Shinobu blocked Giyū's path, creating a fairly subtle situation for a moment.
"Shinobu…" Giyū looked at her with a furrowed brow. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Shinobu shot him a radiant smile. "Covering Marcus-kun's retreat~"
Giyū stayed quiet for a few seconds.
"This constitutes a violation of the Corps' rules."
"I know."
"And you're still doing it?"
"Yes!" Shinobu nodded decisively. "Because I think what he's saying makes sense."
"..."
"By the way, Tomioka, you're his senpai, aren't you? If you dig your heels in this much, aren't you afraid your two little siblings will hate you? And that… your master will too?"
"My master would never hate me."
Shinobu narrowed her eyes. "Then… you don't care what your little siblings think?"
Giyū stayed silent.
"Shinobu."
"... Huh?"
"The one who's going to end up hated is you."
Shinobu's smile froze.
"... What?"
"I said," Giyū stressed, spacing out each word, "the-one-who's-going-to-end-up-hated-is-you."
A vein popped on Shinobu's temple, but she kept her smile on. "Tomioka-san, what are you talking about?"
"I'm telling the truth." He replied without flinching. "Being a Hashira, you're violating the Corps' rules by protecting a demon. That's what's going to make everyone hate you."
"..."
Shinobu's smile was still there, but her fingers tightened around the hilt.
"Tomioka, right about now I have a tremendous urge to slice you into little pieces."
"You already are."
"..."
As for Marcus, he didn't take the chance to clear out.
He stayed right where he was, watching the scene with a grin from ear to ear.
"Marcus," Tanjiro whispered to him, "shouldn't we get going already?"
Marcus shook his head.
"Why?" Tanjiro was bewildered. "Isn't the lady covering for us?"
"There are three reasons." Marcus held up three fingers.
Nodding, Tanjiro sharpened his ears.
"First." He lowered one finger. "Letting a woman defend me isn't my style."
Tanjiro nodded. That reason was very much like Marcus.
"Second." He lowered the second finger. "The truth is I was planning on heading to headquarters to see Kagaya Ubuyashiki. Since there's no point in hiding it anymore, sooner or later the cards had to be laid on the table."
Tanjiro nodded again; that reason had plenty of logic to it.
"And as for the third…"
Marcus lowered the last finger, a smile tugging at his lips.
"..."
Tanjiro waited, but nothing else came.
"And the third?"
Marcus chuckled under his breath and said nothing.
However, his eyes drifted toward… Shinobu's firm ass.
Tanjiro followed his gaze.
And then his face darkened.
"NOT THIS SHIT AGAIN!!"
"Don't yell, moron!" Marcus clapped a hand over his mouth. "Keep it to yourself!"
Tanjiro struggled, letting out muffled sounds, his gaze loaded with "desperation."
She's a Hashira!
After silencing him, Marcus drew his sword and immediately a pink mist began spilling out around him, denser than ever.
"Breath of Desire, Fourth Form…"
He took a deep breath.
"Mist."
The instant he spoke the word, the haze burst out violently and blanketed the entire clearing.
But this time it was very different from his clash with Rui. No longer were there just a dozen or so afterimages — there were… Dozens!
From within the mist, countless pink silhouettes emerged, packed tightly against one another. Every one of them radiated a real presence, every one of them gripped a sword, each in a different stance.
But none of them threw themselves into an attack. They stood still, forming a silent circle around the clearing.
Shinobu and Giyū stopped at the same time.
"What is this…?" Shinobu blinked, a flash of surprise in her eyes.
Giyū didn't open his mouth, but his brow furrowed slightly.
Then the figures came to life.
Not all at the same time, but in staggered waves. Some leapt, others dove down, some charged in a straight line and others came around the flanks…
But all of them fell on Giyū at once!
And the real Marcus was hidden among them.
This was the true essence of [Mist]
It wasn't simply about creating illusions to confuse the enemy and slip away: it was about camouflaging the real body among the figures and, under the cover of their feints and distractions, waiting for the precise instant to strike.
"First Form: Water Surface Slash."
A blue flash appeared and three figures shattered in response, instantly dissolving into a trail of pink mist.
But another five figures lunged at him.
"Second Form: Water Wheel."
After dodging three and destroying two, Giyū stared at his sword for an instant.
"This feeling… are they all illusions?"
When the next wave came, he let one through on purpose and raised his sword to block it, wanting to confirm his suspicion.
And to his surprise, the figure, which in theory should have dispersed upon contact, slammed hard against his blade and, before he could counterattack, pulled back in an instant.
Giyū got it right away: the idea was to hide the Real Marcus among the fakes and coordinate the attack from inside.
Impressive…
A flash of admiration crossed his eyes, followed by something darker… a shadow of inferiority.
'After all… I'm not really cut out to be a Hashira, am I?'
He swung his sword once more.
'Master taught me the Breath of Water, and the Breath of Water is the only thing I know how to use. After so many years, I've barely made any progress…'
Another figure disintegrated.
'The only form I've created, the Eleventh, is nothing more than an ordinary defensive technique.'
'I'm not like Shinobu, who was able to develop her own Breath. Nor like Marcus…'
He gazed at the pink silhouettes surrounding him on every side.
'… capable of creating his own Breathing Technique, and on top of that, such a unique ability.'
'Someone like that… truly deserves to carry the title of Hashira.'
That thought left him with a strange sense of emptiness.
'A shame that he chose that Breath of Desire instead of the Breath of Water.'
But then he remembered something.
'Although… it doesn't really matter all that much either.'
His gaze landed on Tanjiro, who was watching the battle nervously from a distance.
'He didn't learn the Breath of Water, but Tanjiro did. He's got plenty of talent, and in a few years… he'll be able to take my place without any problem.'
'And then I'll be able to go back to being a regular slayer.'
'I'll find a quiet corner to live in, just take orders, and dedicate myself to hunting demons in peace.'
'…That doesn't sound bad at all.'
Right at that moment, a pink figure shot swiftly behind him and landed a kick square on his lower back.
"Just what the hell are you thinking about?!"
Snapping back to his senses, Giyū spun around and swung his sword.
But the figure had already vanished, leaving only a taunting laugh floating in the air.
Marcus was happy. Extremely happy!
Just a moment ago, Giyū had him against the ropes, attacking him without letting up, forcing him to do nothing but defend himself. It had been unbearable!
But now the tables had turned, and he could finally blow off some steam to his heart's content.
His figure slipped through the mist. Sometimes he'd pop up on the left to land a blow, other times on the right to deliver a kick, and every so often he'd drop down from above to crack him with the sword.
Always with the flat of the blade.
He wasn't trying to hurt him.
He just wanted to piss him off.
And as the seconds ticked by, Giyū's face grew darker and darker. Though his expression barely changed, the air around him turned noticeably colder.
And that only made Marcus even happier.
Though Giyū wasn't his only target.
There was someone else.
His eyes landed on Shinobu, who was watching the battle from the sidelines.
"Hehe."
Laughing perversely, Marcus vanished into the mist.
_____
Did you guys like the chapter? Marcus is finally gonna lay all his cards on the table with Ubuyashiki!
If you enjoyed it, FLOOD this with POWER STONES! 💎⚡
If we hit a good amount of stones TODAY, I'll drop ANOTHER CHAPTER later today. It's up to you guys! 🔥
Thanks for reading!