บท 15: Hope in sight
The atmosphere of the night in the Yoshiwara Entertainment District was filled with the shimmering light of lanterns and the echoing sounds of laughter. However, behind the merriment, darkness lurked. Tanjiro, Nezuko, Usui Tengen, Sanemi, and Giyu had arrived with a clear goal: to kill Daki, the demon who had disguised herself as an Oiran in the Kyogoku house, by dragging the battle until sunrise to make Muzan see Nezuko standing under the sun through Daki's memories.
They rushed toward the Kyogoku house without needing to investigate further, thanks to information from Haru.
As they entered the Kyogoku house, the atmosphere changed. Tanjiro's hand grasped the hilt of his sword, sensing the tension in the air. Swiftly, Tanjiro led the way, relying on his keen sense of smell to track Daki's whereabouts. The Kakushi members promptly evacuated the visitors and residents of Yoshiwara, who were bewildered by the sight of armed figures. However, upon seeing the drawn swords, they dared not ask further questions and chose to evacuate obediently.
They climbed the stairs to the upper floor, where the scent of flowers and luxurious perfume mingled with a faint smell of blood and demons. Each heartbeat of Tanjiro quickened. They finally arrived at a room adorned with expensive ornaments and dim lights. Cautiously, Tanjiro opened the door.
Inside the room, Daki sat gracefully, seemingly indifferent to their arrival. With her tall and curvaceous figure, Daki possessed a captivating charm. Her sharp lime-green eyes stared at them, and her arrogant smile was evident on her face. She wore a striking two-piece kimono, emphasizing both her beauty and strength.
"Demon slayers? I have killed many of you; even the Hashira are like ants to me," she said with a sneering tone, as if they were merely larger ants.
Tengen, with his flamboyant style, stepped forward. "Let us send you to heaven beautifully."
Daki merely chuckled softly, her voice echoing in the room. "Oh, how amusing. A small group like you dares to challenge me?"
Daki stood, lifting her chin with pride. "Very well, let's see how strong you are. But first, allow me to show you how foolish you are."
Suddenly, Daki waved her hand, and the fabric covering her body moved like a serpent, attacking them. Tanjiro immediately dodged, followed by Nezuko who leaped aside to avoid the attack. Tengen fought back with swift movements, slicing through the attacking fabric.
Tanjiro moved agilely, wielding his sword with Water Breathing techniques, sending forth waves of deadly attacks.
"Third Form: Flowing Dance!"
Daki easily countered, using her fabric to deflect Tanjiro's attack.
"I told you, you're nothing!" Daki yelled, her arrogant voice reflecting her pride. She launched a counterattack, her fabric creating intricate attacking patterns.
Nezuko, with her speed and agility, jumped forward and kicked Daki powerfully. Nezuko's kick sent Daki flying several meters before she stopped.
Tanjiro seized the opportunity that Daki had just landed and launched his next attack.
"First Form: Surface Water Flow!"
This attack successfully struck Daki, injuring her right arm. However, Daki simply laughed, as if unaffected.
"Do you really think you can defeat me with attacks like that? You need to be more serious!" Daki said, her face showing slight annoyance.
Seeing an opportunity, Tengen stepped forward flamboyantly.
"First Form: Roar!"
Tengen raised his twin swords above his head and slammed them down with great force, producing a sound like thunder.
Daki blocked Tengen's attack with layered fabric, but the loud sound made her ears ring.
Daki, though cornered, showed no signs of fear. "You think that's enough? Come on, try again!" She swung her fabric, attempting to immobilize Tengen with a counterattack.
However, Tengen deftly dodged. "You won't defeat all of us at once."
Daki began to feel the pressure.
"This can't be happening! I will not lose to you!" She deflected attack after attack, but the pressure from Tanjiro and the others intensified. Daki was cornered, and Tanjiro saw an opportunity.
With determination, Tanjiro launched his final attack.
"Eighth Form: Waterfall Basin!"
He slashed towards Daki, and this time his attack successfully severed Daki's head.
However, surprisingly, Daki's head spun back as if unscathed. Although she was not dead, fear began to manifest within her.
With a visible sense of helplessness, Daki began to cry, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"N-No! Don't! Onii-chan! Help me!" She called for Gyoutaro, her older brother, seeking help.
As if responding to Daki's call, her back began to writhe, and Gyoutaro emerged from within her body.
"Don't bully my little sister!" Gyoutaro shouted angrily, his face showing deep rage.
With swift movements, Gyoutaro used his Blood Demon Art to create a poisonous blood scythe. The scythe flew towards Usui, who was closest. Knowing that the scythe was poisonous, Usui jumped to the side, evading the attack that nearly struck him.
"Fourth Form: Striking Tide!"
Giyu attacked Gyoutaro while his attention was focused on Usui.
Facing Giyu's attack, Gyoutaro spun and slashed with the blood scythe in both hands. The attacks clashed, producing a metallic clang.
On the other side, Nezuko and Tanjiro faced Daki. Each time someone was hit by Gyoutaro's poison, Nezuko would use her Blood Demon Art to burn away the poison.
Unlike other demons, Nezuko's Blood Demon Art would only injure demons; her flames could burn even poison and slow down a demon's regeneration.
The battle continued for several hours until the sun began to rise. Daki, seeing the sun start to appear, panicked.
"Hey, aren't you also a demon? Why are you helping the demon slayers? Get away, or we'll die!" Daki yelled at Nezuko in panic while dodging Nezuko's flames.
"Argh…!"
The sunlight shone on Daki, causing her body to begin to burn. In her final moments, she looked towards Nezuko with intense hatred, wanting to see how she would die alongside her.
But as she turned, Daki was shocked; she could hardly believe that Nezuko could stand in the sunlight without burning. Until her death, she still did not understand what was happening.
At the moment Daki died, Sanemi also managed to behead Gyoutaro. When the battle was over, Tanjiro and the others sighed in relief. The sun had fully risen, the golden light so warm that it relaxed their tense minds after the night-long battle.
.....
In the midst of the bustling Tokyo, there stood an elegant noble Japanese house, crafted from wood with a sophisticated traditional architecture. Inside one dimly lit room, a ten-year-old boy sat intently, engrossed in an ancient book. Behind his innocent face, there were crimson eyes that held a sense of indifference in their depths.
The boy, known as Akira, seemed deeply focused. However, as he flipped through the pages, his expression suddenly changed. His red eyes widened, and his mouth fell slightly open in shock at what he was reading.
"At last... after more than a thousand years, my wish will soon come true," he murmured, a mature voice slipping from his lips, a voice that should not have emerged from a child's mouth. "As long as I devour that demon, I can overcome my weakness to the sun and become a perfect and immortal being."
As he pondered these words, a gentle voice from a woman broke the silence. "Akira, it's time for breakfast." The voice belonged to a woman around thirty years old, dressed in a beautiful kimono adorned with cherry blossoms. She was his mother, full of love and care.
Akira turned, gazing at his mother with a vacant stare, as if she were something insignificant. His small hand transformed into a long whip, swiftly slicing his mother into pieces that splattered across the floor.
Accompanied by the sound of a biwa, a door appeared beneath the boy's feet, and he vanished from the house.
He was Kibutsuji Muzan, masquerading as a child from a wealthy family in search of information about the blue Higanbana flower.
Kibutsuji Muzan had been searching for the blue Higanbana for over a thousand years because this flower could grant him immunity to sunlight, allowing him to achieve absolute immortality.
Unfortunately, during this thousand-year span, he had been unable to find the flower, despite spreading demons throughout the land.
The blue Higanbana was a rare flower that only bloomed during the daytime, blooming just two or three times a year. In certain climates, the blue Higanbana would fail to bloom fully, making it even more challenging for Muzan to locate the flower. Once it bloomed, the flower would wilt, resembling a horsetail, losing all the properties valuable to Muzan.
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