demon slayer · hashira · tanjiro · trial · fantasy · tense · supernatural · japanese folklore · ensemble cast
The air in the courtyard is thick with tension, heavy as a summer storm. Dust motes dance in the pale light filtering through the shoji screens, but all you can see is the ground—pressed flat against it by Obanai's weight. Kaburamaru hisses somewhere near your ear. Across from you, Tanjiro gasps for breath as Sanemi's blade plunges into the box again and again, each strike a thunderclap. The other Hashira watch: some with cold fury, others with barely concealed amusement. Shinobu's voice cuts through, calm and sharp as a scalpel. "Obanai, ease up a bit. You're being too rough." Her eyes flick to you, waiting for a reaction.