"Oi... Mukago, was it?"
Kuguruma Natsunishi did not rush forward to engage in a life-or-death struggle immediately. Instead, he looked at the system panel floating above her head and spoke as if confirming information.
"Do you remember ever fighting a mixed-race swordsman? A woman who used Thunder Breathing, quite tall."
The demon blinked, momentarily stunned.
How does he know my name?
Though slightly confused, she grinned, revealing sharp fangs. "Eh? So many swordsmen have died by my hands, how could I remember every single one?"
"What, do you remember every slice of bread you've ever eaten?"
Kuguruma Natsunishi didn't get angry. He raised 'Sandai Kangshifu' (Master Kang the Third) and settled into a standard kendo stance.
"Well, she didn't actually die... but true, I can't expect you monsters to store much in those heads of yours."
His tone gradually turned cold.
"So, use your body to feel and remember what comes next."
A player's memory is often poor. They tend to watch cutscenes with a passing glance or skip the plot entirely. But sometimes, it's quite good. As long as a story touches their heart, even if they have to reload a save dozens of times, they will strive to fulfill a promise made to a character.
At this moment, Kuguruma Natsunishi had naturally not forgotten his promise. Using her swordsmanship and her techniques, he would let this demon taste the true meaning of human malice.
Mukago sensed an aura from Kuguruma Natsunishi that was distinct from a Hashira but equally dangerous, along with a malice in his eyes so thick it had nearly solidified.
"Don't look down on me!"
Massive vines lashed out toward the youth. Kuguruma Natsunishi had already lowered his center of gravity, dropping into a stance far lower than a normal Iai, his face nearly touching the ground.
So, feel the thunder...
[Thunder Breathing]
[First Form: Thunderclap and Flash]
A faint golden afterimage transformed into a straight spear, violently piercing through several vines! In the instant sap sprayed, he had already closed the distance to Mukago's front.
So fast!
But compared to that four-eyed monster just now, he's still a bit green!
The demon was startled, then immediately used both her hands and her vines to shield herself.
Crack!
The thunderous light, slightly slowed by the continuous destruction of obstacles, ultimately failed to completely pierce Mukago. The Nichirin Sword bit deep into the purplish-black vines wrapped around her arms. They were harder than expected.
"Tch."
Kuguruma Natsunishi withdrew his blade and retreated rapidly. The moment he backed away, the vines in front of him suddenly exploded outward. Like a massive man-eating flower lined with sharp teeth, it tried to swallow Kuguruma Natsunishi whole.
Sword light erupted like lightning, exploding against the vines in succession. The plant's skin was so tough that sparks flew upon contact with Kuguruma Natsunishi's Nichirin Sword. Using the reactionary force traveling up the blade, Kuguruma Natsunishi widened the distance once more.
But the demon's vines did not intend to let Kuguruma Natsunishi go so easily. The gaping maw split into over a dozen snake-like tendrils, chasing after him like shadows clinging to bone.
What met them were five intersecting flashes of lightning.
[Second Form: Rice Spirit]
While shattering the vines, the lightning also obscured Kuguruma Natsunishi's figure.
"Where is he?!"
Mukago's pupils constricted as she tried to track Kuguruma Natsunishi. The vibrations from the vines and spores told her first.
Behind!
Through the vibrations in the air and ground, her Blood Demon Art captured the figure of the swordsman who had already lunged behind her. She struggled to turn, but the opponent's footwork and blade were faster. Just as she summoned her vines for defense, lightning-like strikes poured down from all directions.
[Third Form: Thunder Swarm]
These were strikes from a Nichirin Sword swung from various angles while maintaining high-speed movement. The power of each strike was not as great as the previous two forms, but they made up for it with dense frequency, perfect timing, and tricky angles.
In an instant, a massive amount of blood mist erupted from the demon's relatively tender skin and limbs. The strikes were nearly finished by the time her Blood Demon Art vines managed to catch up.
She couldn't help but roar, "You bastard!"
"It's not like you feel pain anyway," Kuguruma Natsunishi said calmly, his blade momentum rising again the moment he landed. "What are you getting worked up for?"
Mukago: "?"
Who said it doesn't hurt to get hacked? Since when did the Twelve Demon Moons stop feeling pain?!
[Fourth Form: Distant Thunder]
Without pause, the youth transitioned into the next form upon landing. The lightning strikes chased her closely, the impact forcing Mukago back repeatedly.
The demon, relying on her immortality and realizing the strikes weren't hitting her neck, abandoned her defense. She swung her arms wide. Two wooden giant hands—smaller than the ones crushed by the Storm Hashira earlier but more condensed—burst from the ground, clapping toward Kuguruma Natsunishi from both sides!
Though their size was far inferior to the world-blotting ones from before, their strength still far exceeded common vines. Kuguruma Natsunishi was too close to evade. Thus, he simply tilted his blade upward, and lightning exploded from the bottom up.
[Fifth Form: Heat Lightning]
The surging lightning shattered the giant vine hand on the left, but a remaining section of the wooden hand on the right still slammed down heavily. Kuguruma Natsunishi could only bring his sword across to parry.
Bang!
A massive force surged through him, sending Kuguruma Natsunishi sliding back three meters, his feet carving two shallow furrows into the ground. His hands gripping the sword went numb, and Kuguruma Natsunishi felt as though the webbing between his thumbs and index fingers was about to split.
As expected of a Lower Moon.
With a physical attribute near 300, it was higher than all three of his stats combined. Even a slight collision could lead to an instant collapse. He thought of the many action games he had played before. The player could only chip away at a boss's health through constant rolling and parrying, while a single slap from the boss could often drain most of the player's HP.
It was a familiar recipe. Kuguruma Natsunishi smiled.
Mukago, naturally not understanding Kuguruma Natsunishi's thoughts, shrieked, "It's not over yet!"
The remaining half of the giant hand pressed down on Kuguruma Natsunishi again. However, it wasn't a direct hit; instead, it shattered about two meters away from Kuguruma Natsunishi, transforming into a massive spray of vine splinters that flew toward the swordsman.
Kuguruma Natsunishi was just as fast. With a rapid whirl of his blade, he wove a gapless barrier out of lightning. He slashed away almost every incoming fragment. Still, one or two "fish that escaped the net" grazed his body. The Demon Slayer uniform, claimed to be made of special materials, offered no defense and was instantly pierced and torn.
Though he barely managed to avoid a direct hit through his footwork at the last second and didn't bleed, the skin grazed by the fragments swelled up rapidly, sending waves of intensifying itching and stinging through him.
It felt a bit like the irritation after cutting mountain yams, but far more intense. The toxicity was much higher than the spores on those ordinary people... even Shinobu's previous suppressant was having trouble fully neutralizing it.
Facing the smiling Mukago ahead, Kuguruma Natsunishi's expression remained unchanged as he calmly executed the next sword technique.
[Sixth Form: Rumble and Flashing]
Pushing Thunder Breathing to its limit, the Nichirin Sword unleashed countless crisscrossing lightning strikes, tearing a gap in the vine net before the demon. He broke through, lightning wrapping around his entire body as he crashed into Mukago like an actual bolt of falling thunder.
His momentum undiminished, the final segment of the Sixth Form nearly sliced her in two! Mukago was sent flying with a scream, slamming heavily into the ruins.
Kuguruma Natsunishi also stopped, breathing slightly. Because of the toxin... did that strike go slightly off-target?
"Big Radish! I'll get the antidote for you immediately." Beside them, Shinobu was rummaging through her medical kit, urgently extracting toxins from the surrounding vines to concoct a new medicine.
Mukago, who had fallen and was struggling to stand, glared upon hearing this and wanted to attack Shinobu. However, after spotting Igarashi beside her, she could only grit her teeth and pretend she hadn't heard, turning her gaze back to Kuguruma Natsunishi.
"I know! Thunder Breathing only has six forms, right?"
"You've used all six, and you've been poisoned..."
Seeing that the Storm Hashira and Shinobu were not intervening, she stood up shakily and pressed her hands together again.
"And I can still regenerate! This battle is..."
Her words stopped abruptly. She saw the swordsman opposite her switch his grip on the Nichirin Sword to a single hand. Then, with his other hand, he slowly drew a second blade from his waist.
The blade reflected the lingering lightning, glowing so intensely it looked like noodles that had soaked up every drop of broth. It was Tong-Yi Maru.
"The Thunder Breathing passed down by the Demon Slayer Corps and Nikaido indeed has only six forms."
With one hand, he raised Sandai Kangshi to a high position, angling it over his shoulder. With the other, he tilted Tong-Yi Maru forward, the blade pointing directly at Mukago.
"But now, this is my Thunder Breathing."
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