Demon Slayer: Tanjuro Kamado returns from Sekiro

Chapter 162 - Modern Times (End of this book)

21st century.

night.

Bright neon lights flooded the crowded high-rise buildings, and electronic warning lights paused in the middle of countless skyscrapers.

The colorful spotlights projected into the sky crisscross and illuminate the night sky.

There are crowds of people under the brightly lit high-rise buildings.

Tread, step.

The shiny leather shoes stepped on the red carpet in front of the tall building under the neon lights, reflecting the glossy light.

The host was wearing sunglasses and a neat black suit, with his flaming hair combed back into a slicked-back style.

Peng Peng, he patted his microphone skillfully and took a step forward.

He held his head high, facing the expectant gazes of everyone around him, waved his arm, and said in a high-pitched voice:

“——A contemporary painter full of mysteries!”

The spotlights directed toward the night sky rotated in the direction of his swinging arms.

"All his life he only painted a mysterious woman named 'Tamayo'!"

The host spoke in an exaggerated tone and made large movements. He took a deep breath, and the sunglasses on his face slipped down slightly due to the movement, revealing his excited eyes:
"Welcome everyone to——!!"

Swish!
He stretched out his hand and pointed at the tall building behind him, on which were written the words "Third Anniversary Art Exhibition".

At this time, the host's shout came as expected:

"——Legendary painter! Yamamoto Yushiro's third anniversary commemorative exhibition!!"

Swish! The spotlights quickly turned, illuminating the entire high-rise building and blending in with the dazzling neon lights.

"Oh!!!" cheers came from the crowd.

At the same time, the host stepped aside.

The door to the exhibition behind him was slowly opened by two burly men in black suits.

Both of them have some scars on their faces, one has white hair and the other has black hair, but they are real brothers and both have the last name "Bushikawa".

However, today the two were only temporarily assigned to take charge of security work - in fact, their main job is to be police officers of the Metropolitan Police Department.

The crowd was divided into orderly lines by the remaining teams of bodyguards at the door, and those who tried to sneak in were thrown back.

"Twenty people enter at a time! Each viewing time is twenty minutes! Please line up in an orderly manner!"

"Hey! Don't cut in line, you bastard!"

The brothers' voices were lost in the chaotic buzz of the crowd.

……

The middle section of a high-rise building.

On the observation deck extending out of the building.

"idiot…"

Yamamoto Yushiro let out a sigh and covered his ears with one hand, with a painful expression on his face.

He put down the red wine glass in his other hand and looked down with his eyes covered with black contact lenses.

downstairs.

The host, whose hair was as bright as flames, was waving at him with a big smile.

"Descendants of the Rengoku family..." A drop of cold sweat dripped down Yushiro's forehead, the corner of his mouth twitched, and his tone was quite helpless:
"…I told you not to start with such a grandiose opening…"

He turned his head back and couldn't help covering his eyes:
"It's so embarrassing."

On the shoulder, a cat shook its ears as if in agreement:

"Meow."

The man and the cat slowly turned around and walked into the tall building.

……

In the exhibition.

There are walls in the white exhibition hall, and there is only one painting hanging on each white wall.

But without exception, those paintings all show Tamayo from different angles.

"Hey! We were chosen to be the first group to enter!"

The boy with black hair and the word "my wife" written on his school uniform tried to lower his voice and said to his sister beside him:

"incredible!"

“…You…are really…” The younger sister turned her head away in shame, not wanting to pay attention to her brother.

aside.

"That's awesome."

A young man in a white coat and with an exceptionally beautiful appearance stood in front of a painting, looking at it with extremely careful eyes:
"…The brushstrokes are clearly visible. This is the first time I have seen an original work so closely…"

On the nameplate on the chest of his white coat were the words "Zui Ping Qing Ye".

Aoba Zuipi, a botanist, discovered a new plant a while ago and named it "Blue Spider Lily", which caused a sensation in the academic world.

But soon all the blue spider lilies withered due to improper storage, and the voices of praise turned into belittlement and slander.

While he was in a bad mood, he happened to receive an invitation to Yushiro's art exhibition.

Come and relax.

At this time.

The other side of the exhibition.

"Sister, look!"

The younger sister with a butterfly hairpin on her head put one hand on her waist and pointed at a painting with the other hand. She excitedly introduced it to her older sister with long hair:

"This is my favorite one!" The elder sister smiled and nodded, her eyes slowly moving away from her sister and looking at the paintings on the wall.

He nodded gently:
“So this is the one.”

"That's right!" My sister raised her head with a proud look on her face.

This made my sister couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh.

Not far away, a white-haired boy with several gold medals around his neck was sharing them with the black-haired hedgehog-headed boy he had just met.

A couple was standing in front of the painting, discussing something in a low voice.

The couple was wearing uniforms, like those of a restaurant, with small words written on their chests: "Kanroji Teishoku Restaurant".

Tread, step.

The dark leather shoes stepped on the floor, and the heavy footsteps echoed in the exhibition.

Yushiro passed by one person after another, and he seemed to see the shadows of other people in some of them.

Finally, he slowly stopped.

Raise your head and look forward.

A woman with her hair tied up was standing there, with her back to Yushiro, looking at the painting intently.

At this time.

pat.

The cat on Yushiro's shoulder jumped down, shook its head, and then ran forward.

"Meow!"

The ghost cat named Chachawan took two steps and ran under the woman. It rubbed her calves affectionately, making purring sounds.

"Ah." The woman turned slightly and lowered her head. Her lavender eyes stared at Cha Cha Wan. She squatted down.
“Why is there a cat in the art exhibition…?” He said this while skillfully scratching Chachamaru’s chin with his hand.

Yushiro stood not far away, watching all this quietly.

He slowly raised his head and looked at his painting.

The woman's appearance was exactly the same as the one in his painting "Jewel World".

for a long time.

The woman who was petting the cat seemed to notice something and looked up at Yushiro.

“…Mr. Yamamoto?”

She identified it for a while before asking in a low voice with a hint of surprise.

Yushiro bit his lips hard. He couldn't make any sound, but just nodded vigorously.

After a long time, he slowly squeezed out these words:

“…Nice to meet you.”

……

……

At the deepest part of the exhibition, near the center wall.

"Father, do you know Mr. Yamamoto?"

A large family was walking through the exhibition, and one of the younger children asked his father a question.

My father walked in front. His hair was dark red. He thought for a while, then slowly shook his head and came to a conclusion:

"No, I don't know the painter."

"Then...why did he invite my father to bring us to visit the exhibition?" The child's childish voice echoed in the exhibition.

Hearing this, the father turned around, squatted down, and touched the child's head with a smile:

"Maybe... we're just plain lucky."

After hearing this explanation, the child was obviously not satisfied. He frowned and fell into deep thought.

At this time.

tread.

The family finally stopped at the center of the exhibition.

The oldest son looked up at the wall, blinked, and said subconsciously:

“…This isn’t a painting.”

"Well, the content is not about Miss Tamayo."

"photo?"

Several children looked at the wall in front of them:
"What does it mean?"

It was a large-format photograph, carefully preserved in a glass frame - even though the photo had turned yellow and the edges and corners had curled up.

In the photo, many people are standing together and smiling at the same time.

"Look, there's a name over there!"

At this moment, a hand stretched out and pointed to the bottom of the huge photo.

Everyone looked in the direction of the finger curiously.

There is a book title mark there.

——《END》

Everyone withdrew their gazes in surprise and looked at each other.

Finally, they smiled at each other:
"What kind of name is that!"

(End of book)

(End of this chapter)