Capítulo 206: Everyone's Battles
Stone Hashira Himejima Gyoumei and Insect Hashira Kochou Shinobu faced off against Upper Two Douma!
Flame Hashira Rengoku Kyoujurou fought Upper Three Akaza!
Wind Hashira Shinazugawa Sanemi and Water Hashira Tomioka Giyuu fought Upper Four Hantengu!
Serpent Hashira Iguro Obanai and Sound Hashira Uzui Tengen confronted Upper Five Nakime!
Love Hashira Kanroji Mitsuri and Mist Hashira Tokitou Muichirou fought Upper Six Torasei!
At this moment, every Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps was locked in combat with the Upper Ranks, intensifying their clashes. This news not only made the members of the Corps nervous but also caught the demons' attention.
Undoubtedly, the outcome between both sides would greatly influence the following offense and defense, a matter of significant importance for both the Demon Slayer Corps and the demons.
Throughout the centuries-long history, demons and the Demon Slayer Corps had never before entered such a thorough state of warfare as today, with unprecedented fierce clashes between their higher-ups, where it was a matter of either you perish or I do.
This realization made many who hadn't yet adjusted their mindset keenly aware that tonight was indeed a truly decisive and final battle.
"Hahahaha!"
Kaigaku, having heard the news conveyed by the Kasugai Crows, burst into laughter in front of Tanjirou, Zenitsu, and Inosuke.
"It seems like the seniors are all fired up, no matter which side they're on!"
For Kaigaku, both sides could indeed be called his seniors.
As Zenitsu's senior brother and one of the successors of Thunder Breathing, Kaigaku had once been a Demon Slayer in the Demon Slayer Corps, making all the Hashira his seniors.
On the other hand, as a new member of the Upper Ranks, Kaigaku viewed the other Upper Ranks as unquestionably his seniors.
On one side were his seniors from his human days, and on the other were his seniors since becoming a demon. Both sides were also at the highest-ranking members within their respective groups, one standing above thousands.
Now they were fighting each other, which seemed quite wonderful to Kaigaku.
However—
"What a pity, no matter how the Hashira struggle, the final outcome is already predetermined!"
Kaigaku declared confidently amidst his laughter.
"Humans can never defeat demons, and the Hashira absolutely cannot match the Upper Ranks. Soon, you will all experience the greatest despair!"
Drawing his sword, Kaigaku pointed it at Zenitsu.
"Once I'm done with you, I'll go find the Hashira and show them I'm not the same as before!"
Apparently, having become a demon and an Upper Rank, Kaigaku had swollen with pride. He could clearly feel how much stronger he was now compared to before and how powerful the so-called Upper Ranks truly were.
In the past, the Hashira seemed unbeatably powerful to him, but now, they were just that.
Because of this, Kaigaku didn't believe the Hashira could match the Upper Ranks and believed he had already surpassed the Hashira, becoming a formidable existence beyond human imagination.
Kaigaku approached Zenitsu eagerly, definitely intending to show off, flaunting his strength and boasting about the wisdom of his choices.
In the past, Kaigaku had always looked down on Zenitsu, considering him both cowardly and inept.
How frightened would Zenitsu look when he saw his current power?
Just thinking about it made Kaigaku feel a surge of excitement.
However, he was bound to be disappointed.
"...You've gone mad."
Zenitsu didn't show a hint of fear but looked at Kaigaku with cold indifference—his eyes revealing an emotion Kaigaku had never seen before, one that made him distinctly uncomfortable.
It was none other than an emotion of disgust.
Yes, just like how Kaigaku used to look at Zenitsu in the past.
"Do you know..." Zenitsu gritted his teeth. "Because you turned into a demon, Grandpa has committed seppuku!"
Upon hearing this, Kaigaku was stunned.
""What?""
Tanjirou and Inosuke both wore expressions of shock.
It was truly shocking that the former Thunder Hashira had committed suicide.
At this moment, Tanjirou and Inosuke finally understood why Zenitsu had been acting so strangely lately.
Obviously, it was because he had lost someone dear to him.
"Grandpa took his own life...?"
Kaigaku muttered to himself, then fell silent, until—
"Ha! Hahahahaha—!"
He laughed, his laughter filled with intense pleasure.
"Good riddance! It was pointless for a fool like him, who wanted me and a waste like you to inherit his breathing style to keep on living!"
"He committed seppuku? He finally made a wise choice!"
"Otherwise, after this battle is over, I would have gone after him and killed him myself!"
"Hahahahaha!"
Kaigaku's arrogant and unrestrained laughter finally pushed Zenitsu over the edge.
*BOOOM!*
It was the sound of thunder.
Amidst a thunderous explosion, a figure transformed into lightning and violently rushed toward Kaigaku.
"Thunder Breathing - First Form - Thunderclap and Flash!"
A lightning-fast slash suddenly appeared right before Kaigaku's eyes.
"?!"
Kaigaku's pupils shrank, his heart pounding.
In the split second of peril, he only managed to raise one hand.
*Pu-chi!*
In the next moment, the lightning-fast slash severed Kaigaku's arm.
With his arm severed, Kaigaku felt a sharp pain and, propelled by the high-speed turbulence of the scorching chaotic airflow, tumbled away.
Zenitsu's figure appeared in the aftermath of the lightning-fast slash, in the exact spot where Kaigaku had been just a second before, assuming an iai stance with his sword already back in its sheath.
"You... DAMN BASTARD?!"
Kaigaku finally reacted to what had happened, standing up in furious anger.
He felt deeply humiliated.
"To think I lost my arm to worthless trash like you who can only master the first form?!"
Kaigaku's face twisted in disbelief.
Zenitsu calmly turned around, his expression unusually cold.
"You're right, I must seem like worthless trash to you."
Zenitsu spoke coldly, his face showing cold indifference.
"But what does that make you? If I'm worthless trash who can only master the first form, then you're worthless trash among worthless trash who can't even learn the first form!"
"Are you proud that you could become an Upper Rank? What's there to be proud of?"
"Even if you become an Upper Rank, you're still just a bottom-feeder, the lowest in the hierarchy. If it weren't for the reform of the Kizuki from six to seven Upper Ranks, you wouldn't even crack the top six!"
"After all, you're just that kind of guy. Otherwise, why would you end up being a demon? You even talk about the Hashira's fate being predetermined, making the Upper Ranks sound so great..."
Zenitsu looked down on Kaigaku, speaking word by word.
"Yet, our head instructor, who's just a human in your eyes, took down those Upper Ranks you're so proud of with just one slash."
"Let alone someone like you. In front of him, you probably wouldn't even qualify to make him draw his sword."
"Someone like you, what right do you have to look down on humans?"
"You're nothing but a clown—no, an entire circus!"
Zenitsu's words stung Kaigaku's heart, one after another.
"Bastard... I WILL KILL YOU—!"
Kaigaku completely lost his mind, regenerating his arm and charging toward Zenitsu like a madman.
However, he forgot that Zenitsu wasn't alone.
"Flame Breathing - First Form - Unknowing Fire!"
Tanjirou drew his sword and dashed forward, enveloped in flames appearing at Kaigaku's left side, slashing toward his neck.
"Beast Breathing - Third Fang - Devour!"
Inosuke flashed to Kaigaku's right side, crossing his two saw-like swords and slashing toward Kaigaku's head.
Attacked from both sides, Kaigaku had to halt his charge and focus on defending himself.
"Thunder Breathing - Sixth Form - Rumble and Flash!"
Kaigaku swung his sword, centering himself, instantly releasing countless lightning-like slashes in all directions.
*BOOM!*
His lightning was pitch-black, resembling the falling thunder of malevolence, flicking Tanjirou's flames and Inosuke's fangs in an instant and sending both of them flying.
In the next moment, Tanjirou and Inosuke landed beside Zenitsu.
"Zenitsu! We're here to help you!" Tanjirou called out.
"Hahaha! Let's chop off his head!" Inosuke laughed loudly.
Upon hearing their words, Zenitsu wanted to refuse, feeling that he had to handle this on his own. However, when he saw Tanjirou's determined expression and heard Inosuke's laughter, tears involuntarily welled up in his eyes.
Zenitsu quickly wiped away his tears and took a deep breath.
"Leave the final strike to me!"
This was his only request.
Tanjirou and Inosuke naturally had no objections.
"Bring it on! No matter how many of you there are, scum like you are nothing compared to my power!"
Kaigaku roared, then charged toward the three.
Seeing this, Tanjirou, Zenitsu, and Inosuke met his charge without hesitation.
Before long, flames, thunder, and the imposing shadows of beasts appeared one after another on this battlefield.
At this moment, the lowest of the Upper Ranks, Upper Seven Kaigaku, was engaged in a death battle with three lower-ranked Demon Slayers from the Demon Slayer Corps.
===
"They clashed already?"
Riezel, who had been darting back and forth in the Infinity Castle like a sun, heard the news from the Kasugai Crows.
"Tanjirou also fought an Upper Rank?"
Sure enough, the protagonist was built differently. Even though Riezel's own presence had diminished the importance of this protagonist, in a crucial battle like this, he would still hold a significant role.
"Can he handle it?"
Riezel was somewhat uncertain.
After all, the current Tanjirou not only lacked the Demon Slayer Mark, the Bright Red Nichirin Sword, and the Transparent World, but he also hadn't fully mastered Hinokami Kagura. Compared to an Upper Rank, the gap in strength was quite significant.
Fortunately, Tanjirou wasn't alone since Zenitsu and Inosuke were with him. Moreover, the Upper Seven they were facing was the lowest-ranked among the Upper Ranks and hadn't been a demon for long.
Since the other Upper Ranks had been alive for hundreds of years and had consumed countless people, their power was far beyond what it had been when they first became demons.
However, because this Upper Seven had become a demon relatively recently and hadn't yet consumed many people, it was uncertain whether he could fully control the power of an Upper Rank.
In other words, it shouldn't be too difficult for Tanjirou, Zenitsu, and Inosuke to handle the Upper Seven if they team up.
Riezel finally felt certain.
"Yeah, they can win—hmm?"
At this moment, he suddenly paused mid-flight, looking down at the ground.
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Capítulo 207: Tsugikuni Michikatsu
*Thud!*
With a faint landing sound, Riezel touched down on the rooftop of a building.
It was a palace.
Riezel landed on the open rooftop of this palace and entered a place that resembled an altar.
In this altar, the surrounding walls were adorned with murals, particularly on two sides that were not only facing each other but depicted entirely opposite scenes.
On the left mural was a sun, radiating light in all directions, beneath which were many people extending their hands toward it in a gesture of worship, resembling a ritual to a god, or a hero.
In contrast, the right mural depicted a moon emitting light in all directions but with no people or animals below, only a desolate nighttime landscape that appeared somewhat barren.
Riezel stood directly before the sun mural, facing the moon mural on the opposite side.
"Hmm, the so-called throne doesn't seem to be here..."
Riezel murmured softly before speaking faintly to his front.
"Upper One."
As Riezel said this, a figure emerged slowly from the shadow of the moon mural across from him.
He held a sword in his hand.
He was dressed in a kimono.
With long black hair tied up in a high ponytail, adorned with red markings on the top left side of his forehead and the bottom right of his chin, his face bore six eyes.
A six-eyed samurai from the Sengoku period had appeared beneath the moon mural.
Indeed, he was none other than the Upper One, Kokushibou.
"...It's you?"
Kokushibou gazed at Riezel with his six eyes, his vision cold and filled with murderous intent.
"...You call yourself Tsugikuni Yoriichi?"
Kokushibou, the strongest Upper Rank, posed such a question.
"What? Have a problem?" Riezel looked back calmly. "Or do you think I'm not up to par?"
Kokushibou did not answer his question but slowly drew the sword from his waist—a terrifying sword adorned with eyes on its blade and handle.
After drawing such a sword, Kokushibou spoke again.
"Whether you're up to par... let me test that."
*Whoosh!*
With those words, Kokushibou suddenly vanished on the spot.
"Moon Breathing..."
*Swish—*
A figure resembling a bright moon breaking through dark clouds suddenly appeared before Riezel.
"First Form - Dark Moon, Evening Palace."
It was an iai slash executed with such speed that the sword was barely visible, leaving behind a trail of crescent-shaped slashes. It was like a moon blade competing with the sun's brilliance, carrying a chilling coldness as it sliced toward Riezel's neck.
*Whoosh!*
In the next moment, the blade that conjured countless crescent moons was intercepted by two fingers, held between them.
"Hou?" Kokushibou's six eyes narrowed slightly. "You stopped it so easily?"
"Easily? Is it difficult for you?"
Kokushibou's words earned only a calm question from Riezel, clearly unmoved.
"Even some Hashira nowadays could easily block such a probing attack. If you want to test my limits, show me something more powerful."
With that, Riezel released the blade from his fingers and surged forward, delivering a fierce kick to Kokushibou's chest.
*BANG!*
Amidst the muffled sound, Riezel's sudden kick landed heavily on the timely sword raised by Kokushibou, unleashing astonishing force.
Kokushibou was sent flying backward as if struck by a train, his feet skidding violently across the ground, retreating a considerable distance.
Riezel's kick had directly knocked Kokushibou back beneath the moon mural, returning him to his original position.
Kokushibou stared at his hands gripping his sword, trembling slightly.
It was clear how much power Riezel had unleashed with that kick alone.
"Incredible strength..." Kokushibou muttered darkly. "A mere human... possessing such strength... No wonder the former Upper Five and Upper Six fell to you..."
Speaking like this, his six eyes revealed not resignation but a more complex emotion as if standing before him wasn't Riezel, but some other existence entirely.
"Your monstrous, inhuman strength... does bear some resemblance to him..." Kokushibou said coldly. "But I must say... you have no right to use that name... even if you've somehow learned Sun Breathing..."
"Heh..."
At his words, Riezel chuckled.
"Coming from you, that's quite the irony..."
Riezel retorted casually, shaking his head.
"At least someone is using that name, unlike you, who has forsaken even your own name, reduced to this grotesque appearance."
Upon hearing this, Kokushibou narrowed his six eyes, exuding an even stronger murderous aura.
"...You know about me?" Kokushibou asked in a low voice.
Naturally, the answer was yes.
"Many people who know about the history of the Demon Slayer Corps during the Sengoku era have heard of Tsugikuni Yoriichi, but they don't know that he actually had an older twin brother."
Riezel's voice slowly filled the air.
"He was once highly esteemed, eager to become a powerful swordsman."
"He was favored more than his younger brother by their father, seen as the sole heir of the family's legacy."
"Due to the strange mark on his younger brother's forehead from birth, his younger brother faced rejection and neglect from their family. Because of this, he gained all the love and growth environment that should have belonged to his younger brother."
"However, there was one thing he could never surpass his younger brother in... talent in swordsmanship."
Riezel's words caused Kokushibou's hand gripping the sword to tighten slowly, yet Riezel seemed oblivious, continuing unabated.
"Just like his younger brother, he had also joined the Demon Slayer Corps and became a Demon Slayer."
"In his goal to surpass his younger brother, he tirelessly honed his swordsmanship."
"Eventually, he not only awakened the Demon Slayer Mark and the Transparent World but also stepped into the Domain of Supremacy that martial artists dream of, becoming one of the strongest in the Corps."
"Even so, he still couldn't surpass his younger brother."
"Faced with his younger brother's dazzling achievements and unparalleled talent, he could only ever gaze at his back."
Such was Tsugikuni Yoriichi's elder brother, a man consumed by an obsession with strength, constantly striving to improve himself while harboring intense jealousy toward his supremely talented younger brother.
"Tsugikuni Michikatsu, that's his name..."
Riezel's eyes gazed calmly into Kokushibou's.
"How does it feel to hear your abandoned name after so long?"
Riezel's words caused Kokushibou to close his six eyes.
After a long while, he opened them again.
"Since it's a name I've long abandoned... what is there to cling to?" Kokushibou said lightly. "Tsugikuni Michikatsu has long been dead and the only one here is Kokushibou, the Upper One... that's all."
"You seem pretty relaxed..." Riezel remarked emotionlessly. "Especially... since you're the one who caused your younger brother's downfall."
Initially, Yoriichi was banished from the Demon Slayer Corps and even asked to perform seppuku for three reasons.
First, for allowing Muzan to escape.
Second, for sparing Tamayo voluntarily.
Third, for having a close relative within the Demon Slayer Corps who assisted Muzan in killing the then Master.
Truthfully, any one of these acts would be unforgivable for anyone.
Just like Zenitsu's master, the former Thunder Hashira, who took his own life simply because his disciple became a demon, and Tanjirou, who nearly committed seppuku for sheltering his demon younger sister.
When these three incidents converged on one person, even someone nearly legendary like Yoriichi, he was ultimately banished from the Demon Slayer Corps.
Michikatsu's betrayal was the final straw that led to this decision.
If the Master of the Demon Slayer Corps hadn't been killed, perhaps Yoriichi's contributions and abilities would have prevented his banishment from the Corps.
It was Yoriichi's elder brother who killed the beloved Master of the Demon Slayer Corps, plunging its members into irreparable sadness and anger, with no possibility of reconciliation.
Given this, Riezel's accusation that Kokushibou was responsible for Yoriichi's downfall was not unfounded.
However, Kokushibou clearly didn't see it that way.
"You... What do you understand...?"
Kokushibou spoke softly, his head lowered.
"Do you understand the feeling of never being able to catch up to someone by your side, no matter what...?"
"Do you understand the feeling of pushing yourself to the limit in training, only to fall short of someone else's casual attempt...?"
"Can you understand... that feeling when everything becomes futile... when even the right to strive is taken away...?"
As Kokushibou's chest began to rise and fall, he lifted his head, revealing bloodshot eyes fixed on Riezel's.
"You don't understand... because you, like him, are both naturally gifted..."
Kokushibou truly envied Yoriichi, envied his own younger brother.
Because of this envy, he despised Yoriichi to the point of anger whenever he thought of him.
His dream was to become a powerful swordsman, but that dream was effortlessly fulfilled by his younger brother, who had been ignored and looked down upon since childhood.
How could anyone else understand such a disparity?
If not for this, Kokushibou wouldn't have become a demon, betrayed the Demon Slayer Corps, and killed the then Master.
However, in truth, the main reason Kokushibou became a demon was actually the Demon Slayer Mark.
He was a Marked Demon Slayer, evidenced by the marks on his forehead and chin.
When he learned that Marked Demon Slayers would die before the age of twenty-five, his first emotion was resentment.
Resentment that he no longer had time to train.
Resentment that he no longer had the opportunity to surpass his younger brother.
Because of this, in order to gain eternal time to perfect his swordsmanship, Kokushibou accepted Muzan's invitation, became a demon, and killed the Master of the Demon Slayer Corps at the time.
In addition, Kokushibou also participated in the ruthless eradication of those who knew about Sun Breathing initiated by Muzan.
"Now that you've used his name... used his breathing style... be prepared..."
As Kokushibou spoke, a terrifying aura gradually emitted from his body, growing stronger by the second.
"I will definitely kill you right here... right now..."
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