The sword, wreathed in fierce flas, carved through the air.
Every spiderweb in its path burned away. The fire swallowed the threads in an instant, and by the ti Rui realized what had happened, the flaming edge was already at his neck.
At this distance, there was no room to dodge.
No ti to weave another web.
No chance to resist.
The sword swept through Rui's body, and brilliant flas burst outward.
His head flew into the air.
For one brief mont, Tanjirou thought it was over.
Then Alex's voice rang through his mind.
"He cut off his own neck with spider silk before your sword reached him. He's playing dead."
Tanjirou did not hesitate.
"I understand."
His eyes locked onto Rui's severed head as it spun through the air. He stepped forward, flas still roaring along Asuramaru, and slashed several tis in rapid succession.
Rui's head did not even have the chance to speak.
It was cut apart completely, scattering into pieces before it hit the ground.
This ti, Rui was truly dead.
His head and body began to crumble, turning into ash beneath the moonlight.
The remaining three demons froze.
Rui was dead.
Against four mbers of the Twelve Kizuki, this Demon Slayer had still managed to kill one of them.
Rui's strength had not been weaker than theirs. If Tanjirou could kill him, then the sa fate could be waiting for them.
Among the three, Mukago was the first to waver.
The mont fear rose in her heart, the urge to run nearly overwheld her.
But before she could move, Muzan's voice sank into her mind like ice.
"I am watching you."
Mukago's entire body stiffened.
"If you dare to run, you will die at once. Kill that Demon Slayer, and I will forgive you."
His voice was soft, but it carried the weight of a death sentence.
Tears welled in Mukago's eyes. Her breathing grew ragged, and she began apologizing again and again.
"I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I'm truly sorry. I'll kill him. I'll kill that Demon Slayer for you. Please forgive …"
Muzan's killing intent did not fade.
If he did not still need her to hunt Tanjirou, he would have killed her already. That was his usual way.
But even as he watched, a deeper confusion gnawed at him.
What exactly is this boy?
Every ti they t, Tanjirou beca stronger.
Every ti he was pushed into a corner, his strength surged beyond all reason.
Once could be luck.
Twice could be coincidence.
But if it kept happening, then there was only one possibility.
He was hiding his true strength.
Was this all bait?
Was he trying to lure out?
The thought sent a chill through Muzan's heart.
Yet he could not be certain. It might still be a bluff. He did not want to risk himself, but neither did he want to retreat into hiding for another hundred years.
That contradiction almost drove him mad.
Back on Mount Natagumo, Rokuro and Wakuraba also understood their situation.
There was no retreat.
If they ran, Muzan would kill them.
If they stayed and fought, there was still a sliver of hope.
The three demons exchanged glances. Fear remained, but so did desperation.
And desperate demons were the most dangerous kind.
Tanjirou's Demonization was almost at its limit.
But he could not back down.
Both sides moved with the sa intent.
Kill the enemy first.
The battle erupted again beneath the forest canopy.
Elsewhere on the mountain, Inosuke and Zenitsu were fighting their own battles.
The mont Rui died, the demons connected to him lost the portion of power he had granted them.
The burly Spider Demon facing Inosuke suddenly shrank, its massive body deflating until it was nearly half its forr size.
The other Spider Demon was no better.
Inosuke paused, both swords in hand, his boar mask tilting in confusion.
"Huh? Why'd you suddenly shrink? We were fighting just fine! Is this so kind of special move?"
He stared for a mont.
Then, naturally, he gave up on thinking.
"Whatever! I'll cut you down anyway!"
With a wild laugh, Inosuke charged.
The Spider Demon turned and fled.
"Hey! Stop running!" Inosuke roared, sprinting after it. "Let chop you up! Hahahaha!"
The Spider Demon ran faster.
Not far away, the Spider Demon facing Zenitsu was more intelligent. Once it realized Rui's power had vanished, it understood imdiately.
So that one is dead.
It glanced down at the unconscious Zenitsu and sneered.
"Looks like I can't stay here either. Lucky for , this Demon Slayer is weak. I'll kill him, then escape."
The words had barely left its mouth when Zenitsu, who had been lying unconscious monts ago, suddenly stood up.
His eyes remained closed.
His posture changed.
One hand rested on his sword hilt. His breathing deepened, steady and powerful, cutting through the night.
The Spider Demon stared.
"What's wrong with this guy?"
It opened its mouth and spat a stream of venom.
Just before the venom struck, Zenitsu's body shifted.
He dodged with startling speed, sliding to the side as his knees bent low.
"Thunder Breathing."
A faint arc of electricity flickered around his sword.
"First Form."
All strength gathered into a single point.
"Thunderclap and Flash."
In the next instant, Zenitsu vanished.
Lightning flashed through the trees.
His figure ricocheted between trunks, so fast the Spider Demon could not follow his movents.
By the ti it sensed danger, it was already too late.
Zenitsu appeared behind it.
His sword slid back into its sheath.
The Spider Demon's head flew from its body.
A mont later, Zenitsu woke up.
He blinked, looked around, then saw the demon crumbling behind him.
His face twisted in horror.
"Ahhh?! What happened?! Why is this thing dead?!"
Soon after, Inosuke finished off his own opponent and ca rushing over.
The two reunited and imdiately went to find Tanjirou.
anwhile, Tanjirou's battle had reached its breaking point.
After several minutes of fighting three demons at once, his body finally hit its limit. The Demonization faded, and the strange markings receded from his face.
The three demons across from him were injured.
Mukago had lost an arm and could not regenerate it. Rokuro's body was covered in sword wounds. Wakuraba's movents were no longer as smooth as before.
Tanjirou, by contrast, looked almost uninjured.
But that was only because Alex had been healing him.
His flesh could be restored.
His mind could not.
Tanjirou's consciousness was fraying. His eyelids felt impossibly heavy. Every breath dragged through his lungs like fire.
The demons saw it.
Hope returned to their faces.
"Now!" Mukago hissed, hatred and terror twisting together in her voice. "Kill him now!"
Rokuro narrowed his eyes.
"Careful. He might be waiting for us to rush in. Rember what happened before."
Wakuraba, who had once lived by the instincts of a ninja, saw it most clearly.
"No rush," he said. "He's exhausted. He could collapse at any mont. We attack after he falls."
The three demons kept their distance, watching.
Muzan, observing from afar, trembled with excitent.
This feeling again.
It was the sa as when Kamanue had nearly killed him.
So close.
So close.
Like watching a powerful enemy finally reach the last sliver of life.
Tanjirou's vision blurred.
Even so, his hands did not release Asuramaru.
I can't fall yet…
The thought had barely ford before his consciousness sank.
The world around him faded.
When he opened his eyes again, he stood at the boundary between heaven and sea.
The endless surface stretched beneath his feet, reflecting the sky above. There, before him, stood Alex in Asuramaru's form, smiling at him with an expression almost gentle.
"You've done enough, Tanjirou."
Alex extended a hand.
"Now, hand your body over to ."
Tanjirou looked at him.
Then he smiled.
Not with fear.
Not with hesitation.
But with complete trust.
"Then I'm counting on you, Asuramaru."
His consciousness fell into slumber.
Outside, Tanjirou's body, which had been swaying on the edge of collapse, suddenly stilled.
His eyes had been closed.
Now they opened.
But the gaze within them was no longer Tanjirou's.
A pair of blood-red pupils stared out from his face.
The air around him changed.
The three demons froze, confused by the sudden shift.
Muzan, however, understood.
The true monster had awakened.
…..
Check out my newly released fanfic:
One Piece: My Crew Is Full of Monsters
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