Bab 75: Chapter 73: Seeing Behind The Mask.

For some personal reasons, I won't be releasing an episode until Sunday. See you until then.

There may be things that you do not understand in this chapter, I will explain slowly in other chapters and when the main character returns to this world.

If you see any mistakes, feel free to write. I'll fix it.

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Shinobu Kocho was a girl with an easy-to-understand, approachable if not friendly, bold, and outspoken personality. She has spoken openly and openly expressed what she has been thinking all her life.

This made her difficult to approach, but also easy. Low-level demon hunters and demon hunters of her level who were members of the Demon Slayer Corp could easily get close to her due to her outspoken personality.

However, frankness was like two sharp ends, and it was obvious if they did something that didn't please her, and under the pressure of her elder sister being a senior Demon Hunter, they were afraid to approach her.

Fortunately, her sister, Kanae, was a good-natured person, and whenever Shinobu argued with other Demon hunters, she intervened to end the fight and appease them by apologizing on her behalf.

Of course, this brought out Shinobu's anger and she was fighting with her older sister about why she was apologizing even though she was right. However, Kanae was Shinobu's natural enemy. No matter how angry she was, just a few moments of teasing was enough for Shinobu to soften.

It would be fair to say that her personality is an unchipped piece of wood.

But right now, that piece of wood was about to be brutally damaged by an axe. It wouldn't split her in two, but it would cause her irreversible damage. [EN: This ''her'', not wood, for Shinobu's personality]

"Please… I beg… someone… something, help us. God, even stone, sword, earth, ghost, spirit, Kanao or Kuro. '' She begged helplessly. Nothing else came to her mind.

She couldn't fight that man. Aside from not having the strength to fight him, Shinobu didn't have the courage to fight the man. It was the first time in her life that she was fighting such a powerful demon, and the overwhelming strength, speed, and elemental manipulation he displayed had shocked her, rendering her incapable of doing anything.

She wasn't even close to "that" level. She wasn't in a position to inject and use the poison element in her Insect Breath techniques, then what would she do? Will she swing her sword? Against someone who could control the ice, how could she cut it with her sword? [EN: What in this sentence will be revealed in the future.]

Even if she did, how long could she fight before she died at his hands?

All of this left Shinobu feeling helpless and extremely powerless. She was disgusted herself, it made her sick to be so weak. Being too scared to move even though her older sister was dying before her eyes...

If she were a copy of herself, she could beat her to death.

In such a situation, all she could do was pray desperately. She was even willing to have two younger siblings who had recently joined them rescued them. She didn't care how illogical, preposterous, or supernatural it was, all she wanted was for someone to come and save her sister.

"Where is here?" A muffled voice was heard in the desperate moment of the two girls. It was a penetrating and authoritative voice as if someone was speaking from behind multiple layers. It was also filled with the roars of lightning and the sounds of thunder that made one shudder.

The three people's opinions changed for a moment. The whitest color they had ever seen painted their eyes, and when their vision returned the next second, a new person had appeared.

This person had hair as long as a woman's but had body features and charisma that indicated he was a man. But the coarse beard on his face made it impossible to tell exactly how old he was.

But no one paid any attention to it. Shinobu, and the man who had been fighting them from the beginning, had their attention paid to the newcomer's hand.

The newcomer appeared in the middle of Kanae and the man who was trying to kill Kanae, as if he had come into being out of nothing, and effortlessly grasped the hand that was trying to rip Kanae's neck off.

The man's skin glowed in the moonlight. It wasn't because he was beautiful or perfect, but because of the lightning bolts that came out of his body. Small lightning bolts would shoot out from his skin and all over his body, whipping the air and scattering uncontrollably before returning to enter his body.

No lightning bolt could hurt the man. It disappeared into his body, and the next second a new piece of lightning arc shot out of his body. Instead of a human, he was like storm clouds that took the form of a human.

"Ermm… I wonder where you are exactly, for the special reason I can't see you." Kanae turned her head with an inappropriate, gentle smile. Considering the whole situation and nearly dying, her demeanor was completely opposite to the situation.

She turned her head around. Her vision was completely gone, never to return, she felt the veins in her eyes burst, so she could only turn her head to where the sound came from.

However, this was also very difficult. Blake's voice was so deep that it made it impossible to pinpoint her exact location.

"I'm right in front of you." Blake stopped her head with his finger and turned it towards him. Kanae's unconventional demeanor must have been strange to even the man, as he paused for a moment before speaking. Shinobu was sure that he was frowning.

"Oh, does that mean you saved my life? If so, thank you in advance." Kanae narrowed her red irises slightly and leaned forward. Seeing her intention, the man took the hand and pulled it back so that she would not be harmed.

'It does not matter. I've been traveling around for a while, but I haven't met any people. That's why I intervened in your particular situation. I'll ask again, where is here?" The owner of the hand with the sharp claws was struggling desperately to free his hand from the man.

However, the hand holding him held him so firmly that no matter how hard he tried to pull his hand back, he could not move his arm, as if it were fixed by a metal claw.

Should he get serious? Being handcuffed by someone, especially if his actions were forcibly prevented by one of the people he despised and despised, caused his disgust.

If he got serious, he could break free of the man's grip and kill them both.

However, she didn't want to use too much force for an ant.

"This is Fukushima, Makoto village. A village under the supervision of the Northern Hunter Squad, a sub-branch of the central Demon Slayer guild....' Kanae explained the village they were in detail.

The man's brows furrowed as Kanae continued to explain.

Makoto Village? He had visited Fukushima before and was quite certain that there was no Makato village there. The area he had just passed was quite close to the location of a park he had visited, but there were no parks there.

As for the Central Demon Slayer and the Northern Hunter Squad, a thought flashed in his mind with these words.

"Am I in the Demon Slayer world?" Quirk and other things aside, he remembered the word Demon Slayer in his previous life. On the poster where he saw the MHA anime, a photo of this anime was also hung. Blake remembered seeing Shinobu who was behind Kanae, on that poster.

"So... the speed power has the power to transcend dimensions? Plus, this girl is younger than the one shown on the poster, which means I'm in an earlier time period." He wasn't sure about the second half of his thoughts, there was a lot to confirm, but the first part was a fact.

In his view, the power of speed transcended dimensions, giving him the power to move through space-time, more exactly, run.

Now that he thought about it, he realized that it was very natural. Even humanity could move through space-time as long as they could travel at light speed and roam in space as they wished. The speed power he possessed was the embodiment of the concept of "Speed", and it was no surprise that Blake, who had it, ran through space-time.

But he couldn't understand how he did it. His speed was not even close to the speed of light.

It was clear that his speed was not close to the speed of light, yet he was able to move through space-time. Blake's curiosity tickled.

'Could something have happened that I don't know about? For example, an event that could cause the waving or thinning to space...'' This was the most reasonable answer. Blake clearly knew he wasn't fast enough to run through space-time.

When he got back, it looked like he needed a meeting with Lilith, even though he didn't want to. He didn't want such things to happen in the future.

''Thanks. Then I'll go." Blake intended to let go of the man he was holding.

"Farewell." Kanae waved her hand mildly.

"Wait a minute!" Shinobu couldn't help yelling when she saw them talking so casually in serious condition.

What exactly is going on? She knew that her older sister was an airhead who could do good to others and speak with a smile even in a life-or-death moment, so she couldn't find it strange. But what was this man's problem? Why wasn't he helping them, even though he saw that her sister was near death?

Were her prayers in vain?

"Yes?" Blake tilted his head, causing his bangs and the white hair that had fallen from his shoulder to tilt.

"Don't tell me "Yes?" Can't see the situation? Won't you help us?" Shinobu pointed around, especially at the nails on her sister's neck.

The man's fingernails brushed Kanae's neck, causing small red beads to appear on her pale skin and blood flowing from the beads. It was clear what would have happened if he had delayed one more moment.

"I see, but her expression is as if she could dodge this attack. That's why I decided not to interfere."

Shinobu was speechless. If that was the case, it made quite a lot of sense. Her sister's indifferent expression gave the others a feeling that she was prepared for any situation and that she would survive any situation.

However, this was not true. Her sister was an airhead even in a life-or-death moment, that's all.

Shinobu looked at her older sister. Kanae's [Vermillion Eyes] technique had long since passed. Her irises had turned white, and the purple-red color in her pupil had disappeared. However, she was lost in the light in her eyes, staring absentmindedly, not focusing on anything.

Still, her smile wasn't wiped away by it. Her body was covered with bloody wounds, the scar that stretched from her shoulder to her stomach was dyeing her clothes red. A single glance was all it took to realize the severity of the wound.

Despite all this, her expression didn't change except for a slight twitch in pain. It was as if she had put a mask on her face and was hiding her true feelings from others.

Seeing her older sister's condition, small tears appeared at the corners of Shinobu's eyes. She bent her head towards Blake and begged sincerely.

"Please… save my sister."

Blake didn't answer the girl. He stared at Kanae's face for a moment, ignoring the hand he was holding, which was becoming increasingly animated. The two met eye to eye, completely meaningless as one side had lost his sight, but Blake continued to stare into her eyes as if he was looking deep into her eyes.

After a while, he sighed. He put his hand on the girl's head and use his speed power. He leaned forward slightly and whispered only she could hear.

"Sometimes wearing a mask is a good thing. How much you suffer and hiding your true feelings from your loved ones in such a situation shows how much you care about them. After all, any negative emotion you may show in front of them can affect the future plans of the person you care about. But…" Blake's words thundered through Kanae.

In a way that even the bloody wounds couldn't her expression changed. Her eyebrows rose, her mouth slightly opened, and she asked as she looked at the area where Blake's voice had come from.

"How…" She asked hesitantly. She was surprised to Blake noticed her movements so clearly.

"But sometimes you have to take off that mask and show your true feelings. Shout if you suffer, roar if you hate. Otherwise, the person you're trying to protect will suffer more than you for not showing your feelings. Keep that in mind."

Lightning entered Kanae's body and began to heal all her wounds, especially her eyes. All the bloody wounds, especially the one on her chest, were healing with remarkable speed.

''Just listen. Hear how much your sister is suffering." Kanae tried to speak, but stopped at Blake's words and listened to her sister.

"Please… save her… I beg you." Shinobu continued to plead with her head bowed. Her voice trembled, swallowing between every word. Her tearful tone was enough to break one's heart.

A single tear touched Kanae's outfit. All her hairs stood up. Her eyebrows rose like never before.

"Am I the reason for this?" Shinobu's heart-wrenching tone struck Kanae. Her voice began to tremble. Her eyes were tearful. She forgot the pain that reverberated throughout her body.

The tone of her voice broke her heart. The fact that Shinobu, the only family member and the person she cared about the most, had to suffer so much was not something she could handle as an older sister. Her heart collapsed in an instant, an uncomfortable feeling of sadness settled in her heart.

"I wouldn't say it was your fault. But I'm sure she blames herself for being powerless because of your actions. She's currently thinking things like "If I wasn't here right now, she wouldn't be in trouble like this" or "She's hiding her pain because of me" and such things hurt people who love you more than you think. "Blake didn't say anything else.

Kanae's eyes slowly regained their light. The little white dots inside her pink-violet eyes began to shine like stars in the sky. A small piece of light turned a full circle in her eye, and her vision was restored.

She looked into Blake's raven-black eyes. Blake's eyes narrowed slightly, she rubbed her hair lightly and smiled.

"You seem to get it." He grinned warmly. His beard covered his lips, but Kanae, standing right in front of him, managed to see his expression clearly.

Her heart beat hard. The manly figure, bathed in moonlight, covered with white lightning, left an indelible mark on her heart.

Blake shrugged and turned to the man who had been patiently waiting for them all along.

He let go of his hand. When he did, the man jumped back and landed tens of meters back in an instant.

He opened her fan, aligning it in front of his lips. His multi-colored rainbow-like eyes narrowed slightly. His contempt for Blake had vanished, leaving not a single part of him left.

They might not have noticed from their conversation, but the man wasn't sitting while they were talking. He had been trying to abduct his hand for a while, but even with 50% of his strength, he couldn't get his hand out of it.

As he intended to use all his strength, Blake let go of his hand.

"Looks like you should let the girls go." Blake spoke casually. His voice was neither harsh enough to provoke him, nor soft as if he was making a request. He just seemed to be telling the truth.

"It's okay, but I've been feeling hungry for a while. Although it is not my hobby to eat men, I see no problem in eating you to satisfy my hunger. If you're willing to do so, I can let them go."He tilted his fan slightly to the side, revealing half of his face. He licked his lips like a hungry wolf, his eyes glowing with hunger.

Blake's face wrinkled a look of clear disgust. He turned his head slightly and looked at the girls. An invisible "?" was hanging on his face.

''He's a demon. What are you waiting for?" Shinobu looked at Blake with a confused expression, wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes.

''Devil? He? '' He pointed at the man. He was pretty sure that a demon didn't look like this.

"Devil culture in Japan...how can I say...isn't it a bit different? A little leaner, more demonic, definitely non-human?" Blake struggled to explain himself, but couldn't find the right word.

He had done some research on Japanese culture and was aware of what the demons in their culture looked like. They were definitely not human, the demon figures in paintings from the past were more "demon-like."

He knew that they were figures and drawings created from the human imagination. A real demon wasn't required to look like the ones in the drawings, but he thought they wouldn't look like the young master of a native family.

"I don't know where you lived until now, but he is one of the demons we have been fighting for centuries. You can tell by the writing in his eyes." Kanae's body trembled, Shinobu quickly took one of her arms and pointed to the man's eye, as her tears continued to flow.

Blake followed her finger and looked into his eyes. He had seen the writing on his eyes, but for the first time he paid particular attention, and both eyes had the words "Upper Moon Two" and "Upper Moon Six" written on them.

Resting in her sister's arms, Kanae looked at Shinobu as Blake viewed the man.

"I'm sorry... Nee-chan is so sorry..." Kanae apologized in a weary tone. She wanted to hug her sister and cry sincerely, but she didn't have the strength to do so.

Her wounds had been healed by Blake, but the same couldn't be said for blood. She felt as if all her strength had been drained from the few liters of blood flowing from her wounds. Her head was spinning, her whole body was getting cold, her body was growing numb. It was getting harder and harder for her to keep her eyes open, yet she made a bitter apology.

"It's okay, nee-chan. As long as you are well, none of it matters." Shinobu brushed aside all her grief and bittersweet feelings and hugged her sister. Everything was fine as long as she was fine.

Her words brought tears to Kanae's eyes. She unconsciously smiled.

"Shinobu-chan became so powerful without ı know..." Her voice was getting weaker. Her body, which finally relaxed, shut herself off, trying to prevent Kanae from getting any further damage. However, Kanae grits her teeth and struggled to stay awake.

She knew that if she slept, she would never wake up. Blake's words had instilled in her heart the desire to survive instead of dying here. She couldn't die here. She still hadn't properly apologized to her sister, hadn't been able to help untie the knot in her heart.

She only had to look into her eyes for a brief second, to read Shinobu's heart. She could see the hatred born of powerlessness, the accusing himself glance, and many other emotions.

She refused to leave her sister like that. Her previous death wish was for her sister to survive, but the emotions in her eyes made her realize that even if she lived, she would live a hellish life.

Each day would be filled with hatred and self-blame, and she probably wouldn't be truly happy and genuinely smiling for a single day.

She refused to leave her like that. Even if she had to fight Lady Death, she wouldn't leave her like that. She would survive and make sure to erase all these feelings from her heart.

''Me? I am strong? No, I'm too weak…" She shook her head sarcastically. She was too scared to move until the last moment. Such a person could not be called strong.

"No, you're too strong. Nee-chan knows that." She put her hand on her sister's face. Her skin was as cold as an ice bucket, her hand and arm tremble nonstop.

"Nee-chan..." Shinobu's voice trembled as she felt her sister's increasingly cold skin. However, her words were interrupted by Kanae.

"Don't worry, Nee-chan is determined not to go. Let's follow our savior. Supplements are coming soon."

"Okay." With no other choice, she agreed and looked over the back of the man who would decide their fate.

'I have no such plans. So, we're choosing the hard way." Blake grabbed his arm with the other and stretched. His skin tensed, his muscles hardened. His actions showed his intentions.

"That's what it looks like. My name is Doma. Keep in mind when you're eaten by me." Doma shook his fan slightly and fanned. Freezing cold ice blossomed in the air and formed into two small crystal lotus.

"I have no such intention." Blake's expression suddenly turned cold, his tone as cold as Doma's icy Lotuses. White lightning bolts began to emerge from his body.

Tension in the street suddenly peaked. The two of them stared into each other's eyes without looking the other way, as lightning and ice chips made crackling and cracking sounds in the air.

The psychological fight had begun. Whoever made a mistake in this battle would start behind 1-0.

"I'm here!!!!" A shout was heard as the cold winds of death continued to blow between the two of them. The four people simultaneously turned their heads to where the sound came from.

There were a lot of people there with torches in their hands. They were all wearing the same kind of clothes; a black Gakuran jacket and Hakama pants. They were holding similar katanas in their hands. They were approaching the quartet, or rather, Doma and Blake, with killing intent. [EN: Mentioned outfits are the names of the black outfits worn by Demon Slayer Corps members.]

In front of the group was a young boy. He was dressed in more comfortable clothes that made him stand out from the crowd behind him, and the katana in his hand was more special than the others.

Although he was 6-7 years old, his eyes shone with a bright light of intelligence that made him stand out from his peers. His body was developed for his age, his strides were firm and precise. There was not a single grain of hesitation as he threw himself forward.

His expression was fierce, like that of a tiger being touched by something that was his. Picking up his katana, he headed resolutely towards Doma. If he was bigger, people would think he would fight Doma.

Those behind him thought it was a reckless act born of anger. There was no way a 6-7-year-old could fight Doma, who has been sought after by the Demon Slayer Corp for years.

But his direction, his clear killing intent, and his determined expression showed that he would do it. But no one except Blake had noticed it.

"You're a little sneaky." Blake's hand suddenly moved. His movements, fast enough to leave afterimages, deflected the fan that wanted to attack him in mid-air without using undue force.

He turned forward. He spun 180 degrees at a speed the man couldn't react to and kicked him in the chest.

CRACK!

A clear cracking sound was heard. When the girls turned their heads, they saw Doma fly backward and blood pouring from his mouth.

What happened? They had just turned for a second, and they had fought dozens of times already and Doma had been injured.

Blake stepped forward, just as he was about to go forward and attack, a sound reached his ears. He stood where he was, after listening to the voice for a while, he pulled his foot back and stood in front of the girls.

Doma landed on the ground. The ice shot out of his body uncontrollably, forming dozens of small lotuses. At the same time, two female statues appeared on either side. He waited for the next attack, but the attack did not come.

He took care of Blake. He saw her standing in front of the girls with no intention of attacking. He tilted his head to the side and quietly asked why he should attack.

However, before he could get the answer to his question, the voices of people filling his ears began to rise. He could hear voices yelling at him, cursing him, shouting at him. After hesitating for a while, he entered the forest behind him in a single jump and left behind a few words before disappearing into the shadows.

"I'll remember this."

Blake watched the man go. After waiting a few seconds, no attack came, he shrugged and stared girls.

While the battle wasn't enough to make Blake nervous, he was on the alert all along because of the man's ice ability and the fact that he didn't know anything about him. He could relax now that he was finally gone.

Unlike MHA, he had no idea about the Demon Slayer. He didn't know what a demon could do and what powers they had. For now, all he knew was that he had great physical strength and the ability to control the ice.

He had experienced firsthand what effects the ice element had on him. It was hard to say who would win if the war dragged on.

Blake was quite confident that he would win. However, if Doma had a technique or skill that could stop him, the battle could swerve to an undesirable side.

''Okay, I am coming. Just wait a bit. Having gone this far, I should at least make sure that they are all right to the end." Blake whispered so as not to startle the two girls.

"5 Minutes…" Blake looked around. After looking at the group of swords that were coming towards them, he surveyed the surroundings with his Lightning Field, making sure there were no threats, and nodded.

'Let it be 30 minutes. That's enough.''