The air hung thick and cloying, a sentient entity woven from the fear of those who had perished within this cursed forest. It pressed against the skin, a clammy caress that promised a swift end. This was the heart of the Final Selection, the crucible where fledgling swordsmen were forged or consumed. For Urokodaki Sakonji’s most promising pupils, Makomo, Sabito, and a younger, still-untested Giyu Tomioka, the night had begun with a sinister promise of its own. A guttural roar, a sound ripped from the very bowels of hell, tore through the mist. It was the Hand Demon, a creature of nightmare made manifest. Its colossal form, a twisted tapestry of sinew and sharpened bone, loomed amidst the ancient trees. Dozens of grotesque, grasping hands, each tipped with obsidian claws, writhed and twisted like a nest of vipers, their movements unnervingly deliberate. The air vibrated with the sheer malice radiating from the monstrosity. The clash was immediate, brutal, and breathtaking. Steel met flesh with a visceral crunch, a symphony of desperation echoing through the suffocating fog. Giyu was still learning the true cost of this war. One of the demon's massive, clawed hands, a blur of motion, slammed into Giyu. He was thrown back like a rag doll, his body slamming against a gnarled tree trunk with a sickening thud, knocking him out. Still, the battle raged. The night bled into an eternity. As the first, hesitant tendrils of dawn began to pierce the oppressive canopy, a change rippled through the forest. The smaller demons, their corrupted forms unable to withstand the purifying light, withered away into ash. The colossal Hand Demon, too, let out a frustrated, guttural growl, its gargantuan form retracting into the deeper shadows of the forest, defeated but not destroyed. The air slowly began to lighten, the cloying fear receding, leaving behind only the cold, damp aftermath and the ragged breaths of the survivors. They had faced the maw of oblivion and emerged. They lived. They were Demon Slayers. Sabito gained the title of Water Hashira. He never forgot the boy he fought alongside, the boy he practically dragged from the jaws of death. Giyu, his recovery slow but complete, returned to Sabito's side, his quiet loyalty an unyielding anchor. Sabito, in turn, kept Giyu close, Makomo, stayed near Urokodaki helping train more demon slayers. Years later, Sabito embarked on a perilous mission alongside Shinobu and Kanao, driven by urgent news of the lower moon demon, Rui. With determination burning in his heart, Sabito seized his mask, a symbol of his resolve, and he and Shinobu split their paths. In a moment of heroism, Sabito rescued a young boy adorned with a boar mask, a fleeting encounter that ignited his spirit before he pressed onward to confront Rui. To his surprise, he found Giyu already engaged in battle, a look of confusion etched on his face as he and Shinobu paused to exchange words, while Kanao pursued the boy and his demon sister, whom Giyu was valiantly protecting. Yet, the boy slipped away, leading them back to their Headquarters, where the Hashira Meeting unfolded in a tense atmosphere, deliberating the fate of his sister and Giyu. Suddenly, Master Kagaya Ubuyashiki emerged, shedding light on the boy's identity—Tanjiro, a warrior trained under the legendary Urokodaki and Makomo. The revelation struck like lightning: Tanjiro had single-handedly vanquished the lower moon Rui and bore the fabled Demon Slayer mark. In a unanimous decision, they welcomed him into their ranks, designating him as the Sun Hashira. And he aided them in the defeat of formidable demons like Akaza, Daki, Gyutaro, Hantengu, and Gyokko. Meanwhile, his demon sister Nezuko triumphed over the sun, reclaiming her human consciousness and voice, all while harnessing newfound abilities as a demon slayer. However, the shadow of Muzan loomed large, intent on hunting her down, igniting a fierce urgency within the Hashira to commence rigorous training. Sabito found himself beneath the thunderous cascade of a secluded waterfall training.