A Man and his Pan

"I am soooooo bored," Hiroto complained as he laid down on the ground in the garden.

Tanjiro was off on a mission, and so was Zenitsu and Inosuke, leaving Hiroto to himself in the Butterfly estate.

"If you're so bored, then why don't you help us out?" Aoi said, carrying some laundry.

"Ughhhh, my body is hurting. I'm still injured, ah I think I might pass away soon. Tell Nezuko that I'll miss he-" *clang* A spoon was thrown at Hiroto's head.

"Ow! You can't hit a patient! That's against some doctors code I heard back at the village I used to go to." Hiroto shouted, grabbing his forehead.

"If you're so energetic, then stop lazing around and at least help with some of the chores. *sigh* How can you lounge around while us girls do all the work around here?" Aoi complained, as the 3 girls walked past and nodded in sync.

Hiroto adjusted his monocle, and said in a gentlemanly manner, "But, my lady, in this day and age shouldn't we be striving for gender equality? Remember, the kitchen is not just for women, but for men as well. It has food to eat afteral-" *whoosh* Hiroto dodged his head to the side as an unidentified flying pan flew past his head.

"You don't cook either! You just eat! Ah, why am I even bothering to argue with you, just focus on recovering." Aoi said defeatedly as she began walking away.

*sigh* Hiroto sighed, as he picked up the pan and started to play with it in boredom. "Where's Rengoku at? He should be coming back from Headquarters at some point. I wonder what he was summoned for. But more importantly… is it possible to make a Nichirin Pan?" As Hiroto was pondering on the meaning of life, he looked down at his shoulder.

The wound was mostly healed, but it still feels stiff at times. Shinobu told him that a few more weeks should completely heal it a very small chance of permanent damage. He was quite lucky that, although his shoulder was pierced, it didn't leave any major damage. Except for the hole.

(AN: Totally not plot armor, don't look at me like that. I'll use dao of the cliff on you)

Hiroto had at some point in the past few months turned 17, his hair had grown longer and was tied in a high ponytail. His physique was lean and toned from all the training and Demon Slaying he had done. The bracelet from his father hung on his right wrist as he fidgets with it due to a force of habit he formed ever since getting it. The monocle on his left eye does make him seem strange, with his haori and Demon Slayer uniform on, but it somehow suits him, as the red chain wraps around his left ear to keep it in place and from falling.

The last time he dropped one due to earthly interferences, not his fault, he got the scolding of a lifetime from Shinobu.

"I wonder when I can go on a mission." Hiroto wondered out loud, resting on the ground.

"Hello, Hiroto! Why are you on the ground? Is it comfortable!" Rengoku's voice came from the side as he walked in.

"Ah, Kyoujurou!" Hiroto called out.

(AN: Changing Rengoku to Kyoujurou, since Rengoku is his family name and would make it too formal between them.)

"So, what did Oyakata-Sama request from you?" Hiroto asked, sitting up with a pan in his hand.

Having nothing to do for months allowed Hiroto to relax more and mellow out. Since previously, all that was on his mind was getting Nezuko's cure, killing Demons and training.

Rengoku walked over in his usual outfit, however, his right arm was sleeveless and his left was covered in scars from the countless surgeries that were performed on him. However, that won't stop him, as he still kept the same stoic expression on his face.

"Oyakata-Sama wanted to let me know of an ongoing investigation that Uzui was doing on a possible Demon. He suggested a joint mission and asked me to inquire whether you were up to the task and have recovered enough!" Rengoku said.

"Really? I can go out with him then if I say that I'm fine right? It's already been 4 months since the fight with Akaza, I've recovered enough. I'm back to the same strength and improved as well." Hiroto declared, standing up excitedly.

"Haha! I like your spirit and determination! Seeing you so energetic, I agree that you are fit and able enough to embark on this mission! However, you will still have to wait for Uzui and be under his commands! This was his mission after all!" Rengoku declared.

"Of course, as long as I can leave and stretch my legs, I wouldn't mind. Do you know anything else about the mission?" Hiroto inquired.

"You would have to talk to Uzui-san himself! I don't know much, but he can fill you in on the details when he arrives here!" Rengoku said.

Just as he finished talking, a girl's scream came from the front of the house.

"Ahhhh!"

"Let us go!"

"That's Aoi and the girls." Hiroto frowned, quickly disappearing from his spot and running to the front of the house.

"I feel like I forgot to tell him something else. It shouldn't matter!" Rengoku said with confidence.

Arriving at the front of the house, Hiroto saw a man he recognized from the Hashira meetings months ago when they were first brought to the headquarters after the events at Mt. Natagumo. The man was wide-set and bulky with a muscular build and lightly tanned skin. He wore a white head-wrap that covers his hair, leaving only a thin ponytail visible to fall behind his head, and around his forehead was a large headband of pale gray that's decorated by six light pink gemstones.

"My God, just shut up." The man said, looking down at the girl under his arm.

"Please stop iiiit!" One of the girls cried.

"Let them gooo!" The one next to her, wearing a star hat, cried out. Kanao stood between them and was sweating, not knowing what to do as she shook in her position.

"Ka-Kanao!!" Aoi shouted, reaching out for her. Kanao stood there, struggling.

Countless thoughts ran through Kanao's mind, 'Duty. Shinobu. Orders. Aoi. Superiors. Hashira. Orders. Coin. Coin... I'll decide by throwing a coin!'

Seeing this, Hiroto didn't hesitate and walked behind her, whispering to her, "Don't hesitate, just follow what you believe in. Follow your own heart, and not the coin."

Kanao woke up from her stupor, and immediately walked forward and grabbed onto the girls, stopping the man in his tracks.

"Kanao…" Aoi teared up, looking at her and nodding towards Hiroto.

"Kanao-Sama." The girls cried out.

"Don't pull on me so plainly. You have your orders." The man said, looking behind him.

Kanao didn't say anything and just clung on to them.

"Just say something!! You plain boring person!!" The man shouted back exaggeratedly.

"Kyaaaaah!!" The girls cried out in fear.

"Oi!! You bastard!!" Hiroto shouted, finally stepping in. "You let them go or there will be hell to pay, you damn… PEDOPHILE!!"

"WHAT!!! How dare you accuse me of being a pedophile!" The man yelled back at Hiroto.

"Ch-Chaaarge!!" "Charrggeee!!" The two girls cried out, jumping out the man's leg and his head, holding him in place.

"Hey! Dammit, youuuu! Cut the damn crap out!!" The man yelled, as the girls held on to him relentlessly and were not willing to let go.

Hiroto used this opportunity to launch himself towards the man and launched a punch towards his stomach.

The man noticed this and reacted by disappearing. *whoosh* Hiroto punched the air, as the man vanished from his position and stood on the roof of the entrance.

"You foo-" *CLANG* Before the man could finish what he was saying, a pan struck his head. When Hiroto moved, he already saw the man's eye move towards the roof before he disappeared. Having seen this, Hiroto took a gamble and threw the pan at that position.

The man was dazed from the attack and dropped the girls from his grasp. Hiroto jumped up and brought them back down before they fell on the ground.

"Are you girls ok?" Hiroto asked worriedly as he put them down. Aoi and the girl nodded, expressing their thanks.

"OI! You damn brat!" The man clutched his head as he waved the pan in the air. "How dare you attack me with a pan! Such a plain attack was used on such a flamboyant person like me!"

"I don't care what sort of person you are! But you aren't kidnapping these girls while I'm here! Someone, go contact the police or something, report that there is a sexual harasser on the loose!"

"Brother!" Tanjiro's voice came from over the wall, as he ran through the entrance. "I heard the girls screaming, did you say there was a sexual harasser around? We need to warn the police or the Demon Slayer Corps! These people are practically Demons!" Tanjiro shouted as he ran up to Hiroto, with Nezuko in her box on his back.

Hiroto pointed up at the man who crouched on the roof and was waving the pan around in his hand. "That's him, just look at him. Remember what mother warned us, stranger danger." Hiroto educated his brother.

*snap* The man's eye popped out as he was ticked off. "Who do you think you're talking to here brat! I have superiority!! I'm a Hashira you jackasses!" The man yelled out, puckering his lips.

Both Hiroto and Tanjiro crossed their arms at the same and said in sync. "We don't accept you as a pillar!! Hmph!!" Being siblings can't create wondrous moments like these.

The man's eyes bulged and almost popped out of his eyes and veins started to grow on his face. "Don't you two 'Hmph' meeee!! What the hell do you mean you don't accept me?! You lowly brats!! Are both your brains completely dead?!?" The man screamed out, waving the pan around threateningly.

"I need a girl member on the mission, so I'm bringing them along!! I don't need Kochou's permission if they aren't 'Tsuguko'!!

"Naho-chan isn't a Demon Slayers member!! She isn't wearing a uniform!!" One of the girls shouted.

"Then I won't take her." The man said, then pointed at Aoi. "I'm taking her on my mission, she may not be useful, but she's still a Demon Slayer Corps member regardless."

Aoi's eyes started to shake as she grew anxious from the man's words. Hiroto saw this and shouted angrily back. "You bastard! Who are you to say that she's useless?! She was the one who looked after us when we were all wounded and on the brink of death! I bet you just bully girls, you creepy old man!"

*snap snap* "Who are you calling a creepy old man you monocle-wearing brat!! I already told you that I need her for my mission!" The man yelled out, threatening Hiroto with his pan.

Aoi looked at the man and thought, 'Why does he have our pan…'

"Ah Uzui-san, I think there was a mistake here!" Rengoku came out and said with his same stoic face.

"Rengoku-san, I'm glad to see that you are well, but there is no mistake here." The man, who was identified as Uzui, responded.

"Ah, but there is!" Rengoku said, taking out a letter and throwing it to Uzui. "That was written by Oyakata-Sama himself and addressed to you. It's about your investigation on the Demon you are trying to find!"

Uzui's eyes widened as he quickly and respectfully opened the letter as if it was a treasured object.

"Wait, isn't Oyakata-Sama blind? How can he write?" Tanjiro muttered to himself from the side.

Everyone else ignored him as Uzui finished reading and looked towards Rengoku. "So, I'm to bring along your Tsuguko. But has he recovered from his wounds yet? I heard that he was pretty badly hurt in the fight with the Upper Moon Three."

"I would say that he is! After all, he's standing right there in front of you!" Rengoku said, gesturing to Hiroto who crossed his arms.

"It's this brat?!" Uzui said incredulously.