Chapitre 68: Chapter 68: Final Fight Part 4
-General POV-
Everyone felt it. Everyone heard it. It didn't matter who they were, from demons to Demon Slayers, all had sensed the overwhelming hate and malice radiating for just a single, chilling moment. Demons froze in their tracks, giving some of the stronger Demon Slayers the chance to break through the oppressive feeling and land fatal blows. For many of the Demon Slayers though, it was a looming despair, like a Shinigami's grip tightening on their hearts, ready to claim their lives.
Then it stopped, leaving only silence. Moments later, a shockwave so powerful it rippled through the place, tripping anyone unable to keep their footing. Encased in a cocoon of his own creation, Muzan trembled slightly before refocusing his efforts, determined to finish what he'd started.
At the epicenter, barely anything remained, just a few structures teetering on the edge of collapse. On a massive pillar stood two figures. After a tense moment, one of them slipped, his upper body sliding from his lower half, and fell to the ground.
-Ryou POV-
'Holy shit.' I thought as I took in the sheer destruction the technique had unleashed. My gaze shifted to Kokushibo, who now lay split in half from the torso down. My right arm, the one that had held Muramasa, was in shreds, the pressure apparently too much for my veins to withstand. I gritted my teeth, grabbing my arm with my left. 'At least nothing's broken. Just... pressure overload.'
Looking over at Kokushibo, I heard him cough, his voice faint as he whispered my name. I walked to him and knelt down as he began to fade. "What are your final words, Kokushibo?" I asked. He tiredly turned to me, murmuring as his lower body started to disintegrate. "I wanted to be like him... my little brother."
Sighing, I sat down and placed his head on my lap, humming a tune softly. "I was so jealous of him." he continued. "blessed by the gods while I... was not." More of him vanished with each word. "I abandoned everything. Home, family, my humanity... I was ready to kill my own descendant." Tears started flowing from three of his eyes. "Why couldn't I leave anything behind? Why can't I become... anyone known?" His arms were now beginning to fade. "Why was I even born?"
I stopped humming, looking down at him. "Everyone is forgotten, eventually." I said. "One day, I'll be forgotten. But I think that just means a new generation has come along, no longer needing those before. And as for why you were born…" I glanced up at the ceiling. "I can't say. But maybe your brother would know."
He chuckled softly, his torso nearly gone. "You make it sound as if I'll see him... but we both know I'll go to hell... I'll see you there, Ryou." With that, he was gone.
'I'll remember you for as long as I live, Kokushibo.' I brought my hands together, holding the Buddha pendant between them as I closed my eyes. 'Please, guide this lost soul, Buddha.' I smirked as I felt the pendant's warmth. I stood up, retrieving Muramasa from the ground. I looked down at my bloodied arm while frowning. 'I won't be able to use that attack again for a while.'
A shockwave of killing intent erupted nearby. 'What the hell did Muzan just do?' Tamayo had said he was at a little over half his strength after the poison and explosion, but now he felt even stronger. 'Did he somehow eliminate the poison?'
Just then, a crow with a talisman on its neck flew toward me, perching on my outstretched arm. "Sasaki-san! Follow me! Muzan killing Demon Slayers!" I nodded, watching it take off, following as it guided me higher into the place with occasional bursts of Shundō. After a few minutes, I asked. "What are the casualties among the Hashira?" I worried that the Hashira might not have survived. The crow responded. "None! All alive!" I widened my eyes briefly, then allowed a small smirk. 'So, my gamble paid off.'
I recalled during the training that the Hashira were trying to and did get something called a Demon Slayer Mark, a power that greatly enhanced a Slayer's abilities, yet bound them to die at 25. I'd found a way around this curse, using Amaterasu's blessing to bestow a portion of it upon the Hashira. The markings they bore had shrunk, but the strength it gave didn't alter.
As I neared Muzan's intensifying aura, I rounded a corner to see the crow's head sliced clean off. My gaze shifted to Muzan. His formerly pristine appearance was now monstrous. His hair had turned white, lengthening to his back, and his arms and legs were lined with mouths full of sharp teeth. A dark red mass covered his lower body, arms, and part of his forehead, contrasting sharply with his pale skin. His smile widened as he saw me. "Ryou, so good to see you."
He held his arms wide, slowly advancing as I assumed an Iaido stance. 'Is he high?' I shook my head focusing back. 'Not taking any chances.' He cocked his head, his eyes narrowing. "Soul-Rending Flash: Twilight Requiem." Light and a touch of my lifeforce were drawn into Muramasa as I unleashed the strike, cutting Muzan cleanly in half at the waist.
He looked down at the black line across his midsection, tilting his head before glancing back at me with a smirk. "That's it?" 'Healed the moment the damage was done. Damn.'
'I'll have to keep him occupied until the others find a way to deal with his regeneration or if I can slow it down.' I thought, gripping Muramasa tightly as I used Shundō to reappear directly in front of Muzan.
I charged Muramasa with a surge of cursed magic and released it right in Muzan's face blowing it apart, only to watch as it regenerated faster than I could blink. Muzan's grin twisted, his arms morphing into deadly whips that lashed out toward me. I dodged back, channeling cursed magic into the soles of my feet to enhance my Shundō, allowing me to appear behind him in a flash. Using the momentum, I spun around and struck with Muramasa.
"Twice Over: Cursed Slash!"
Two powerful slashes flew toward Muzan. Without turning his body, he whipped his head around, grinning as the attack connected and sent him flying back. I was about to move when the pain in my side flared, sharper than before. I spat out blood, forcing myself forward as Muzan stood up, casually dusting himself off and advancing again.
Behind him, Mitsuri landed silently and launched an attack aimed at his head. Muzan tilted his head just enough to dodge, her whip-katana slicing through the empty air above him. The force of her swing carried her past him, and she quickly shifted her momentum to land beside me, looking in far better condition than I was.
Muzan's smile widened as he snapped his fingers, and a door materialized beside him, creaking open ominously.
Mitsuri and I both tensed as the figure of a demon stepped out, a small body trembling in its filthy grip.
In its grasp was Eri.
Her eyes were wide with terror, her body trembling. Blood drained from my face as Muzan, his gaze casually moving between her and me, mockingly held out his hand toward me.
"How about we make a deal, Ryou-chan?"
The handle of Muramasa cracked under the pressure of my grip.
Muzan laughed, the sound sharp and grating. "With that attitude, Ryou-chan, maybe I don't want to make a deal with you after all."
Time seemed to slow, each second dragging as I watched in horror. A twisted hand sprouted from the demon holding Eri, growing and extending with ruthless precision and speed until it drove through her chest.
A sickening silence followed, broken only by the thundering of my own heartbeat.
I watched as the light faded from her teary eyes, and with a mumble through the sickening silence, she spoke her last words. "Papa." Cursed magic exploded from me alongside bloodlust so dense and potent that Mitsuri was forced to stay away as it started eroding the surroundings. I turned to Muzan. "I'm going to fucking rip you in half."
He laughed in response.
L’AVIS DES CRÉATEURS 
MeatBeef
MeatBeef Remember that poll from chapter 58? It was about Eri, you all did this.
Have an awesome October! =D
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone