He immediately suppressed this flicker of emotion, regaining his cold expression.
Muzan slammed his fist into the wall beside him!
Boom!
The thick wall cracked instantly, and gravel sprayed everywhere.
“Trash… a bunch of trash!!!”
His voice was twisted by extreme rage:
“One Lower Rank and over a hundred demons… and you can’t even handle two Hashira and a newly turned Demon Youth?!”
His blood-red eyes stared fixedly at the distant battlefield:
“Lower Rank Five, Baba-bi! Go support them immediately! Bring all your ‘children’!”
Muzan’s voice sounded as if it came from the deepest abyss:
“Kill them for me—kill that traitor, kill those two Hashira!”
“If you can’t do it…”
He paused, his voice full of cruelty:
“Then don’t bother coming back.”
Hida Village, the battlefield.
Just as Hanayuki Ichika’s “save yourself some trouble” remark left the demons confused—
“Hee hee hee… hee hee hee hee…”
A strange sound, like an old woman’s soft laughter, drifted from the darkness deep within the village.
The laughter drifted near and far, elusive, carrying a bone-chilling sense of gloom.
Immediately after, clusters of ghostly blue flames ignited out of thin air in the night sky.
The flames flickered and swayed; in the center of each, a twisted old woman’s face could vaguely be seen.
More and more flames appeared, dense and numerous, filling half the sky in the blink of an eye.
Under the illumination of the ghostly blue firelight, a hunched figure slowly walked out from the darkness.
It was a demon in the form of an old woman, wearing a worn-out kimono, with sparse, graying hair.
Her skin was dry like tree bark, her face covered in deep wrinkles, her eyes cloudy and dull, yet her mouth was curled into a strange arc.
Lower Rank Five, Baba-bi.
“Aburako… you really are pathetic…”
Baba-bi’s voice was hoarse and grating, like an old bellows:
“You can’t even handle a few little brats… and now I have to trouble that Lord to personally order me to help you…”
Aburako Oni’s expression was ugly, but he couldn’t care about face right now:
“Cut the crap! That white-haired traitor is strange! He can maintain his sanity completely and use power similar to a Breathing Style!”
Baba-bi’s cloudy eyes slowly turned toward Hanayuki Ichika, then swept over Kochou Shinobu and Kanroji Mitsuri:
“Two Hashira… one traitor…”
She grinned, revealing incomplete teeth:
“Perfect… my ‘children’ haven’t tasted the flesh and blood of a Hashira in a long time…”
She slowly raised her withered, thin hands.
The next second—
“Whoosh—”
The sky full of ghostly blue flames, as if receiving an order, lunged toward the three of them simultaneously!
Each cluster of flames twisted and deformed in the air, turning into hideous old women’s faces, emitting ear-piercing shrieks!
“Love Breathing, Third Form: Catlove Shower!”
Kanroji Mitsuri struck first, her soft sword turning into a pink curtain of rain, slicing through several clusters of flames.
But those sliced flames only paused slightly before reforming and continuing to lunge!
“Insect Breathing, Butterfly Dance: Compound Eye Hexagon!”
Kochou Shinobu’s figure was like a butterfly, her slender nichirin sword tracing six purple trajectories in the air, instantly piercing the core of six clusters of flames.
This time, the flames were completely extinguished.
But—
There were too many.
The ghostly blue flames surged endlessly, and what was more terrifying was that those flames seemed to have a life of their own, automatically dodging attacks and striking the three from tricky angles.
Meanwhile, Aburako Oni also grinned and waved his hand:
“Children! Kill them!”
Over a hundred villager demons lunged forward again like madmen!
The battle situation reversed instantly!
Although Kochou Shinobu and Kanroji Mitsuri were powerful, the enemy’s numbers were simply too great.
Plus, Mitsuri was already suffering from significant injuries, and now having to deal with both the flames and the horde of demons, their stamina was depleting rapidly. This chapter was taken from novelping . com without permission.
“Mitsuri, stand back!”
Kochou Shinobu stood in front of Mitsuri, dancing her nichirin sword into a purple curtain of light, forcing back a wave of flames and the demon horde.
But she herself was also slightly panting—continuously using a Breathing Style was also a huge burden on her body.
Baba-bi stood far away, emitting a gloomy laugh:
“Hee hee hee… the Hashira are nothing more than this… in front of my’Soul Fire’ and these children, how long can you hold out?”
Kochou Shinobu’s purple eyes scanned the battlefield, then looked at Kanroji Mitsuri beside her, whose breathing was ragged and whose face was pale.
Her gaze sharpened; she had already made a decision in her heart.
She quickly retreated half a step, moving closer to Hanayuki Ichika.
Her voice was kept extremely low yet was incredibly clear, carrying an unquestionable calmness:
“Ippū-san, please take Mitsuri and evacuate from here immediately.”
Hanayuki Ichika was stunned: “Kochou-san, you—”
“This is the best choice.”
Kochou Shinobu interrupted him, her gaze still vigilantly watching the demon horde and flames surging ahead, her profile appearing calm and determined under the ghostly blue firelight.
“Mitsuri’s injuries are not light; remaining here will put her in danger. I can still hold out for a while longer to buy you a chance to evacuate.”
Her tone was steady, as if she were stating a simple tactical arrangement, but the indifference deep in her eyes, which showed she had made her resolve, made Hanayuki Ichika’s heart tighten.
“No! How can I leave Kochou-san behind!”
Kanroji Mitsuri became agitated upon hearing this.
She forced herself to stand straight, gripping her nichirin sword, “I want to fight alongside Kochou-san until the end!”
“Mitsuri!”
Kochou Shinobu’s voice suddenly became a bit sterner, but then it turned into a soft sigh, carrying a gentle determination.
“Listen to me. Live on, and bring the intelligence from here back… this is also the responsibility of a Hashira.”
While speaking, several more clusters of flames lunged over.
Kochou Shinobu swung her blade to extinguish them, but her figure swayed imperceptibly.
Hanayuki Ichika looked at Kochou Shinobu’s back, then at the anxious Mitsuri, clenching his teeth.
He knew Kochou Shinobu was right; this was the most reasonable tactic under the current circumstances, but…
“Go quickly!”
Kochou Shinobu let out a low shout and faced the demon horde again.
Hanayuki Ichika hesitated no longer, a flash of determination in his eyes.
He suddenly reached out and hoisted the still-arguing Kanroji Mitsuri onto his shoulder!
“Eh?! I-Ichi Fu-kun?! Put me down! Kochou-san—!”
Mitsuri was caught off guard and struggled in panic, kicking her legs wildly, trying to break free.
The situation was critical.
Hanayuki Ichika steeled his heart, raised his free hand, and gave a firm, not-too-light, not-too-heavy smack onto her glutes, which were raised due to her struggling.
“Smack.”
A crisp sound.
Time seemed to freeze for a moment.
All of Kanroji Mitsuri’s movements suddenly froze.
Immediately after—
“Kya—!!!”
A short, extremely embarrassed shriek escaped her throat.
A visible crimson color instantly spread from her neck to the tips of her ears, and then to her entire face, as if it were about to drip blood.
Her head went “buzz,” and wisps of white steam actually rose from it; she was like a boiling kettle.
“Mmm… ah ah…”
She was incoherent, her mind blank.
A strong sense of shame and inexplicable panic swept over her like a tsunami.
Her body, which had been slightly weak due to the battle and injuries, was now instantly drenched in sweat due to extreme shyness and nervousness.
Fine beads of sweat quickly oozed from her forehead, neck, and back, even dampening parts of her clothes.
Her face was sweaty, and even the tips of her signature cherry-pink long hair seemed to stick to her flushed cheeks.
Like a boiled shrimp, she curled up on Hanayuki Ichika’s shoulder, completely losing the ability to resist.
Only her large, emerald-green eyes remained, widened round, filled with glistening moisture and unbelievable embarrassment.
“Pardon the rudeness, Mitsuri-san!”
Hanayuki Ichika said in a low voice, shadows surging under his feet, Breath of Darkness fully activated.
“But we must leave immediately! Trust in Kochou-san!”
“Trying to run?!”
Aburako Oni roared, and several demons lunged to intercept.
“Breath of Darkness, First Form: Night-Stepping Slash!”
Hanayuki Ichika slashed the air with one hand, and several pitch-black slashes swept out in a fan shape, forcing back the intercepting demons.
At the same time, he used the recoil to accelerate his retreat, and in the blink of an eye, he rushed out of the village and plunged into the mountains.
Half an hour later.
Five miles outside Hida Village, in a hidden cave.
Hanayuki Ichika gently set down the now-unconscious Kanroji Mitsuri.
Before leaving, he had already used a Kasugai Crow to send a message to the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters, and reinforcements would arrive soon.
Now…
He turned and looked in the direction of the village.
In the night, the ghostly blue firelight could still be vaguely seen in that direction.
Kochou Shinobu was still there.
Facing two Lower Ranks and over a hundred demons alone.
Hanayuki Ichika clenched his fists, his nails digging deep into his palms.
She said that was the responsibility of a Hashira.
She said she wanted him to take Mitsuri away.
She said…
she would hold out.
But the calm determination in her eyes clearly showed she was prepared to sacrifice herself.
He had said he would protect her.
Doing what he said was his Demon Way.
Even if he was still very weak right now.
Even if going back might mean certain death.
He still had to go back.
Because—
“If you want to hurt her, you must first step over my corpse.”
This sentence was not just talk.
Hanayuki Ichika took a deep breath and ran back toward the village with all his might!
Hida Village, the center of the battlefield.
Kochou Shinobu knelt on one knee, her nichirin sword stuck in the ground to support her body.
She was panting heavily, her purple haori severely damaged, with multiple burns and claw marks on her body.
Blood dripped down her arm, blooming into dark red flowers in the dust.
Around her were dozens of ghostly blue flames still burning, and more than twenty demons eyeing her covetously.
Aburako Oni and Baba-bi stood not far away, both with cruel smiles on their faces.
“Hee hee hee… Hashira-sama, can you still hold on?”
Baba-bi laughed hoarsely, “How does my’Soul Fire’ taste? Do you feel like your soul is burning?”
Aburako Oni licked his lips: “When you collapse from exhaustion, I will thoroughly enjoy your flesh and blood… the flesh and blood of a Hashira must be delicious…”
Kochou Shinobu slowly raised her head.
Her purple eyes were still clear, but deep within them, a hint of exhaustion had emerged.
She had truly reached her limit.
Continuous fighting, confronting two Lower Ranks and over a hundred demons, and having to deal with those strange flames…
Her physical strength and energy were both on the verge of exhaustion.
Even the hand holding the blade was trembling slightly.
Is it…
over?
Sister…
Kanao…
The children of the Butterfly Mansion…
And that handsome white-haired Demon Youth, Hanayuki Ichika, who often liked to tease her and had repeatedly risked his life to protect her…
“Goodbye…”
Kochou Shinobu slowly closed her eyes, preparing to face her impending fate…