Seeing the demon mercilessly slash at the child with a cruel strike, Taniguchi Takeshi rushed toward Kanao almost without hesitation.
A wind surged at that moment. As a practitioner of Wind Breathing, Taniguchi Takeshi was extremely fast. In almost an instant, he arrived in front of Kanao and reached out his hand, intending to pull her away to avoid the demon's vicious strike from behind.
"Get down."
The demon's cold voice suddenly rang out.
Taniguchi Takeshi felt a bit puzzled, but his movement to rescue the child did not slow—instead, it became even faster.
However, just as his hand was about to grab the girl and pull Kanao back quickly, he grabbed nothing but air.
Only then did he suddenly realize that the moment the demon said "Get down," the child had immediately dropped to the ground. Without any hesitation, she had obeyed the demon's command.
Because of this, he failed to catch her.
Instinctively, he looked up.
Only then did he realize that he was now less than half a body-length away from the demon. He could clearly see the killing intent flashing in the demon's crimson eyes.
A sense of danger flashed through his mind. Without hesitation, he tried to retreat—
But to his horror, he discovered that the blade that had seemed aimed at the child was now slashing toward him.
"Die!"
With the demon's low roar, the blade came down on him mercilessly.
So fast!
His mind blanked for an instant, and almost instinctively he raised his sword to block.
The demon's blade, powered by a fully charged strike, carried tremendous force. When it struck his Nichirin sword, that immense power instantly traveled through the blade and into his hands.
Practitioners of Wind Breathing were already slightly weaker in terms of raw strength. Now facing a demon's fully powered attack, the force passing through the sword instantly made Taniguchi Takeshi unable to hold it steady.
His hands trembled violently. His body lost balance, and he staggered backward.
At that moment, the demon withdrew his blade and lowered his body again.
"Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu: Ryutsui-sen (Dragon Hammer Flash)."
Holding the sword with both hands, the demon, crouched low, suddenly leapt upward.
Swish!
The blade pierced up through Taniguchi Takeshi's chin and burst out through the top of his head. Red and white liquid flowed along the sword and dripped down onto Taniguchi Takeshi's hair.
"Ghh… ghh…"
Taniguchi Takeshi tried to scream in pain, but with the blade piercing through his chin, his mouth could neither close nor open any further.
Only a gurgling sound came from his throat as it convulsed, accompanied by blood bubbling in his mouth.
The scene looked extremely cold-blooded and brutal.
Soma pulled out the Nichirin Sword without hesitation.
Taniguchi Takeshi stretched out both hands, trying to grab him, but his arms lost strength halfway.
His entire body instantly collapsed to the ground.
Thud.
Taniguchi Takeshi's body slammed onto the ground. The battle ended in a single instant.
His corpse lay there, his lifeless eyes staring blankly ahead.
And in front of him, Kanao was still lying on the ground. Her pink-purple eyes happened to meet Taniguchi Takeshi's lifeless gaze.
The girl's beautiful pink-purple eyes froze for a moment.
Having cut down the Demon Slayer, Soma immediately scooped up Kanao and sprinted into the distance without a backward glance.
Cradled in her uncle's arms, her small body jolting with the rhythm of his frantic pace, the girl rested her head on his shoulder. She stared distantly at the figure lying on the ground... the man who no longer moved.
...
Soma ran silently.
There was no joy in his heart from killing his enemy.
Instead, he felt a heavy oppression.
Comparing himself to the Demon Slayer swordsman who had just died, and thinking about the despicable method he had used moments ago…
Admittedly, if they had fought fairly one-on-one, the opponent might not necessarily have been his match.
But with the speed of Wind Breathing, it would not have been so easy to kill him.
There might even have been a chance for him to escape.
The opponent clearly knew that choosing to rescue the child would slow him down.
He knew that doing so would put himself in great danger.
Yet he still chose to do it—risking his life just to save the child.
And Soma…
had chosen to use Kanao as bait.
Using the life of a child as bait.
Admittedly, even if that Demon Slayer swordsman had not gone to rescue her, Soma would not have actually cut her down.
But compared to the other man's nobility, his own actions seemed so despicable.
Only…
the noble one had already fallen.
And the despicable one…
was still standing.
Soma ran in silence. The image of the corpse lying on the ground kept replaying in his mind. The blood staining his hands made the hand gripping the Nichirin sword feel as if it had been shocked by electricity.
"I don't want… to die."
Thinking of the look in the man's eyes before death, he slowly clenched his fist.
"I just don't want to die. That's all."
He raised his head and looked at the dark sky, murmuring softly:
"I just don't want to die, so…"
"So…"
"It can only be… you who dies."
If he hadn't killed the man, and had allowed him to continue delaying him until his companions arrived, then once he was surrounded by a Demon Slayer squad, he would certainly die.
Whether the method was righteous or despicable…
Staying alive was the most important thing.
...
Torches hissed and sputtered, the fat in the wood popping with sharp cracks. The flickering orange light danced across their faces like a dying breath, casting deep, erratic shadows.
Furukawa Hiroshi and the group of Demon Slayer swordsmen finally caught up.
But all they saw was Taniguchi Takeshi's body lying on the ground.
Everyone fell silent.
For the Demon Slayer Corps—whose duty is to protect humanity and eliminate demons—death was something very common. Every swordsman who joined had already prepared themselves to die on this path.
Yet every time they saw the death of a companion, they still felt anger.
Still felt pain.
Today, another member of their squad had left them.
Just the day before, they had been chatting and laughing together. They had even talked about relaxing together after completing this mission.
They had also planned to accompany their captain to meet the Flame Hashira, and have a meal together.
Taniguchi Takeshi admired the Flame Hashira the most.
He had even said that when he met the Flame Hashira, he wanted him to write some words on his uniform.
He had already chosen what those words would be: "Destroy All Evil Demons."
But before that day could arrive…
Taniguchi Takeshi had already left them.
Compared to everyone else's grief and anger, their squad captain, Furukawa Hiroshi, felt even deeper guilt and pain.
If not for his negligence…
perhaps Taniguchi Takeshi would not have died.
At that moment, Furukawa Hiroshi's hand holding the sword trembled violently. His eyes were filled with endless sorrow as he almost knelt to the ground.
Tears silently streamed down his cheeks.
He slowly drew his Nichirin Sword and cut a wound on his hand.
Bright red blood dripped beside the corpse.
Furukawa Hiroshi said nothing.
But the killing intent in his eyes had already become almost tangible.
The other swordsmen also silently cut their arms with their Nichirin Swords.
Blood dripped down.
Each of them raised one hand holding their Nichirin swords, while with the other hand they let their blood fall in front of their fallen companion.
The fire burned.
The flickering light illuminated their faces.
Reflected in their eyes…
were cold, fierce gazes.
Like…
wolves.
...
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