Disclaimer: Demon Slayer is not mine. This fanfic is a translation.
Enjoy Reading!
---
At the same time.
On the road, rushing to the town.
"Meow—" Chachamaru was clutched in someone's arms on the road as they hurried to the town, bouncing up and down with their running motions while displaying a look of complete feline sorrow.
'Why.'
Chachamaru's head hung down.
Tanjuro's fragrance came from the same direction that this enormous man was traveling.
Weakly, she raised her head; the face of the person holding her was reflected in her amber eyes.
"Namu..." Gyomei continued to walk while caressing Chachamaru in his arms. He was directly on his way to Giyu's position.
Sanemi and Obanai were the Hashira next to Giyu's station. Giyu had just sent a similar letter to every Hashira, not knowing how else to communicate.
Gyomei was a little late, but he could still make it! In his arms, Chachamaru had a dejected expression.
She had sprinted the entire distance in her escape, following Tanjuro's scent. She had unexpectedly failed to locate Tanjuro. Rather, she had first caught up with Gyomei.
As soon as the man and cat exchanged a startled look, he grabbed up Chachamaru and carried him along.
Gyomei's footsteps boomed through the streets, causing others to look up in surprise.
---
Boom!!
Dust and debris swept along the main road, creating a thunderous boom that echoed throughout the town.
Due to the shock, numerous residences on the street rapidly turned on their lights, and individuals began to emerge from their homes.
"What was that sound?"
"Was there an explosion somewhere?"
"That... What is that?!"
Someone, still drowsy, peered about before widening their eyes in fear, pointing a finger in one direction and shrieking.
The explosion left a trail of dust and roof tiles on the street, accompanied by a loud bang.
"One after another, like flies."
Akaza brushed aside the dust that lingered before him.
He tightened his fist; the control that had kept him from throwing a blow was now gone. This was already in the third person.
'It's not that this subordinate wants to fight, Muzan-sama.'
The long-suppressed yearning for a fight erupted, causing an involuntary smile to form on his lips. He lowered his head and rotated his wrist joint.
He had no choice.
He raised his head to look forward.
His expression changed abruptly to one of surprise.
"Hm?"
Akaza stood up in the whirling dust, his peach-pink short-sleeved shirt blowing in the wind and a peculiar expression on his pale blue face.
'What a weak fighting spirit...' His bright eyes reflected the moonlight, making them stand out in the obscurity. His peach-pink eyelashes trembled briefly. His gaze pierced the dust and looked ahead.
"...finally noticed me."
Tanjuro stood quietly on the roof across the street, his haori blowing in the breeze. He dropped his blade tip, shaking his head slightly with helplessness.
His own speed was faster than Kyojuro's, so he arrived here earlier to offer assistance.
But.
He first obstructed Akaza's route, attempting to halt him.
Perhaps because, due to the Transparent World, his own existence had become transparent. The charging Akaza had treated him like an ordinary rock. Ignoring him and simply going.
Tanjuro couldn't help but resume his pursuit after recovering from his surprise. He was left with no choice but to deactivate the Transparent World, purposefully revealing some of his presence, causing Akaza to notice him.
Tanjuro purposefully let Akaza discover him since he had his own ideas.
After seeing Kokushibo's change, aided by enough resurrection power, this concept gradually evolved in his mind. Tanjuro's eyes narrowed slightly.
Enticing an upper ranker to defect.
Defecting demons usually provided more substantial intelligence.
For example, consider the map Kokushibo donated or the knowledge Daki and Gyutaro revealed before their deaths.
Defecting demons might have unforeseen impacts later on.
Tanjuro planned because it would be beneficial if he could handle the risks involved in both luring an upper rank to defect and their subsequent actions.
If not, he would simply have to kill. And now, the Upper Rank with the most reasons to defect stood right in front of him.
Akaza observed Tanjuro.
A faint fighting spirit, thin as paper, clung to Tanjuro's surface, so fragile that the wind could blow it away. A person's fighting spirit demonstrated their strength.
And the fellow in front of him...
...was definitely weak at first glance.
Akaza looked warily at him for a moment before losing his fighting spirit.
"Tch... a demon slayer of this level..." He cast a sideways glance at the two others who were chasing him from a distance.
"Guess they're really underestimating me." Akaza's expression relaxed as he turned back.
"Might as well kill him." He muttered.
His eyes moved to Tanjuro's most susceptible area, which is typically the weakest part of a person's fighting spirit.
He stomped hard until his calves stiffened.
His whole body became an afterimage as he charged directly for Tanjuro, blazing across the air above the street!
Boom—whoosh!
The moment he got close to Tanjuro, Akaza's eyes were already on the tidy rows of streets and rooftops beyond him.
His mind was figuring out how to get past the demon slayers behind him and how to move on.
He didn't realize his own swinging fist had already missed.
Whoosh!
Tanjuro turned his head slightly, his pupils adjusting as he watched the fist pass past his cheek.
Kusabimaru was elevated beside his shoulder, its sharp blade contacting the muscles at Akaza's left arm joint.
He clenched his hand, applied pressure, and stabbed upward!
Blood spattered as the black sword traced its arc, severing Akaza's left arm clean from its base.
Snick!
"What?!"
From the depths of his whole being, a terrible dread erupted, suddenly engulfing Akaza's whole being!
Akaza's eyes dilated rapidly as warm blood splattered into his face, and he tilted his head in amazement to stare at his side. "Such a weak will to fight... yet why?"
Then he quickly leaped back in midair using his core strength. He landed close to Tanjuro's side on the same row of roofs.
Akaza stood up, held his bleeding left arm, raised his head, and gave Tanjuro a startled, unsure look. His left arm's severed end strained, and a new arm generated in its place.
He lifted his arm and gestured at Tanjuro. "You bastard..."
His pupils tightened as Akaza's voice abruptly caught in his throat.
Within his field of vision, Tanjuro flicked the blood off his blade and stood sideways, staring at him. His body's fighting spirit progressively vanished until it was completely gone.
He was in plain sight.
However, Akaza's Blood Demon Art—the Compass Needle—operated by detecting the fighting spirit of his opponent.
There was nothing at all ahead of him.
---
On the edge of the town.
"Caw..."
A kasugai crow with a string of beads on its head swooped down onto a branch, turning its head to look behind it with a heavy, serene tone.
"It's here."
Gyomei moved sideways in the direction of the wind and dust billowing from the street's falling houses.
"Remain where you are." His pale eyes stared at Chachamaru in his arms while he held the chain of his flail.
He calmly grabbed a rope off the ground and fastened the angry Chachamaru to the tree.
After giving her head a quick rub with his wide palm, he got up and started running at full speed in the direction of the source of the sounds.
Chachamaru stayed motionless for a moment, watching Gyomei's retreating form.
"Meow!!"
After Gyomei had totally disappeared from view, her cat paws struggled hard as she yanked her head back and shook it wildly.
Cats will never be enslaved!
---
The man was indeed standing there in Akaza's blurred perception.
His brows furrowed as he appeared briefly puzzled and unable to comprehend what he was seeing.
'How is this possible?' His hands clenched unconsciously as his pupils shrank quickly.
He saw nothing in front of him!
'That bastard's fighting spirit was gone!'
In hundreds of years, he had never seen a person with no fighting spirit.
Akaza's expression changed to one of amazement.
No, every living thing has a fighting spirit.
'But this guy...'
He would have assumed the person standing there was nothing more than a clay-like, inanimate object if his eyes hadn't been able to clearly see him!
Furthermore, he was utterly caught off guard when he made contact just now.
It was similar to a roadside tree.
Ordinary folks don't protect themselves from trees at the side of the road.
'This feeling... is a first.'
Akaza's eyes widened slowly, and he looked laterally behind him before turning back to Tanjuro.
As he saw the pitch-black sword in the other person's hand, an idea that he found difficult to accept began to take shape.
This feeling had been inside him all along.
The Supreme Realm!
He had been working toward that state for ages, but he had yet to achieve it. His eyes were hesitant when he gazed at Tanjuro.
"My name is Akaza, Upper Rank Two."
Akaza's expression changed from bewilderment to enthusiasm, and he adjusted his feet slightly to adopt the Destructive Death posture.
"I retract my statement. You appear quite interesting."
Boom!
He stomped down hard, the already empty woodshed completely collapsing, sawdust mixing with dust sweeping the street!
[]—Blood Demon Art!—[]
[]—Hakai Satsu – Rashin!—[]
Snowflake-like patterns spread from under Akaza's feet as a pale light sparkled within the dust.
Whoosh—
With a push of his feet, Akaza emerged from the dust and charged directly at Tanjuro, leaving a trail of white smoke in his wake!
His body leaped into the air with all of his might concentrated in his arms, his fists clenched and a smile on his lips.
His sense of battle spirit sharpened even more after the compass needle was fully engaged.
And Akaza was assured of this.
His fist was clenched, and an afterimage appeared next to Tanjuro, his upper body coiling slightly to collect strength.
Boom!
He threw a punch!
Missed!
Akaza straightened up in intense delight, his eyes brightening and a smile spreading across his face as the sensation of striking air emanated from his hand.
Tanjuro's figure had disappeared in front of him.
Akaza also had no way of knowing the other's position as there was no fighting spirit to follow.
"This is it!" He yelled as he looked about at the deserted, dark surroundings.
Akaza's hands were outstretched, and his eyes gleamed; the thrill of seeing the centuries-long chase firsthand pushed his feelings to a peak.
"The Supreme Realm! The State of Selflessness!"
His emotions were complicated just now.
There was the excitement of expectant expectation on the one hand and the discomfort of being outperformed by a human on the other.
"I see! I understand!" Akaza seemed to think of something; he looked around, extending a hand and shouting.
"It was you, wasn't it!"
"The one who killed Upper Rank One!"
"Using this state, you defeated that guy!"
If so, it implied Akaza's eyes were even more excited.
After reaching the Supreme Realm, he might be able to defeat Upper Rank One as well!
Yes, why couldn't he, currently Upper Rank Two, accomplish it if a human with barely a few decades of life could?
"Hey! What's your name?!"
"Become a demon!"
He was so overcome with emotion that he needed to shout from the bottom of his heart.
He clenched his fist and looked about with a lively expression, always on the lookout for Tanjuro to appear out of nowhere.
"That way, I won't have to hold back, I won't be injured, and I can battle to my heart's content!"
He might be able to understand and enter that dimension by battling this man!
He couldn't tell where the man was right now, but once he reached the Supreme Realm, he could.
He could forecast the other's motions based on similar sensations if they were in the same state!
"Instead of turning into a demon..."
Tanjuro emerged from the street and produced a tube of crystalline green liquid by reaching behind his back.
He glanced up at Akaza perched atop the roof. "Why don't you become human instead?"
"Huh? "What are you saying?"
With his hand on his chest and a snort of amusement, Akaza turned to face the street and declared, "I'm a demon."
"How am I going to become human?"
"Then there's nothing you can do about it." Tanjuro gave a sympathetic nod.
He tucked away the extracted medication. This was, after all, a valuable object.
The negotiation was unsuccessful.
Tanjuro was never very adept at convincing people, unless they were family members.
Click.
He placed his palm on Kusabimaru's hilt and moved back slowly until he was inside a building's shadow. He disappeared from the scene, turning into an afterimage.
Akaza grew vigilant and scanned his surroundings.
His eyes abruptly turned to a shadowy corner. "Over there?!"
Both fists clasped.
[]—Hakai Satsu – Kūshiki!—[]
Boom! Boom!
The force of his fist compressed two spurts of air so much that they rocketed like cannonballs toward the corner!
"Meow!"
Leaping out of the corner, a scared Chachamaru barely avoided the approaching air blasts. However, the pack on her back had a worse fate; a tube of pink liquid poured out when the strap abruptly snapped.
The glass vial broke on the floor with a sharp bang, revealing the liquid infused with cherry blossoms.
The liquid quickly turned into a thin layer of vapor.
Startled, Chachamaru sprang around wildly before scurrying back into a tiny alleyway.
"Just a cat, huh?"
Akaza scowled and looked away, a little perplexed.
"Hey! Is it any fun anymore to hide like this?"
"Come out and fight me!" he said, clenching his hands and tensing and straining his muscles as if he intended to let out a torrent of energy.
As soon as the final sound left his mouth.
RUMBLE—!
Everything around Akaza was instantly illuminated as golden lightning flashed across the sky and abruptly flared up behind him.
With his back to the blinding lightning, Akaza was momentarily stunned as he gazed at the now clearly defined shadow in front of him.
He turned his head in surprise to look behind him.