Demon Slayer: I am a Demon.

The girl took a step, leaped up from the ground, landed on the tree next to her, stepped on the leaves, and sped forward again as the leaves swayed.

'Splashing'

The leaves only started to sway after Makomo stepped on them.

As Makomo approached the Hand Demon again, she dodged another tentacle by somersaulting to the side, ran around the Hand Demon a few steps, and then jumped again.

The petite figure appeared almost instantly behind the Hand Demon.

"Water Breathing. First Form: Water Surface Slash"

The sharp blade slashed again, landing on the back of the hand demon's neck.

"clang!"

Sparks flew as the sharp blade struck the back of the neck, producing only bursts of sparks.

The hand demon's neck was too hard; it was impossible to cut it open.

"Boom boom boom..."

Several tentacles lashed out at Makomo again, but Makomo dodged the attack like a bird, leaving only afterimages in the air. When she reappeared, she was already on the right side of the demon.

"Water Breathing. Unleashed Form: Tide of Strike"

The sharp, light blue blade of the Nichirin Blade struck the Hand Demon's right neck once more, making a clanging sound and sending sparks flying.

Under the moonlight, the massive figure of the Hand Demon swung its almost impenetrable tentacles, bombarding Makomo as if a giant net had completely enveloped the girl.

But the girl's figure was like the most agile flying fish, always able to move freely through the gaps in the large net.

Occasionally, she would find an opportunity to appear near the Hand Demon's neck and unleash a sharp slash, almost always landing on the Hand Demon's neck.

but……

It's useless.

When the Nichirin Blade struck the demon's neck, it was like striking the hardest rock; it couldn't cleave it at all. As for severing the demon's tentacles, they would heal quickly thanks to the demon's powerful regenerative abilities.

If you can't cut open the ghost's neck, you can't kill it; everything seems to be stuck in a vicious cycle.

As for swordsmen whose 'breathing' has not yet reached the 'full concentration.', they cannot maintain the 'breathing' state indefinitely and can only sustain it for a few minutes. For example, Makomo is already very strong in 'breathing,' but now, she can only maintain it for about thirty minutes at most.

Once thirty minutes have passed, one must exit the 'breathing' state.

Exiting the 'breathing' state means that one can no longer maintain physical abilities comparable to a demon, and can only be considered an ordinary person.

Ordinary people cannot face evil spirits whose physical abilities exceed the limits of the human body. Moreover, the evil spirit in front of us is no ordinary evil spirit.

Makomo kept dodging, but her constant dodging always gave her an opening.

Makomo lightly touched the ground with her feet and leaped again, dodging the tentacle that was slashing at her, but then faced another tentacle attacking her from mid-air.

People are in the air and can no longer find any leverage.

Makomo gritted her teeth, ready to fight head-on, but she knew in her heart that if she got injured in the fight, she would probably soon be in a very disadvantageous situation.

Demons can make countless mistakes.

But she could never make a mistake.

Seeing the tentacles coming at him, Makomo gripped her Nichirin Blade tightly, preparing to meet them head-on.

"Breath of the Sun. First Form. Waltz"

Tanjiro was also 'breathing', taking extremely fast steps, and leaping into the air. At this moment, even the axe blade seemed to shimmer with a scorching heat.

"boom!"

With a single swing of the axe, the tentacle that was attacking Makomo was severed, and blood splattered everywhere.

This also saved Makomo from the possibility of getting injured in a direct confrontation.

"Another...another brat has come, and he's not even running away."

The demon's head, covered in tumors, stared at Tanjiro, who was wielding an axe:

"That's really... brave."

As he spoke, the Hand Demon's voice was low and deep: "Do you want to be devoured by me?"

"Jie Jie..."

The Hand Demon suddenly burst into laughter again, pointing into the distance: "See? You should learn from your companions. They... all retreated very far."

Makomo and Tanjiro turned their heads and found that Su Mu had already retreated to a great distance with Kanao, seemingly not intending to get involved and appearing ready to escape at any moment.

Makomo lowered her eyes slightly, her grip on the Nichirin Blade tightening a little. Although she didn't care that Su Mu would escape, she even hoped that he would, so that she might survive.

But deep down

Yet a sense of disappointment welled up within me.

Why the disappointment?

Even though the other person is clearly doing the right thing, going forward now to face a demon whose neck cannot be severed would only be suicide, a very irrational act. So why the disappointment? Perhaps, deep down, there's always a feeling that the other person is different, or perhaps, there's a hope that the other person would…

There shouldn't be such expectations...

Makomo gently stroked the blade of the Nichirin Blade, feeling its coolness. It was supposed to be my job to protect them.

"Tanjiro...you should leave too."

Makomo flipped and leaped to the side. A huge tentacle, like a venomous python, brushed past the girl's hair. As the girl's petite figure passed Tanjiro, the blade of her Nichirin Blade slashed out instantly, severing a tentacle that was slashing towards Tanjiro. At the same time, she whispered, "Hurry... run for your life."

"call……"

Tanjiro breathed heavily and couldn't help but glance at the adult again. The adult seemed to have retreated even further, as if he was saying something to Kanao.

He lowered his eyes and looked at Makomo, who was fighting the demon. The boy gritted his teeth. How could he abandon his companion?

Moreover, he was destined for the path of ghost hunting.

Ghost hunting is a path fraught with death.

"kill!"

Tanjiro gripped his axe tightly, his steps hurried, and he swung the axe at the demon under the moonlight.

…………

Neither Tanjiro nor Makomo could cleave the hand demon's neck, nor could they sever the demon's neck; both of them would face certain death.

Makomo bit her lip, her eyes filled with disappointment and pain.

She ultimately failed her master's expectations, and like her senior brothers, sisters, and Sabito, she could never go back.

"Hehehe... He's almost out of strength, isn't he? How pitiful. I can't wait to see what kind of expression Urokodaki will have when he hears the news of his disciple's death."

"Hehehe... It's all Urokodaki's fault! It's all Urokodaki's fault that you all died, quickly hate your master."

Makomo was panting heavily, her black hair, damp with sweat, clung to the girl's forehead. She gripped the hilt of her sword tightly, her voice firm: "It has never, ever been Master Urokodaki's fault."

"Ha...really, every Urokodaki disciple I've devoured is like that. They're all the same, just like you, so devoted to Urokodaki! But that's precisely why they're so delicious to devour!"

"boom……"

Another tentacle slashed out. Makomo had lost her initial speed, and her leaping steps slowed down. She was directly struck by the tentacle, and the girl's petite figure fell to the ground like a broken butterfly, her clean clothes covered in mud.

Beside him, Tanjiro had already been knocked to the ground by another hand demon's tentacles, and was getting up again with a slight pain. This boy was much more resilient than he had imagined.

Makomo, too, struggled to her feet.

"Jie Jie..."

The Hand Demon laughed loudly. Although neither Makomo nor Tanjiro had died, the ending could no longer be changed.

"Now, it's time to enjoy the food."

Cruelty and excitement gleamed in the Hand Demon's crimson eyes.

"Hey friend."

A sudden sound came from behind, making the Hand Ghost pause slightly and turn around. The person who had just escaped had actually returned.

The Hand Demon sensed the presence of its kind within it.

This puzzled the not-so-bright Hand Demon's mind. This person was just with Makomo and Tanjiro. A demon standing with demon hunters without being attacked was hard for Hand Demon to believe.

"You...how did you come back? Didn't you...already escape?"

Makomo gripped her Nichirin Blade, looking at Su Mu who appeared behind the Hand Demon: "Didn't you... already escape?"

"You should leave!"

Facing the Hand Demon, Su Mu turned his head and looked at Makomo: "Beautiful Makomo, why do you speak so rudely?"

Am I that kind of person?

He shrugged, his dark eyes looking at the girl's clean clothes now covered in filth, her once pristine face now filthy and stained with blood, but her eyes, at that moment, seemed bright.

"Does that mean I am that kind of person in Ms. Makomo's eyes? That's really heartbreaking."

Stared at by those eyes, Makomo inexplicably dared not meet their gaze and turned her head away: "You should leave now. I can hold it off for a while longer. Don't say any more nonsense."

Hey~

Su Mu chuckled and explained, "I just wanted to make sure my most precious little Kanao was safe first, so she wouldn't be harmed by the aftermath of the battle."

"I never intended to run away."

He spoke with a smile, his hand already resting on the hilt of his Nichirin Blade at his waist. He looked up at the enormous hand demon before him and said, "Hey, friend, your size is truly enormous."

The Hand Demon stared at its fellow demons in confusion: "Why? We're all the same kind of beings, yet they don't attack you?"

"Friend, your neck's gotten stiff, does that mean your brain's gotten dull? When did I become one of you?"

The Hand Ghost looked puzzled.

"Friend, you're clearly my boss! How can you be one of us?"

Su Mu suddenly whispered.

"Um...I've received it..."

The Hand Ghost was puzzled again, as he had never taken any ghosts as his underlings.

While the Hand Ghost was still wondering, Su Mu had already leaped up: "Boss, let me help you?"