I Became a Demon Sword and Traveled the Anime Worlds Chapter 77 77: Promoted to Hashira!

"Tanjirou slew Upper Moon Four with his own hands, while the rest of you worked together to gravely wound Upper Moon Three."

Kagaya Ubuyashiki's voice was gentle, but every word carried a weight that made the courtyard fall silent.

"For a hundred years, the Upper Moons have remained unchanged. For a hundred years, the Demon Slayer Corps has struggled beneath that shadow. But now, that balance has finally been broken."

His pale face held a warmth that could calm even a battlefield.

"And this victory belongs to all of you."

Tanjirou knelt below the veranda with his head lowered. Beside him, Zenitsu and Inosuke were also kneeling, though both looked distinctly uncomfortable in such a formal gathering.

Zenitsu's eyes kept darting left and right, as if afraid one wrong breath would get him executed by the gathered Hashira. Inosuke, on the other hand, was trying very hard to look dignified beneath his boar mask, but his fingers were already twitching like he wanted to challenge soone.

Kagaya looked at them with clear approval.

Then his gaze shifted to the Hashira present.

His expression beca solemn.

"It may be sowhat late, but I must announce it here and now."

The courtyard beca even quieter.

"Kamado Tanjirou will be promoted to the rank of Hashira."

No one objected.

Not Sanemi Shinazugawa, who stood with his arms crossed and a fierce scowl on his face.

Not Kyojuro Rengoku, whose remaining eye burned with open pride.

Not Shinobu Kocho, who wore her usual soft smile, though her gaze lingered on Tanjirou with a trace of complicated warmth.

The others, too, remained silent.

There was no need to debate it.

Tanjirou had killed Upper Moon Four.

If a swordsman who accomplished that could not be called a Hashira, then the title itself would lose aning.

For Tanjirou, this promotion was rely the na finally catching up with the truth.

Kagaya smiled.

"Tanjirou, from this day onward, I hope you will beco a pillar of strength for the Demon Slayer Corps. A Hashira who protects people with everything in his heart."

Tanjirou raised his head.

His eyes were steady.

"I will."

The answer was simple, but there was no hesitation in it.

Beside him, Zenitsu looked as if his soul had floated halfway out of his body.

A Hashira?

Tanjirou had beco a Hashira?

They had joined the Demon Slayer Corps around the sa ti, had they not? They had trained together, fought together, nearly died together, and sohow Tanjirou had suddenly skipped several dozen steps and beco one of the strongest swordsn in the Corps.

Zenitsu's face stiffened.

Life was unfair.

No, worse than unfair.

Life was bullying him personally.

Inosuke, anwhile, stared at Tanjirou for a long mont before muttering, "So that ans he's above now?"

Zenitsu whispered back, "That's what becoming a Hashira ans, you idiot."

Inosuke's head snapped toward him. "Who are you calling an idiot?! I'll beco sothing even bigger than a Hashira!"

Zenitsu imdiately hissed, "Can you not start a fight during a Hashira eting?!"

Kagaya, as if he had not heard them, continued with a faint smile.

"Then we must decide on a title suited to you."

Tanjirou paused.

A title.

The Hashira were nad according to their Breathing Styles. Fla Hashira, Wind Hashira, Stone Hashira, Insect Hashira.

Then what should he be?

He used Water Breathing. He also used Hinokami Kagura, which was connected to Sun Breathing. And more than that, Asuramaru's power was now inseparable from his swordsmanship.

For a mont, Tanjirou fell into thought.

"Asuramaru," he asked silently, "what Hashira title do you think suits ? I use Hinokami Kagura, or rather, Sun Breathing, but I also still use Water Breathing..."

Inside the sword, Asuramaru considered it briefly.

"You might as well be called the Sun Hashira."

His tone was casual, but the answer was firm.

"Hinokami Kagura is already tied to Sun Breathing. And more importantly, you want to stand against Muzan. Nothing suits you better than the sun."

Tanjirou's gaze cleared.

He looked up toward Kagaya.

"Master, I have decided."

Kagaya's smile deepened. "Then let us hear it."

"My title will be the Sun Hashira."

Tanjirou's voice echoed through the courtyard.

"I want to beco a sun that burns away the darkness and protects everything precious to ."

For a mont, no one spoke.

Even Sanemi's scowl eased slightly.

Kyojuro Rengoku laughed, bright and powerful.

"A splendid title!"

Shinobu lowered her eyes, the corners of her lips lifting.

Kagaya nodded gently.

"I believe you will beco exactly that."

From that mont on, the Demon Slayer Corps gained a new Hashira.

The Sun Hashira, Kamado Tanjirou.

Once the eting ended, the Kasugai Crows would carry the news across the country.

The boy who had carried a demon sister on his back.

The boy once placed on trial before the Hashira.

The boy who had fought beside a mysterious sword nad Asuramaru.

He was now one of the pillars supporting the Demon Slayer Corps.

Kagaya then turned toward Zenitsu and Inosuke.

"As for Agatsuma Zenitsu and Hashibira Inosuke, in light of your performance during this mission, your ranks will also be promoted to Kanoe."

Zenitsu imdiately bowed so deeply his forehead nearly struck the ground.

"Thank you very much, Master!"

Inosuke, however, froze.

"Only Kanoe?!"

Zenitsu nearly choked.

"Don't say 'only' in front of the Master!"

"But Tanjirou beca a Hashira!"

"That's because he killed Upper Moon Four!"

"Then I'll kill Upper Moon Three next ti!"

"Please don't announce your death wish in public!"

The courtyard, which had been solemn a mont ago, suddenly regained a strange sense of life.

Tanjirou smiled helplessly.

Even after surviving a battle against two Upper Moons, those two were still the sa.

Perhaps that was a good thing.

After the eting dispersed, Tanjirou rested at headquarters for a single day.

Only one day.

Then, at Asuramaru's suggestion, he prepared to set out again.

Before leaving, however, he visited Kagaya's residence.

The afternoon light fell softly across the veranda. Tanjirou knelt before the Master, his posture respectful.

"Master, I would like to choose my next mission myself."

Kagaya did not appear surprised.

"Of course."

He had already promised Tanjirou a certain degree of freedom in choosing missions. Previously, headquarters had assigned his movents carefully, both to coordinate with the Corps and to avoid Muzan's attention.

Now, the situation had changed.

Muzan had already been alerted.

And Tanjirou was no longer a boy who needed to be hidden like a fragile spark.

He was a fla that had begun to burn.

At Kagaya's instruction, attendants brought over the intelligence gathered during this period and placed it before Tanjirou.

It was a thick stack of papers.

Each sheet recorded an incident.

Disappearances.

Deaths.

Rumors of monsters in the night.

Demon sightings that could not yet be confird.

Failed investigations.

Missing Corps mbers.

Tanjirou's fingers tightened slightly.

There were so many.

Too many.

Every sheet was a life crying for help.

Every report was proof that sowhere, soone was suffering.

He took a slow breath and began flipping through them.

"Asuramaru," he asked silently, "which one should we choose?"

Asuramaru answered without rcy.

"Keep flipping. Don't stop."

Tanjirou obeyed.

One sheet after another passed through his hands.

A mountain village.

A fishing town.

A rchant road.

A shrine where travelers vanished.

A remote inn with rumors of laughter at midnight.

He kept going.

Only after more than half the stack had been turned over did Asuramaru finally speak.

"Stop."

Tanjirou's fingers halted.

The report in his hand was brief.

Far too brief.

[Tokyo. Yoshiwara, Entertainnt District.]

[Geishas have frequently gone missing. Several dispatched mbers of the Corps have also disappeared. A powerful demon is suspected to be hiding in the area.]

That was all.

No confird appearance.

No clear pattern.

No reliable description.

Only disappearances and silence.

But that was exactly why the report was dangerous.

Inside the sword, Asuramaru's interest sharpened.

Yoshiwara.

The Entertainnt District.

If things followed the original course, Upper Moon Six should be hiding there.

Gyutaro and Daki.

Compared to the monsters Tanjirou had just fought, Upper Moon Six was no longer an opponent that could threaten him in the sa way. With Tanjirou's current strength, going there would be less of a battle and more of an execution.

More importantly, Muzan would not expect it.

He had just lost Hantengu and nearly lost Akaza. His attention would be tense, cautious, focused on protecting the remaining Upper Moons and figuring out Asuramaru's nature.

That made this the best ti to strike first.

Tanjirou looked down at the report.

"This is it," Asuramaru said.

Tanjirou lifted his head and presented the paper with both hands.

"Master, I choose this mission."

Kagaya's expression shifted slightly.

He recognized that report.

He had read it more than ten tis.

The mbers sent to investigate had either returned empty-handed or vanished altogether. There was almost certainly a demon in Yoshiwara, and not an ordinary one.

He had originally planned to send a Hashira to investigate.

Now Tanjirou had chosen it himself.

After a brief silence, Kagaya nodded.

"I understand."

His voice remained gentle, but his tone beca serious.

"I have also reviewed this intelligence. The demon hiding there is troubleso. Very troubleso. Since you have chosen this mission, I will not stop you."

Tanjirou listened quietly.

"But I hope you will allow Sanemi to continue accompanying you. In addition, you may take a few more mbers with you."

That was nearly an explicit instruction.

Tanjirou smiled.

"I understand, Master."

After leaving the residence, Tanjirou returned to the Butterfly Mansion.

By then, the sun had already set.

Night covered the estate, and the courtyard lamps glowed softly beneath the eaves. As he passed through the yard, he heard the sharp sound of movent.

Zenitsu and Inosuke were still training.

Both of them were drenched in sweat.

Zenitsu's breathing was steadier than before, though his legs trembled with exhaustion. Inosuke was swinging his dual Nichirin Blades with wild force, each movent rough but powerful.

Neither of them noticed Tanjirou's arrival.

For a while, Tanjirou simply watched.

He understood.

They wanted to grow stronger.

After seeing the gap between themselves and the Upper Moons, after standing helplessly before monsters who could crush ordinary swordsn like insects, how could they remain content?

Tanjirou stepped forward.

"Zenitsu."

Zenitsu jolted so violently he nearly tripped.

"Tanjirou?! Don't appear so quietly! My heart almost stopped!"

Tanjirou smiled apologetically.

"Sorry. But Zenitsu, you're already able to maintain Total Concentration Breathing very well. From now on, you should focus more on your sword techniques."

At that, Zenitsu's face collapsed.

"My sword techniques? What sword techniques? I only know the First Form! Thunder Breathing has six forms, and I only know one! One! Do you understand how tragic that is?!"

Tanjirou tilted his head.

"But Zenitsu, can't you create your own techniques?"

Zenitsu froze.

Tanjirou continued calmly, "The Sixfold and Eightfold forms you used before, were those not also extensions of Thunder Breathing's First Form?"

Zenitsu's mouth opened.

Then closed.

Then opened again.

Sothing seed to click inside his head.

He had always thought of himself as soone who could only do one thing.

But what if that one thing could be sharpened further?

What if one form, refined to its limit, could beco many possibilities?

His expression changed.

For once, he did not scream.

He tightened his hand around his sword hilt and fell into thought.

Inosuke imdiately puffed out his chest.

"Hah! I created my own Breathing Style from the start! That ans I'm better than you!"

Zenitsu snapped back to reality and pointed at him.

"So what?! Haven't you heard that focusing everything on one point can reach the peak?!"

"What peak? I'll smash the peak!"

"That doesn't even make sense!"

"It makes sense because I said it!"

"You can't just bully logic like that!"

The two began arguing again in the courtyard, their voices rising with every exchange.

Tanjirou tried to step between them.

"Calm down, both of you. Training is important, but fighting like this won't help."

"It helps !" Inosuke barked.

"It only helps you be annoying!" Zenitsu shouted back.

Inside the sword, Asuramaru watched the scene in silence.

.....

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