Night had fallen once again, and the forest was lively with activity. Six children had gathered here.
"Hehehe, Sakura lost! You're it—you have to come catch us!"
A little boy grinned mischievously at the girl wearing a cherry-blossom hairpin.
"O–Okay… but don't hide too far away. I'm a little scared…"
Sakura glanced at the dark, silent surroundings and spoke hesitantly to the other five children.
"Don't worry, we'll hide nearby. You'll find us in no time,"
one of the boys said confidently, patting his chest.
"Mm!"
Sakura nodded, her mood lifting slightly.
She turned around, leaned against a tree, closed her eyes, and began counting.
"Where should we hide?" one child whispered to the boy.
The boy didn't answer. He simply grinned and pointed toward the top of a large tree.
The others immediately understood. The five of them ran to the tree, helped each other climb up, and settled onto different branches.
"Hehehe, now Sakura won't be able to find us, and we're still close to her,"
the boy said smugly.
The others nodded in agreement.
"Twenty-nine—"
Sakura finished counting and opened her eyes, only to find that all her friends had vanished.
"I'm coming to find you!"
She looked around and shouted, hoping to hear some movement—but the forest remained silent.
Everyone's hiding really well…
she thought, then picked a direction and started searching.
Up in the tree, the five children watched her run off, covering their mouths as they stifled laughter. Only after she was gone did they quietly giggle.
After a while, the boy spoke again.
"When Sakura comes back this way, we'll climb down. If she can't find us for too long, she'll probably get scared and cry."
The others agreed.
Elsewhere, Sakura searched for a long time but still found no one.
"Where did everyone hide…?"
The quiet surroundings made her increasingly uneasy.
"Going out at night will make you run into demons!"
An old woman's warning from the town suddenly echoed in her mind. She swallowed nervously, fear tightening her chest.
Maybe… maybe I should go back…
Just as that thought arose, the sound of footsteps reached her ears in the silent night.
"Ahhh!!!"
Already frightened, Sakura screamed and squeezed her eyes shut.
"That sounded like Sakura."
The five children heard her scream as well.
"Did she run into danger?" one of them asked worriedly.
"Let's go down and look for her!"
The boy who had suggested hiding in the tree spoke up and slid down first. The others followed.
The five children ran in the direction Sakura had gone.
"Little girl, what happened?"
A magnetic voice reached Sakura's ears.
Hearing it, she cautiously opened her eyes. A tall young man was walking toward her—dressed in black, wearing a black-and-white hat, with a pale complexion and plum-red eyes.
Oh… it's just a person.
Relieved, Sakura spoke shyly,
"Sorry, mister… I—I thought there was a demon just now."
The young man's eyes flickered slightly. He smiled gently.
"I see. Why are you still outside so late?"
With another "person" nearby, Sakura felt less afraid. She smiled and replied,
"I'm playing catch-the-demon with my friends. I lost rock–paper–scissors, so I had to be the one who catches them. But they're hiding too well—I can't find anyone."
The young man reached out and patted her head.
"So that's how it is. But why is it humans catching demons, instead of demons catching humans?"
Sakura looked up at him in confusion.
The young man smiled and lightly tapped her forehead with his right index finger.
In the next instant, the smile vanished from his face, replaced by cold indifference. His fingernail suddenly extended, piercing straight through Sakura's forehead.
"AAAAAH!!!"
After nearly ten seconds of agonized screaming, Sakura's appearance began to change. Her teeth sharpened, and her nails grew long.
Only then did the young man withdraw his finger.
This man, wearing a human guise, was none other than the progenitor of demons—Kibutsuji Muzan.
"Search here for the Blue Spider Lily. If you encounter Demon Slayers, kill them,"
Muzan said coldly, simultaneously imprinting the knowledge of the Blue Spider Lily into her mind.
Overwhelmed by the pressure of his bloodline, Sakura did not dare disobey. She knelt on the ground and answered respectfully. At this point, her memories as a human had already vanished completely.
"Sakura—Sakura—…"
Voices approached from afar. The other five children had arrived.
"We found her!"
In the darkness, they failed to notice Sakura's transformation. Calling out happily, they ran toward her.
Having just become a demon and still extremely weak, Sakura began to drool uncontrollably at the sight of the five children.
"Go," Muzan said indifferently.
At his command, Sakura immediately lunged at them.
Only then did the children realize something was wrong—but it was too late. The child running in front had his neck snapped in an instant, and his clothes began to corrode.
"A—a monster!!!"
The remaining children trembled and tried to flee, but their strength was nothing compared to a demon's. Screams rang out one after another as blood splattered everywhere.
"Being able to use a Blood Demon Art immediately after turning… not bad talent. You might even enter the Twelve Kizuki someday,"
Muzan remarked calmly.
Losing interest, he turned and left.
The screams faded, replaced by the sound of flesh being gnawed.
After some time, the children's parents came searching through the forest. By then, the Corrosion Demon had eaten her fill. Faint remnants of memory allowed her to recognize her brother, so she did not appear.
Carrying the remains she hadn't finished eating, she leapt onto a thick tree, corroded the trunk, and hid inside—thus avoiding the daylight sun.
Three days later, when her human memories had completely disappeared, she emerged once more upon sensing the scent of her blood relative…
In the silent forest, only Kazuki remained, standing under the moonlight, gripping the boy's discarded outer garment in his hand.
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