Deep within Mount Natagumo, the scent of ozone from the rampaging lightning still lingered on the scorched earth.
With the death of Lower Moon Five, Rui, the eerie aura of the Blood Demon Art permeating the entire mountain began to dissipate rapidly.
The Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen, who had been controlled by tough spider silk like marionettes and forced to kill each other, collapsed one after another, groaning in pain.
Shinobu took a deep breath as she looked at the remains of the demon not far away, which were turning completely into ashes.
"Since the Lower Moon has been dealt with by you, leave the rest of the cleanup to me." She turned to look at Yamada.
Although her tone still carried a hint of her habitual tsundere nature, her purple eyes were filled with a tenderness she hadn't even noticed.
Just as she was about to turn and check on the injured swordsmen, the corner of her eye caught a strange demonic aura in a hidden corner.
Buzz!
Her instincts as the Insect Hashira made Shinobu's gaze instantly become extremely sharp.
Behind a cluster of bushes not far away, a young girl with a bamboo muzzle in her mouth was shrinking timidly behind Tanjiro, who had just regained a bit of strength.
"Ara, it seems there's a fish that slipped through the net."
The smile on Shinobu's lips instantly turned icy cold, her fingertips already resting on her specially-made slender nichirin blade.
"And as a swordsman of the Demon Slayer Corps, you're actually harboring a demon?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Shinobu's figure had already crossed dozens of meters.
Insect Breathing, Butterfly Dance: Caprice!
The tip of the blade, coated with a high concentration of Wisteria Toxin, lunged mercilessly at Nezuko's neck with a tricky and lethal arc.
"Stop!"
Tanjiro shouted in shock, trying to raise his blade to block, but his severely overextended body couldn't keep up with Shinobu's speed at all.
However, at the very moment the lethal blade tip was less than three inches away from Nezuko—
Clang!
A cold blade, like a ripple of water, suddenly intervened, parrying Shinobu's thrust.
"Tomioka-san?"
Shinobu flipped lightly in mid-air and landed steadily.
She looked at Giyu, who stood in front of Tanjiro and Nezuko, her brow furrowing slightly.
"What is the meaning of this? As a Hashira, you're actually harboring a demon. Tomioka-san, your way of always acting on your own and being inflexible is why everyone dislikes you, you know."
Facing Shinobu's trademark poison-tongue, Giyu maintained his eternal poker face, not even changing his sword-holding posture.
"I am not disliked." Giyu retorted extremely seriously and stiffly.
Then he said in a low voice, "This demon is different. She doesn't eat humans."
"Doesn't eat humans? Do you think I'll believe such groundless nonsense?" The smile on Shinobu's face vanished, and her murderous intent surged once more.
Her hatred for demons was etched into her bones. Even though Yamada had helped her resolve her inner turmoil the previous night, her duty to kill demons could never be shaken.
It seemed an internal conflict between the two Hashira was about to erupt.
"Alright, put your swords away. You're being too noisy." A lazy voice interrupted their confrontation.
At some point, Yamada had strolled over leisurely.
He reached out his right hand and pressed it down on the back of Shinobu's slender nichirin blade.
"Yamada?" Shinobu was stunned for a moment.
"I'm protecting this demon."
Yamada tilted his head slightly, his dark eyes looking at Shinobu. "If I say she doesn't eat humans, she won't. If there's a problem, I'll cleave her and that stubborn kid together with one strike. Do you have any objections?"
Hearing Yamada's completely unreasonable declaration of protection, even Giyu on the side broke into a cold sweat.
With Shinobu's intense hatred for demons, such words would surely infuriate her.
However, a scene that left Giyu dumbfounded occurred.
Shinobu, whose blade was held down, didn't fly into a rage. Instead, she just bit her rosy lower lip.
She looked up at Yamada's calm yet oppressive profile, and the icy murderous aura that had permeated the surroundings miraculously dissipated.
"Since you, the Special Executive Officer, have said so... Hmph, then take them back to headquarters and let Master decide."
Shinobu sheathed her blade and gave Yamada a sidelong glance. "When the other hot-tempered guys cause trouble then, explain it yourself."
This double-standard attitude caused a look of great confusion to flash through Giyu's eyes.
Just a moment ago you looked ready to fight to the death, but you compromised with just one sentence from Yamada?
Yamada naturally withdrew his hand and waved toward the air. "Shinobu, have your people come out and clean up the mess."
Soon, the Kakushi unit quickly arrived at the scene and began to efficiently tend to the wounded.
Tanjiro and Nezuko, who was inside the wooden box, were also properly taken into custody, and the group set off on the journey back to the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters.
...
The next day, at noon.
At the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters, in the courtyard of the Ubuyashiki Estate.
The sunlight was extremely piercing.
"Hey, kid, wake up! Bow your head and kneel properly before the Hashira!"
Accompanied by the rough shaking of a Kakushi member, the tied-up Tanjiro opened his eyes.
His vision gradually cleared. He found himself kneeling on the familiar courtyard pebbles, and in front of him stood nine figures.
Besides Giyu and Shinobu, whom he had seen last night, there were seven strangers he had never met.
However, what felt strange to Tanjiro was that the expressions of several strangers didn't look very good.
Especially the guy with scars all over his face. Although he stood straight, his legs seemed to be shaking unnaturally.
"Is this the swordsman traveling with a demon? How unflamboyant. To harbor a demon within the sacred Demon Slayer Corps, let's just flamboyantly behead him along with the demon." Tengen said, touching the gems on his forehead.
"Protecting a demon as a swordsman is a violation of the corps' rules and shall not be tolerated! I agree with immediate execution!" Kyojuro seconded with great energy.
Obanai, perched on a tree branch, let out a cold laugh. "Not just him, Tomioka also harbored the demon. He should be made to commit seppuku to atone for his sins."
Listening to these high-and-mighty judgments, Tanjiro was anxious and struggled desperately to explain, "It's not like that! Nezuko has never eaten anyone, she's different from those demons!"
"Stop talking nonsense! A demon is a demon! Their bloodthirsty nature cannot be changed!"
Sanemi took a sudden step forward, holding the special wooden box containing Nezuko.
His bloodshot eyes were filled with extremely crazed violence. "I'll prove to you all right now just how disgusting the thing in this box is!"
With that, Sanemi suddenly unsheathed his nichirin blade and stabbed it fiercely into the wooden box.
"STOP!!!" Tanjiro's eyes nearly burst as he roared in despair.