Looking at the two humanoid Manjushiro standing before him, Kokushibo fell silent.
Even after taking human form, the two creatures were dressed like samurai.
More importantly
Each of them wielded a Nichirin Blade.
The sight was absurd.
These creatures had not only evolved intelligence, but had somehow retained the swordsmanship of the Demon Slayers they had once parasitized.
The moment Kokushibo sensed the familiarity of their stances, he understood.
Before becoming Manjushiro, these two had likely infested members of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Through that process, they had inherited both memories and combat instincts.
An unsettling evolution.
One of the swordsmen stepped forward.
The blue Nichirin Blade in his hand reflected the moonlight.
"You are the leader of these demons."
His gaze was cold and unwavering.
"Once you're dead, the rest will fall apart."
The second swordsman raised a green Nichirin Blade.
His expression remained equally indifferent.
"We only need your head."
Kokushibo stared at them for a moment.
Then he sighed inwardly.
These creatures had misunderstood something.
He was not the true mastermind behind this conflict.
The real enemy remained hidden deep beneath the mountain.
Unfortunately, explaining that would be pointless.
Slowly, Kokushibo rested a hand on the hilt of his flesh-forged blade.
A faint smile appeared.
"I am Kokushibo."
His six eyes calmly observed them.
"And whom do I have the pleasure of facing?"
The two creatures exchanged a glance before slightly lowering their heads.
The gesture perfectly imitated human etiquette.
"My name is Kutenmoku."
"And I am Fujiyuki."
The instant the introductions ended
Kokushibo drew his sword.
SHING!
A crescent-shaped flash tore through the battlefield.
There was no warning.
No hesitation.
No concern for honor.
Against dangerous opponents, Kokushibo had never believed in unnecessary restraint.
Moon Breathing, First Form: Dark Moon, Evening Palace.
The slash erupted forward.
Countless crescent blades followed behind it.
The attack crossed dozens of meters in an instant.
Yet both opponents reacted.
Blue and green blades rose simultaneously.
BOOM!
The impact shattered the earth beneath their feet.
Dust exploded into the air.
For the first time, Kokushibo's eyes narrowed slightly.
They had blocked it.
Not evaded.
Not redirected.
Blocked.
These two Manjushiro were clearly different from the others.
Their power far exceeded ordinary evolved specimens.
Only then did Kokushibo become genuinely interested.
Without another word, he stepped forward.
The battle intensified immediately.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, Doma had already secured complete control of his own fight.
The cockroach-like Manjushiro facing him possessed impressive vitality.
Unfortunately for it, vitality alone meant very little against Doma.
The creature specialized in close-quarters combat.
Doma did not.
Every time the Manjushiro approached, freezing winds and ice lotuses forced it backward.
Every attempt to close the distance ended in failure.
To Doma, defeating it was less a battle and more a form of entertainment.
The Upper Moon casually sidestepped another attack.
His rainbow-colored eyes wandered toward the rest of the battlefield.
The Gyutaro siblings were still fighting enthusiastically.
Daki's obi and Gyutaro's poisonous Blood Demon Art perfectly complemented one another.
Neither appeared to need assistance.
Then Doma looked toward Gyokko and Hantengu.
His smile twitched.
"Goodness."
The battlefield around them had become complete chaos.
Gigantic summoned fish.
Monstrous octopuses.
Countless grotesque creations.
Meanwhile, Hantengu's emotional clones attacked from every direction.
Even Doma found the scene somewhat excessive.
"Those two certainly know how to overwhelm an opponent."
The thought of joining that battle immediately bored him.
Instead, he shifted his attention elsewhere.
Toward Akaza.
Toward Kokushibo.
Akaza was clearly enjoying himself too much to accept help.
That left only one battlefield.
The one occupied by Kokushibo.
Doma tilted his head.
"Perhaps I should lend Lord Kokushibo a hand?"
Just as the thought arose
A familiar presence appeared within his vision.
Muzan's authority flowed through the connection between demons.
Instantly, Doma straightened.
"Muzan-sama!"
His expression brightened.
Like a child seeking praise, he immediately tried to present the results of his battle.
Unfortunately, Muzan had no interest in his performance.
Her attention was fixed elsewhere.
On Kokushibo.
"Observe him."
The command was simple.
Doma blinked.
Then he obediently complied.
Far away, within the Infinity Castle, Muzan watched the battle unfold through the eyes of her subordinates.
Her gaze remained fixed upon Kokushibo.
The two evolved Manjushiro were clearly incapable of defeating him.
That much was obvious.
Yet watching him struggle
Even slightly
Filled her with an inexplicable sense of satisfaction.
Recently, Kokushibo had become increasingly difficult to understand.
His behavior had grown strange.
His emotions had become unstable.
At times, he even forgot the boundaries that should exist between them.
The memory of his hand resting upon her waist resurfaced.
Muzan's eye twitched.
A faint smirk appeared.
"Serves him right."
For once, she was content to watch him suffer a little.
Nearby, Nakime silently observed her master's expression.
After a moment, she lowered her gaze.
A quiet sigh escaped her lips.
Muzan herself seemed completely unaware of how much attention she devoted to Kokushibo.
Yet Nakime noticed.
And that realization made her strangely concerned.
Back on the battlefield, Kokushibo's sword flashed repeatedly.
The pressure he exerted forced both Kutenmoku and Fujiyuki backward.
The ground around them collapsed under the force of the attacks.
Moon Breathing, Seventh Form: Mirror of Misfortune, Moonlit Reflection.
A vast barrage of slashes erupted outward.
The battlefield fractured.
Kutenmoku leaped away.
Fujiyuki crossed blades defensively.
Even so, both were forced backward.
Kutenmoku's expression darkened.
"What a crude demon."
He still remembered Kokushibo's opening strike.
Without warning.
Without courtesy.
Without restraint.
To him, it felt dishonorable.
Tightening his grip on the sword, he rushed forward.
Blood Demon Art: Invisible Blade.
The instant their swords collided
A bloody wound appeared across Kokushibo's shoulder.
Kokushibo's eyes narrowed.
He had not seen the attack.
With a powerful swing, he forced Kutenmoku backward and immediately created distance.
Yet Fujiyuki had already arrived.
Blood Demon Art: Mountain Burden.
Their blades clashed.
At first, nothing happened.
Then Kokushibo felt it.
His body had become heavier.
Not physically
But as though an invisible force were pressing down upon him.
Fujiyuki attacked relentlessly.
Each clash increased the pressure.
Each strike made movement slightly slower.
The accumulated effect became increasingly dangerous.
Kokushibo quickly retreated.
His six eyes sharpened.
Then
He activated the Transparent World.
The battlefield instantly changed.
Muscles.
Blood flow.
Organs.
Everything became visible.
Within the heads of both swordsmen, he finally saw the truth.
The true Manjushiro bodies hidden beneath their human forms.
So that was their weakness.
Kokushibo tightened his grip.
His flesh-forged blade extended.
Additional edges and protrusions grew from the sword's surface.
The monstrous weapon transformed once more.
His killing intent surged.
"Your abilities are troublesome."
The air itself trembled.
"But that is all."
The sword descended.
Moon Breathing, Sixteenth Form: Moonbow, Half Moon.
A storm of crescent slashes erupted across the battlefield.
The attack spread over an enormous area.
Hundreds of razor-sharp crescent blades descended from every direction.
The earth was annihilated.
Nearby Manjushiro creatures were instantly reduced to fragments.
Even those merely caught in the outskirts of the attack were torn apart.
Kutenmoku and Fujiyuki avoided the deadliest strikes.
Even so
Blood sprayed from their bodies.
Cuts appeared across their chests.
Their arms.
Their legs.
For the first time since the battle began, both were wounded simultaneously.
Kutenmoku's expression grew serious.
Their combined strength rivaled multiple Hashira.
Their Blood Demon Arts worked together perfectly.
Yet despite all of that
Kokushibo still did not appear pressured.
At most, he seemed mildly inconvenienced.
The realization sent a chill through him.
Slowly, he looked toward the other battlefields.
If they continued alone…
Victory seemed increasingly impossible.
And for the first time, the evolved Manjushiro wondered whether even their newest evolution would be enough to stand against the monster known as Upper Moon One.
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