Chapter 38 — Hinokami Kagura
Midway up Mount Natagumo
"Though I doubt you're that stupid… but judging by your performance, do you really think getting close to me means you can cut off my head?"
Lower Rank Five — Rui spoke with a bored tone.
With a casual punch thrown almost playfully, he sent the dark-red-haired boy flying several meters away. The boy hit the ground hard and began coughing up mouthfuls of blood.
Yet even so, the boy struggled back to his feet.
Panting heavily, he tightened his grip on his broken Nichirin blade, waiting for another chance to attack.
Seeing this stubborn persistence, Rui seemed amused.
He simply spread his arms.
"Fine. Go ahead. Try it."
"AAAH—!!"
The boy roared and charged, swinging his blade.
Rui dodged easily, like a cat playing with a mouse. Each time he slipped aside, he casually punched the boy in the face, leaving him reeling and bleeding.
Using the momentum from being struck and spun around, the boy twisted his body and slashed back in a sudden counterattack—
The blade struck Rui's neck.
CLANG—!!
A crisp metallic sound rang out.
The blade failed to leave even the slightest scratch.
"See? I told you."
Rui's gaze turned cold and vicious as he kicked the boy away.
"You can't beat me."
"My body is tougher than the spider threads I control. A swordsman at your level can't even cut my threads—"
"And you think you can cut off my head?"
"Don't be ridiculous."
When the boy was kicked away, crashing heavily into the ground and sending up a cloud of dust—
a girl hanging upside down in the air, bound by several spider threads, let out a furious cry.
But with the bamboo muzzle in her mouth, it came out only as a muffled whimper.
"Quiet. Be silent for a while."
"Your brother belongs to me now. Stop shouting."
SHRIP—!
Rui raised his pale hand and clenched the air toward her.
Instantly, the spider threads tightened.
They bit into the girl's body, tearing through flesh with sickening sounds as blood sprayed everywhere.
Under such unbearable pain, the girl let out a weak cry and lost consciousness.
"Nezuko—!!!"
The boy's fury exploded.
The veins on his hands and forehead bulged violently, as if ready to burst.
But he clenched his sleeve tightly, forcing himself to suppress the uncontrollable rage.
Calm down, Tanjiro! Don't let your emotions control you!
he told himself.
Focus… steady your breathing…
I have to end this fight with my final, strongest form!
"Total Concentration!!"
Tanjiro shouted and launched himself forward.
The scar on his forehead twisted fiercely as the veins beneath it throbbed.
"Water Breathing — Tenth Form…"
"What are you doing? Haven't you figured it out yet? This is meaningless. Just hand over your sister."
Rui clicked his tongue impatiently.
He casually flicked several strands of razor-sharp spider thread, intending to erase the boy's existence instantly.
But something unexpected happened.
The threads that had previously sliced through Nichirin blades with ease—
were suddenly cut apart.
As Tanjiro's breathing shifted and his sword technique began to spiral, every thread was severed.
This wasn't coincidence.
As Tanjiro's spinning motion accelerated, Rui realized his threads were being shattered faster and faster.
"…Constant Flux!"
With Tanjiro's furious roar, waves surged along his blade.
For a moment, it even seemed as though a water dragon formed from the swirling currents.
The dragon roared forward, powerful enough to split mountains and crush stone.
For an instant—
the tide of battle seemed to turn.
"…Tch. Do you think this is my limit?"
Rui's patience finally wore thin.
Crimson demon blood seeped from his hands, spreading across his spider threads.
"That's enough. Goodbye."
"Blood Demon Art — Cutting Thread Cage!"
HUM—!!
A crimson spiderweb cage suddenly appeared out of thin air, carrying crushing pressure as it rapidly closed in on Tanjiro's body.
He couldn't dodge it.
He couldn't cut through it.
The scent of these threads was completely different from the ones before.
Tanjiro's heart jolted in shock. His eyes went blank as he stared forward.
I'm going to die…
I'm going to lose…
But I can't lose…
In that instant, countless memories from the past flooded through his mind like a final reel of life flashing before his eyes.
Until a man's voice echoed within him—
"…Tanjiro, you must pass down these earrings and the Kagura dance from generation to generation."
"…Promise me."
Rui, who had been ready to end the fight, suddenly sensed something change.
Within the cage of his Blood Demon Art, the boy's presence had shifted.
In less than a fraction of a second, Tanjiro's gaze sharpened, and the aura around him became dangerously intense.
HISSS—!
Scorching air surged through his lungs.
The Nichirin blade in his hands began to tremble with searing heat.
"…Hinokami Kagura — Dance."
The sword technique that had been flowing like water a moment ago suddenly transformed.
The surging Water Breathing form turned into a streak of crimson light—
as if a flame itself had been unleashed.
Rui's eyes narrowed.
He clearly hadn't expected his Blood Demon Art to be cut through by a swordsman who moments ago could barely stand.
Was it luck?
He fired more threads.
They sliced into the boy's shoulder and neck, cutting across his face—
yet Tanjiro didn't retreat.
Don't stop! Keep moving!
BOOM—!
With spinning strikes one after another, he shattered Rui's threads again and again.
The distance between them closed rapidly.
If I stop now… I'll never move again.
I have to fight!
I have to protect Nezuko!!
"AAAH—!!"
His blade moved faster.
Stronger.
The boy himself seemed to transform into a crimson fire dragon, charging forward in a desperate advance between life and death.
"This guy—!"
Rui was shocked.
He immediately leapt backward to widen the distance, unleashing more threads infused with his demon blood. A dense web of deadly traps spread across Tanjiro's path, trying to tear him apart.
But the distance kept shrinking.
The blade even sliced through Rui's clothing, making him feel the cold edge of death approaching.
Suddenly—
as Tanjiro closed in on the demon moon—
his eyes sharpened.
Ignoring everything, he swung his blade toward the one opening that could sever Rui's head through the killing web.
"Even if we both die here—"
"I'll kill you!!"
Facing such a suicidal charge, even Rui, a Lower Moon demon, felt a chill crawl up his spine.
What do I do?!
That blade is coming! No—he'll die before that!
My neck is incredibly tough. Even if he suddenly gained strength, there's no way he can cut through it instantly!
I'll kill him first!
Just as Rui hardened his resolve to kill Tanjiro before the broken Nichirin blade reached his neck—
he suddenly felt a wave of scorching heat.
"Blood Demon Art… Exploding Blood!"
BOOM—!!
The demon girl Nezuko, who had been strangled unconscious by Rui's threads, had somehow awakened.
She clenched her fist.
The blood that had flowed down along the threads suddenly ignited into flames.
In an instant, the blazing fire burned away the spider threads blocking Rui's path.
"That's impossible! My threads burned away?!"
CLANG!!
Tanjiro burst through the flames like a demon himself—yet completely unharmed.
His blade slammed hard against Rui's neck.
"The bond between Nezuko and me—!"
"No one can cut it apart!!"
SHRAAAK—!!
The broken Nichirin blade, coated in the demon girl's burning blood, sliced through Rui's neck like tearing cloth.
The Lower Rank Five's head flew into the air.
At that very moment, Asuka arrived at the scene.
From a distance, he saw the crimson blade slice through flesh.
He saw the head of the demon moon—radiating terrifying energy—fly high into the air.
"…What a powerful sword form."
A thought stirred in Asuka's mind.
This was a power worth learning.