Ten minutes later, in the underground chamber of Tamayo's residence…
"So… this Uchiha Hikari lady is Tanjiro's friend, and she came all the way here to help you out?"
"Yup! Miss Hikari is an incredibly skilled ninja. I'd never seen her fight in person before, but I had no idea she was *this* powerful!"
Hikari calmly sipped her water, listening to Tanjiro chat with the two figures across from him.
Well… technically, two demons.
Even now, Tamayo and Yushiro wore stunned expressions, clearly struggling to reconcile Hikari's delicate, youthful face with the person who'd just taken down a Twelve Kizuki member in a matter of moments.
Yup.
If you really thought about it, Hikari's appearance made her look the youngest in the room—aside from Nezuko, that is.
Tamayo and Yushiro had both been turned into demons as adults, and Tamayo, in her human life, had even had children, putting their ages around their early twenties. Tanjiro himself was already fifteen or sixteen. Next to them, thirteen-year-old Hikari seemed downright petite.
But after witnessing her overwhelming strength and that sharp, icy aura she exuded, it was hard to think of her as just a kid.
"Miss Hikari, could you please release that demon from earlier for a moment? I'd like to collect some of her blood to see if it holds any clues for creating a cure…" Tamayo asked softly.
"Sure."
Hikari nodded. "But I have a small request in return. Miss Tamayo, could I borrow your research notes on demons? I have a friend who's really interested in this kind of stuff."
"…A friend?"
After Hikari confirmed that this "friend" wasn't a demon and had no ties to Muzan, Tamayo pulled a thick stack of documents from a drawer.
"Sorry, there's quite a bit here," Tamayo said apologetically. "I've been researching this for a long time—over a hundred years, actually. Some of the older notes were lost or discarded, so this is what's left. I'm not sure if you'll be able to make sense of it, Miss Hikari, but feel free to ask me if anything's unclear…"
"No problem."
Hikari flipped open the documents and activated the chat group's photo function, snapping pictures of each page and uploading them.
She didn't even bother reading them herself—she knew she wouldn't understand a word.
While Hikari "read" through the notes, Tamayo couldn't resist whispering a few questions to Tanjiro.
"Um… I don't know much about Miss Hikari myself, but according to Mr. Nagatome and the others, she's apparently over a hundred years old. Just like you, Miss Tamayo, she doesn't look her age at all!" Tanjiro scratched his head, answering honestly.
"?"
A hundred years old??
Could a human even live that long? And still look *that* young? Was she some kind of ancient yokai from the Edo period or something? Which kind of yokai was known for using fire again?
And who the heck was "Nagatome"? One of the Demon Slayer Corps' Hashira?
Tamayo's mind spun, and she snuck a few glances at Hikari from behind, starting to wonder if her understanding of the world was a bit lacking.
Snapping photos of the documents took a good half-hour.
Once Hikari was done, Tanjiro had finished packing up and was sitting with Nezuko, looking at her expectantly.
"Miss Hikari, Nezuko and I need to continue our Demon Slayer Corps missions. Miss Tamayo and the others are staying to clean up the traces here before they leave. So, um…"
"Let's go together."
Hikari yawned. "It's almost morning, right? Let's rest for a bit, then head out to meet up with Bulma before we move on."
Aside from demons, Hikari was also curious about the Breathing Styles of the *Demon Slayer* world.
The Demon Slayer Corps' headquarters was kept under tight secrecy, making it tough to track down. But according to the original story, Tanjiro would soon be summoned there for a trial over Nezuko's situation. Sticking with him for a few days would be a good opportunity—plus, she could nab a few more demons while she was at it. Just one Susamaru wouldn't cut it for powering up her *Yasogami* technique or trading with Orochimaru.
That night, the group rested on the tatami mats in the underground chamber.
The next morning, Hikari and her crew parted ways with Tamayo and Yushiro. After leaving the residence, they stopped by a quiet side road, where Hikari pinged Bulma in the chat group.
A few minutes later…
Dressed in a casual jacket, a shoulder bag slung over one side, and a camera hanging around her neck, Bulma appeared on the streets of Asakusa, looking like she was off on a countryside excursion.
"Wow, so this is Tanjiro's world?!"
"This is my first time traveling to another world!"
"So *this* is what you look like, Tanjiro—pretty cute! Why's your default nickname in the group 'IronHeadKid'? Is your forehead really that tough? And is that wooden box carrying your sister Nezuko? How does she fit in such a tiny thing?"
Bulma fired off questions like a curious toddler.
Tanjiro managed to answer a couple at first, but her rapid-fire barrage soon left him stammering.
Finally, Hikari stepped in, grabbing Bulma's restless hand. "It's broad daylight right now. Letting Nezuko get exposed to sunlight is dangerous—she'll come out at night, and you can meet her then. Also… Tanjiro's head is *seriously* hard. Don't even think about testing it with a headbutt."
It was obvious Bulma was considering it.
But honestly, even Hikari figured she'd be nursing a headache for hours if she tried headbutting Tanjiro. That was the kind of super headbutt that could send a wild boar flying…
In terms of forehead durability, he might even give kid Goku a run for his money.
It took a while for Bulma to calm down from the thrill of meeting her chat group buddy in person. After checking that the area was spacious enough, she pulled out her Hoi-Poi Capsule case and tossed one out.
**POOF!**
The smoke cleared, revealing a car.
Tanjiro's eyes went wide. "?? What's that?! How'd it just appear? Is it a yokai?!"
"It's a car," Bulma said, puzzled. "Wait, you don't have these in your world?"
Hikari coughed from the sidelines, chiming in, "Just think of him as Goku."
To be fair, Tanjiro and Goku weren't *exactly* the same. Japan in this era barely had any cars at all…
But the comparison clicked for Bulma instantly. "Ohhh, got it!"
"Alright, hop in!"
Bulma yanked open the car door, waving at Hikari and the others. "This thing's got plenty of room. If you get tired, you can nap inside. Tanjiro, you can set the box down in there—the windows are tinted to block sunlight, so your sister can come out and stretch a bit."
**(End of Chapter)**