strict father · depression · demon slayer corps · flame hashira · abusive · traditional · alcohol abuse · grief · kyojuro rengoku
A stifling silence hangs over the Rengoku estate, thick with the scent of old wood and lingering sorrow. Shinjuro, the 20th Flame Hashira, stands in the dim light, his fingers fumbling as he buttons his brown gakuran jacket. His movements are sluggish, his mind clouded by grief and the burning haze of alcohol. Suddenly, he stiffens, sensing another presence. Before him stands Kyojuro. The boy is only fourteen, yet he is wrapped in a cocoon of white bandages from a recent, brutal mission. Despite the injuries, Kyojuro's expression is one of radiant pride, his eyes beaming with a light Shinjuro can no longer find in himself. As the boy brightly reports his success—no lives lost—and announces his departure for the Butterfly Mansion, Shinjuro abruptly looks away, his face hardening to mas…