting in blood spurting from his nose.
"Shit, I really did lose. I failed them all," he muttered as he fell forward, his eyes closing just as his face hit the ground, unmoving except for his slow breathing.
"Yushiro!" Tamayo shouted, stopping her apprentice just in time to stop him from attacking the downed man.
"But Tamayo-sama, he touched you," Yushiro said, his claws mere inches from the young man's head. His face and arms were vascular, showing just how far he'd been pushed. "Only I'm allowed to touch you."
"He is scared and likely felt cornered," Tamayo said, approaching the downed man herself, looking at him with sympathy. "I don't know what happened to him but he is hurt. Please pick him up, Yushiro, we're taking him with us."
"We are?" Yushiro looked troubled. "But he attacked us! He attacked you!"
"Yes, I am aware of that and yes, I am sure. He is very powerful for a human and that was while being injured," Tamayo smiled ever so slightly. "I admit, I am curious as to how that's possible, but above all else, I swore an oath."
This made Yushiro glare even harder at the unmoving young man.
Naruto was tortured by very recent memories in the form of dreams of the Fourth and last Shinobi world War against Kaguya, and Madara before her. The Elemental Nations was cursed with disaster and when it was time to unite, they failed to rise to the occasion.
While most of the Hidden Villages banded together, there were those who did not, choosing to remain isolationists. Divided they ultimately fell. War raged for months, turning into years of conflict fought in small guerrilla skirmishes leaving numerous dead and devastated.
Through it all and for most of the time at the head of the war, Naruto lead as the Hokage with the shortest reign. There was no cause for celebration in achieving what was once his life's goal when it meant inheriting the position as a result of the death of the previous Shadow.
Conflict after seemingly never ending conflict came to a head when Naruto confronted Kaguya. He came incredibly close to defeating the mad goddess, but ultimately his resolve had not been enough.
He opened his eyes to find an incredibly beautiful pair of lavender eyes staring down at him, accompanied by a serene smile that somehow seemed to sooth his tormented heart.
"Are you my angel?" Naruto asked in a semi-state of delusion. Having seldom thought of the afterlife or religion in general, he was vaguely aware of some existing interpretations of life after death. One of which spoke of angels and demons. The woman above him couldn't be described as anything but angelic.
Her skin was a perfect alabaster and looked incredibly smooth with no imperfections in sight. Above those beautiful eyes was a slightly than average forehead and equally exquisite dark hair, all housed on a very feminine heart shaped face. She wore a flower patterned black kimono which did little, despite the color, to hide her full figure.
"Oh my," the woman's eyes became half lidded to match her sly smile. "Yushiro, you wouldn't be possibly thinking of doing anything to hurt our patient, would you?"
Naruto turned his head towards the source of killer's intent to find a young boy glaring at him with a pair of similar colored eyes as the woman.
"He complimented you, Tamayo-sama. Seeing as I'm the only one allowed to do so, I say we dispose of him at once," Yushiro said, his expression completely serious.
"Yushiro," Tamayo spoke his name with her own serious expression and it was enough to make the boy sit ramrod straight.
"Of course that was only a joke," Yushiro stated emotionlessly.
"What's going on?" Naruto slowly sat up, feeling his own wounds already healing on their own but he could tell there was something numbing his pain, and speeding up his own natural abilities. There were also bandages across his chest and certain sections of his arms.
"We found you in the forest just outside of Kyoto," Tamayo informed him. "So the question is, what happened to you? You were severely injured when we found you."
His initial confrontation with the two came back to Naruto in a rush.
In the low light of the small room they were in, neither looked like demons. The fact he was still alive was surprising and revealing. For one he was expecting Kaguya to kill him in their fight if he couldn't kill her. Also, if the woman and the boy hadn't killed him in his vulnerable state, then perhaps it was worth hearing them out.
Especially considering he didn't know where he currently was. More importantly, he couldn't sense Kaguya's ever looming presence. One thing was clear and that was he was no longer in the Elemental Nations. For some reason, that fact didn't faze him as much as it maybe should have.
Whatever the outcome, it made no difference considering he'd lost.
"I'm sorry I attacked you," Naruto bowed his head.
Tamayo observed a tonal change in his voice and could sense the tell tale sign of spiritual defeat. "Is there something you'd like to get off your chest?" She asked kindly.
Both Naruto and Yushiro looked at her with differing displays of confusion.
"No," Naruto stated resolutely. Talking about his biggest defeat to the two strangers would bring him no peace, of this he was certain.
"I see," Tamayo's smile never once faltered. "Then perhaps you'll hear me out. But first I'd like to know your name, if that's alright with you, that is."
"Naruto," he answered simply.
Tamayo realized she would be getting no other name from him, if even he had another. "Well then, Naruto. If there is anything you do not wish to disclose to us, I understand and will respect your privacy. That said, you seemed confused about the existence of demons for one so adept at fighting."
"Sorry 'bout that," Naruto halfheartedly apologized. "I was confused there for a little bit. But what do you mean when you said you were a demon? If anything you look like an angel."
He looked over to Yushiro, who was once again glaring absolute daggers at him. Tamayo, on the other hand smiled at this.
"Oh my, that is the second time I've ever been referred to as such, both coming from you, Naruto-san," she said, moving to hide her smile behind her hand. "You sure do know how to embarrass a lady."
Her sheer beauty briefly pierced Naruto's dreary mood, making him blush slightly. "S-Sorry if I'm being rude," he apologized.
"No, it's quite alright, isn't it, Yushiro?" Tamayo said through a smile and closed eyes, seeing her apprentice beginning to stand.
"If that is what you wish, Tamayo-sama," Yushiro grit out.
Naruto could sense every time the boy's killing intent spiked and it did so every time he spoke to the woman, especially so when he accidentally complimented her.
"As to your earlier question, you see, I am in fact a demon. As is my apprentice, Yushiro. I hope that doesn't bother you," Tamayo said.
"As in you… " Naruto reconsidered mentioning the tailed beasts. Granted he no longer contained Kurama, he didn't want to reveal too much without knowing where he was or exactly what was going on. Either way, he knew they weren't referencing being a Jinchuuriki. "What do you mean you're a demon?"
"So you really don't know about demons?" Tamayo hummed in interest. She was beginning to form a hypothesis as why the mysterious young man seemed so uninformed. There did, of course, exist the possibility he was deceiving them but she didn't believe that to be the case.
"No, I know what a demon is, or at least I have my definition of one. Does that mean everyone here are demons?" Naruto asked.
Typically the word demon carried derogatory connotations. Naruto knew this all too well considering he'd been called one most of his childhood. However, something about the woman and the boy had him on edge since the moment he'd awoken. There was a deep darkness festering inside the woman, a darkness so pronounced that he could sense it without concentrating.
The boy was different. There was an unmistakable anger radiating off him, but it was the woman who truly concerned Naruto. If everyone was like the woman, then there existed the possibility he really had died in his battle with Kaguya and his torture had yet to begin.
"Not everyone, no," Tamayo said, briefly looking out the window of the small room they all shared. "As a matter of fact, humans very much rule this world, most unaware of the threat that inhabits it. The threat of demons, that is."
"Are you saying you're a threat to these humans?" Naruto asked. He stilled his form and began to gather nature chakra, feeling immediately something was different about the chakra he was blending with his own.
"I assure you we are not," Tamayo felt absolutely her immortal life was in danger suddenly. Judging by the way Yushiro stiffened, his instincts also warned him of this. If she weren't careful with what she said next, there existed a real possibility he would kill them both if a prolonged battle ensued into the daylight now a mere hour away.
"Explain yourself," Naruto said demanded as he did nothing to hide the changing of his eyes.
Tamayo noticed this and despite walking a thin line, she was incredibly curious about this change.
"I will. I only ask you listen without interruption. I will answer your individual question after I'm done explaining everything because I imagine you know very little of our world," Tamayo said. The slight widening of his eyes now yellowed eyes gave more credence to her theory.
Naruto nodded his acceptance but did no relinquish his hold on his Sage mode.
She began from the beginning of human history, quickly showing the differences in their worlds. She then described in minor detail what demons were and how they came to be, briefly touching on their abilities.
It was almost hard to believe and yet, nothing truly surprised Naruto. At one point in life he believed he was little more than a no named orphan, only to discover he was the Junchuuriki son of the Fourth Hokage and one of the few survivors of a once great clan.
His long journey coming to an end in a fight with a Goddess.
"This demon, this Muzan," Naruto began after a long moment's consideration. "He created all of you… all of the demons?"
"Turned would be a more apt description, but yes. That is with the exception of Yushiro. I turned him myself," Tamayo said, averting her eyes as she admitted this.
"Why would you do something so stupid?" Naruto asked outright.
He caught the clawed hand aimed for his neck without looking away from Tamayo as he awaited her response.
"Yushiro!" Tamayo scolded.
"I was only trying to swat a fly that landed on his neck," Yushiro said, offering his master a bow before retaking his seat next to her.
Tamayo turned to Naruto downcast. "I gave him a choice, the same choice I've given a few of my other dying patients. Death or become a demon. Do not think I came to this decision lightly, Naruto-san, because most don't survive with their minds intact, or at all for that matter. But you see, I believed they deserved a chance at a life fate robbed them of. Unfortunately, Yushiro is the only one I've successfully turned in two hundred years."
"But you have to kill people for blood, don't you?" Naruto asked as he pulled off his blankets, tossing them in a pile to the side. "You said so yourself, demons feed on humans, killing them to consume them. I am grateful you helped heal me but you know I can't let you eat anyone else, even if it's what you need to do to survive."
The atmosphere in the room was becoming increasingly heavy. Yushiro looked on the brink of attacking and Tamayo didn't think she could restrain him if Naruto acted first. To make matters more dangerous, the more time she spent in his presence, the more it became apparent they were in the presence of an incredibly powerful human.
"We subside on donations!" Tamayo quickly said. "Or we buy blood from those willing and in need of compensation! We haven't devoured any humans!"
Naruto turned to regard Yushiro briefly, making him flinch despite himself, and then returned his attention to Tamayo. "He may not have, but what about you?"
A crack in Tamayo's composure appeared in the widening of her beautiful eyes, confirming Naruto's suspicions. Battle revealed a lot about an opponent and he'd become adept at reading others.
She mentioned Muzan turned her many years prior, with her being one of the first he ever turned. Considering just how composed she tried to apparent, he knew there must have been a reason why she chose lock away her emotions behind the facade of a gentle healer.
"I… I have, yes. Two hundred and thirty two people, before realizing the error of my ways," Tamayo admitted, tears begging to pool in her eyes.
Yushiro looked genuinely surprised by this fact, indicating that even he didn't know the extent of her sins.
Naruto decided then he would kill Tamayo.
"And it's a regret I must live with every day. Their names, their faces, their families. I remember each and everyone one of them. They serve as a constant reminder of why I must fix this," Tamayo finished, wiping a stray tear with her kimono sleeve.
Naruto closed his hand, snuffing out the Rasengan with which he intended to end her existence with. "Fix what, exactly?" He asked as he reeled in his power and dispelled the nature chakra from his body.
Yushiro observed from the corner of his eyes as a small decorative bonsai in the corner of the room grew considerably as soon as the suffocating feeling of oppression lifted.
"The demon disease," Tamayo said, meeting his eyes once more. "To atone for my actions I became a healer. Beyond that, I have two goals in life. The first and most important is to stop Muzan so that he never changes another human into a demon. The second; I want to find a way to turn demons back into humans."
"Is that even possible?" Naruto asked.
"Every disease has to have a cure, does it not?" Tamayo asked.
"No, not always," Naruto said. "No matter how much you try, sometimes things just don't pan out how you want them to."
It didn't for him.
"Perhaps," Tamayo relented sadly. "But I have no option but to try."
Naruto studied the woman, knowing deep down she was telling the truth. Coexisting beside the sickening sensation of death inside Tamayo was a deep grief and regret. Her tears were very much real but he'd made the mistake of forgiving a mass murderer once just because he was a perceived friend.
But then again, this new place, or maybe this new world, it didn't belong to him and he didn't belong to it. Naruto had no obligation to protect anyone.
"Okay," Naruto stood, looking down at both of them. "I believe you. Just know that if I ever discover you hurt so much as one person, I'll kill you myself. The both of you," he warned.
"Wait!" Tamayo called out after him just as he reached for the door. She had a commanding hand on Yushiro's shoulder, holding him back from attacking once more. "Where will you go?"
"I need to find a way back," Naruto said, looking over his shoulder.
"A way back where?" Tamayo asked.
"A way back home. There's something I need to finish," Naruto said, walking out of the room.
Tamayo watched him go, feeling an odd sense of regret. He was an anomaly, a powerful one with unmistakable morals at that. If ever there was a chance to stop Muzan, she'd just watched it walk away.
Naruto slammed his hand down to the ground once more, pouring even more chakra into the technique, shattering the earth beneath from the force of his frustration, finding once more his summoning technique had failed.
After leaving the two demons behind Naruto returned to the forest in an attempt to contact the toads for a reverse summons, only to find he received no response. Granted many of the toads had fallen in battle, his own personal summons among the casualties, but he should have at least been able to summon any one of them.
He took a calming breath and closed his eyes, focusing his nature chakra into his technique, he once again cratered his surroundings to similar results.
"Come on!"
Naruto allowed himself to fall to his knees, knowing but refusing to accept his efforts were futile. There was no going back without exactly knowing where he'd come from or exactly how Kaguya had expelled him from his world.
He ignored the presence behind him, stewing in regret at having not taken his training more serious. As Naruto saw it, the only likely solution to his current problem would be the sealing arts. If his father was able to traverse time and space using the Flying-Thunder-God technique, then it stood to reason he may find a way back through similar means. Unfortunately without any learning material or someone to teach him, his familial arts were lost to him.
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Tamayo asked kindly.
Naruto's eyes became unfocused. "Not unless you happened to know how to manipulate space and time," he muttered.
Tamayo took some time to respond. "I can't say I do," she said, speaking softly. "But I believe I still may be of some help."
Naruto looked to her, finding Yushiro glued to her side again. "Yeah, how's that?"
"We demons are capable of feats previously thought to be impossible by humans. We call these abilities Demon Arts," Tamayo explained. "I will be upfront in saying I cannot promise we'll be able to find a way for you to return to wherever it is you need to return, but I do believe it'll be your best chance."
"Demon Arts?" Naruto wondered if they were similar to his own techniques. This intrigued him but he was also well aware she wanted something in return. "What do you want from me?"
"You are very perceptive for someone your age," Tamayo observed. "And you are correct in assuming I need something from you."
"So then what is it?" Naruto pressed, feeling his patience quickly becoming strained.
"Help me find a cure for the demonic ailment," Tamayo implored. "You are not a Demon Slayer and yet you posses immense strength. I realize what I'm asking of you may sound like a most difficult and dangerous task, because it certainly is, but you must understand this isn't a request I can make to others like me or their slayers."
"And how am I supposed to do that?" Naruto asked. "What could I possibly do to help you with your research?"
"Muzan has a group of demons known as the Twelve Kizuki. I won't go into too much detail about them now, but just know they are amongst the most powerful demons in his personal command, and in the world. And I have reason to believe their blood may be the key to finding a cure," Tamayo explained.
Naruto stared out to the rising sun in the distance, wondering if it was worth it to care again. Everything and everyone he'd ever loved had been taken from him because of the ambitions of a mad goddess. Nothing he could ever do would turn back time and bring those he loved back, but he could still save those that inhabited the land he now found himself in.
But was that what he wanted?
Only a short year prior and the answer would have been obvious, so much so he wouldn't even have to consider it. But one of the hardest lessons Naruto had learned was that the cost of action was just as high as that of inaction because sometimes the outcome was the same.
In his mind's eye, the many faces of his friends and family flashed through his mind and with it, shame flooded him. Naruto knew exactly what each and everyone of them would say should he pose the same question to them.
They wouldn't want him to give up, and he didn't want to either, but being a protector was hard and often times punishing.
"I'll help you until I know what to make of this world or I find a way home," Naruto said, standing to face her.
"That is all I have any right to ask of you," Tamayo stated gratefully. She even bowed to him, something which once more set Yushiro off but he remained silent.
"Tell me more about this world," Naruto said.
"Very well, but first, let us go back to our room. The sun is about to rise," Tamayo said, motioning back in the direction in which they came.
Naruto followed the two demons, wondering just what he'd gotten himself into.
Bit of a short first chapter but I hope you guys enjoyed it. Also, excuse the somewhat lame title. I've never been good at thinking of a good title.
Now a few hints about this story without spoiling what I have in mind. Yes Naruto will be getting his own sword and this will be a Naruto/Multi story. Tamayo is locked in and I'm leaning towards Shinobu as well, but I'm up for any suggestions.
Until next time!