Chapter 13 — Blood Demon Art
A Blood Demon Art user…
Wounds inflicted by Wind Breathing, yet able to regenerate so quickly…
Asuka's grip on his blade tightened as he rapidly reassessed the threat before him.
According to Master Arasaki, beyond demons that had consumed many humans, there existed beings even more terrifying.
The Twelve Kizuki.
It was said that each of those twelve demons was monstrously powerful, their rank engraved within their eyes. Slaying even one of them was enough to earn the qualification to become a Hashira.
And Master Arasaki had warned him clearly—
If you ever encounter a member of the Twelve Kizuki…
Run. Immediately.
It sounded cowardly, perhaps—but in Arasaki's eyes, Asuka simply did not yet possess the strength to face such monsters. Knowing when to retreat was not shameful.
Was the demon before him one of the Twelve Kizuki?
The female demon flexed her newly regenerated arm, studying Asuka with open interest.
"A Wind user?" she smiled languidly. "You must taste wonderfully fresh."
As she spoke, her demeanor shifted. A thick layer of dark-red blood sludge began to spread across her body, clinging to her like viscous armor.
"My name is Akatsunuma," she said sweetly. "And you, little one?"
She began circling Asuka, droplets of sticky fluid falling from her body. Wherever they touched the ground, they spread rapidly, forming slick, contaminated patches—like a creeping fungal mat.
Asuka didn't answer.
Instead, he retreated step by step.
Instinct screamed at him: this demon wasn't trying to converse. She was laying a trap.
And she realized it the moment his movement betrayed his awareness.
Clicking her tongue in irritation, Akatsunuma let out a sharp howl and charged!
Using the expanding crimson sludge beneath her feet, her body glided forward as if skating across water, closing the distance at an unnatural speed!
At the same time, her arms whipped outward—dozens of needle-thin blood arrows blasting forth in a dense barrage, sealing off every possible avenue of escape!
"Wind Breathing, Second Form: Claws—Purifying Wind!"
Asuka struck instantly.
Four intersecting arcs of razor-sharp wind tore forward from his blade, shredding the frontmost blood arrows and scattering most of the encircling attack.
But the barrage was too dense.
Several stray blood needles grazed his left arm and right leg.
Hiss—!
A searing pain followed by numbness shot through his limbs. He felt a portion of his strength being siphoned away, his movements faltering.
Poison…?
His heart sank.
"Fast reactions," Akatsunuma laughed softly, her voice chillingly devoid of warmth.
"But that was only the appetizer."
"Blood Demon Art: Crimson Mire Swamp!"
Instead of striking Asuka directly, she slammed both hands into the ground!
Woooong—!
The dark-red sludge surged violently, swelling as if alive. In an instant, its reach expanded by dozens of meters, swallowing most of the stream bank!
Asuka's entire surrounding terrain was engulfed by Akatsunuma's Blood Demon Art.
The crimson fungal mat writhed like a living mire, its surface pulsing with a powerful suction that yanked at Asuka's ankles—some tendrils even creeping upward, threatening to latch onto his body itself!
His legs suddenly felt unbearably heavy, as if he'd stepped straight into a swamp. His movements slowed, dulled by the dragging force—and combined with the lingering paralysis from earlier, his body grew clumsy and unresponsive.
Slash!
Akatsunuma's demonic claws tore through the air. Asuka barely evaded, twisting aside and preparing to counter—
—but her figure blurred like a specter.
Within the domain of the blood-soaked mat, she grew increasingly agile, flickering from point to point, darting in and out of his reach. Time and again she lunged at the hampered Asuka, carving fresh wounds into his body.
"Well?" she laughed mockingly. "Can your wind even catch me?"
Her attacks were vicious and insidious—fast, precise, and backed by claws sharp enough to rend stone. For Asuka, merely defending himself was already a strain; finding a clean opening to counterattack was nearly impossible.
Every time he tried to gather power for a decisive Wind Breathing form, one of two things happened:
Either Akatsunuma slipped away at blistering speed—
—or the ground beneath his feet suddenly intensified its pull, or a wickedly angled blood spike interrupted him mid-motion.
Whoosh!
He finally found an opening and unleashed a heavy, full-powered Wind Breathing slash—
—but it still failed to hit the rapidly gliding Akatsunuma.
This won't work. I can't let her control the pace.
"Third Form—Modified: Rolling Veil Surge!"
If the original Clear Storm, Wind Tree was the mountain wind rolling beneath a clear sky—
then what Asuka invoked now was the act of scooping that churning mist up in one sweep, sending it billowing outward in endless waves!
Emerald sword-light roared forth.
The wind blades that normally spiraled upward reversed their trajectory, flattening low and scything horizontally across the ground in a wide, sweeping gale!
Slash! Slash!
The sword-wind spread rapidly. The fungal mat beneath Asuka was ripped up in sheets, collapsing and disintegrating like paper thrown into fire—or fire swallowed by a flood!
Akatsunuma's expression changed.
She hadn't expected such a swift response.
Her Blood Demon Art wasn't meant to overwhelm through raw power. Its true strength lay in the terrain—using the domain to boost her speed and kill Demon Slayers before they could adapt.
Now, with a wide stretch of the blood mire torn apart and her advantage stripped away, her gaze hardened.
"What a troublesome brat," she sneered. "Don't you want to dance with me?"
Before Asuka could fully stabilize his breathing—still unsettled after the altered form—
the demon was already upon him.
Enough. No more dragging this out.
Akatsunuma gathered her blood into her right arm, condensing it until it resembled a crimson blade, then swept it violently toward him—
—and at the same instant, Asuka yanked free the strap across his chest and barked:
"…Fang Thrust!"
BOOM—! SPLASH!
An impossibly fast strike.
So fast that even Akatsunuma—who prided herself on speed—failed to react.
With a dull, penetrating impact, her body was blasted backward. She spun midair, flipped, and staggered as she landed.
Her eyes widened in disbelief.
A horrifying, gaping hole had been punched straight through her chest.
Opposite her, the boy stood panting—dual-wielding blades.
The one in his left hand… she hadn't seen before. It must have been the sword he'd kept strapped to his back—
But then what was happening to her wound?
She felt it—something gnawing, tearing, chewing at the injury. Its regeneration slowed to a crawl.
Wind Breathing damage?
The Nichirin blade's effect?
No… that shouldn't—
Asuka silently sheathed the old sword Master Arasaki had given him, adjusted his breathing, and tightened his grip on Bakudatsu.
Compared to the borrowed blade, this "broken sword" felt far more attuned to him—responding effortlessly, turning one measure of force into three.
"Hey! You over there—are you okay?!"
Just as Asuka settled back into stance, preparing to press the attack—
three figures burst from the forest on the opposite side of the road, cutting through the trees at full speed!
The one in front was tall and powerfully built, clad in a dark uniform marked with the character [Destroy], a blue-green Nichirin blade flashing in his hand as he shouted toward Asuka.
At the same time, he spotted Akatsunuma in the distance.
All three faces changed instantly.
"Found her! The major demon responsible for the thirty-five killings upstream!"