People in Demon Slayer: The Journey That Began with Demon Slayer

Chapter 74 Unfavorable Battle Situation

When they first encountered Kyojuro Rengoku and Tanjiro, the Upper Moons of the Twelve Demon Moons, they felt a strong sense of oppression and demonic energy emanating from the tsukumogami.

"One is trash, the other is barely ant-like. Such a weakling, even that piece of trash, Nightmare, lost. I really don't know how he became one of the Twelve Demon Moons. What a disgrace!"

Ignoring the taunts of the zombies, Rengoku Kyojuro drew his Nichirin Blade: "Breath of Flame? First Form? Shiranui!"

Rengoku Kyojuro charged toward the tsukumogami with the force of a fiery explosion.

"Are you in such a hurry to die? There's still a long time before dawn. Let's have some fun. The show is about to begin, and the plot will gradually build to its climax! All the joys and sorrows will be presented!"

Come on...do your best to please me! Blood Demon Art? This is not it!

The tsukumogami used Blood Demon Art, and Rengoku Kyojuro, who was locked in combat with it, was extremely vigilant, but nothing happened.

Unable to concentrate, Rengoku Kyojuro had no choice but to continue fighting the tsukumogami.

Faced with a formidable enemy like the demon, Tanjiro drew his Nichirin Blade, preparing to support Kyojuro in the battle.

"Water Breathing? Seventh Form? ~Ripple Strike!"

Tanjiro came from the slope, like ripples on the water, and thrust in a straight line toward the tsukumogami fighting Kyojuro.

With a "clang," Tanjiro's Nichirin Blade made contact with the body of the tsukumogami, producing a metallic clanging sound.

Tanjiro's eyes glazed over, and the tsukumogami in front of him transformed into the likeness of Kyojuro Rengoku, his Nichirin Blade clashing with Kyojuro's.

Kyojuro Rengoku instantly understood what the Blood Demon Art of the Tsukumogami was all about, and just before the Tsukumogami attacked Tanjiro, he flung Tanjiro away.

"Tanjiro, don't be fooled by what you see. Humans and demons breathe differently. Feel the breath. The one that doesn't know how to breathe is a demon!"

Tanjiro, who had been thrown away by Kyojuro, got up from the ground and looked at the fighting Kyojuro Rengoku with a look of frustration on his face.

"Damn it! I dragged Mr. Purgatory down!"

Although Kyojuro Rengoku explained the weaknesses of the Blood Demon Art of the Tsukumogami, Tanjiro, who was in abdominal pain, was unable to calm down and feel the difference in breathing.

"Santaro! Are you alright?! What's going on with that guy?!" Inosuke, Nezuko, and the sleeping Zenitsu came to Tanjiro's side.

Tanjiro looked solemnly at the tsukumogami fighting Rengoku Kyojuro: "That's the Upper Moon Three of the Twelve Demon Moons!"

"A demon? Take this! Beast Breathing..." Inosuke immediately tried to launch an attack.

"Inosuke! Wait! Don't attack rashly! That Mr. Rengoku over there might not be Mr. Rengoku!" Tanjiro stopped him.

"What do you mean? Santaro, are you reciting a tongue twister?" Inosuke couldn't understand Tanjiro's meaning.

"That demon can confuse people's vision and cause them to hallucinate. The Rengoku you see right now might be the demon! The one using the breathing technique is the real Rengoku!" Tanjiro hurriedly explained.

"In that case, watch this! Beast Breathing? Seventh Form? Spatial Awareness!"

With his sensitive sense of touch, Inosuke can sense even the slightest vibration in the air if he concentrates.

"As expected of me! Found it! Beast Breathing? First Fang? Piercing Strike!"

Inosuke thrust both swords in one direction at once towards the fighting Rengoku Kyojuro.

A hand with sharp nails grabbed Inosuke's Nichirin Blade, and the figure of 'Rengoku Kyojuro' transformed into a tsukumogami, kicking Inosuke away.

Inosuke's actions inspired Tanjiro: "That's it! Since we can't distinguish the breathing techniques, let's rely on our sense of smell to sense the demon's aura! Zenitsu!"

Zenitsu, who also understands, uses his keen hearing to distinguish between demons and humans.

"Water Breathing? Form Three? Flowing Dance!"

"Thunder Breathing? First Form? Thunderclap Flash!"

"Beast Breathing? Eighth Form? Explosive Advance!"

Tanjiro and his two companions launched an attack on the tsukumogami simultaneously. Kyojuro Rengoku noticed this and tried to create an opportunity for Tanjiro and the others to attack.

"Breath of Flames? Fifth Form? Flame Tiger!"

The flames unleashed by Rengoku Kyojuro attacked the tsukumogami like a fiery tiger trying to seize its prey.

The tsukumogami was restrained by Kyojuro's Flame Tiger. Tanjiro and the other two's attacks hit the tsukumogami at the same time, but they were as if they had hit thin air, sliding off the tsukumogami's body and hitting the ground.

The powerful attack caused dust to rise from the ground, obscuring everyone's vision.

As the smoke cleared, the figure of the tsukumogami appeared a dozen meters away, looking at them mockingly: "You've got some skills! But isn't this what makes it fun? It would be so boring if you were taken down so easily."

Two puffs of white breath escaped from Inosuke's boar head mask as he arrogantly declared, "Your abilities are completely useless against me, the mountain king!"

The tsukumogami sneered, "Is that really the case? You seem to distinguish things by your sense of smell, hearing, touch, and feeling, right? Right now, I'm just manipulating your vision. Next, I'll make you completely lose these senses!"

"Blood Demon Art? Manipulation of the Five Senses!"

In everyone's sight, they all transformed into the appearance of tsukumogami, and at the same time, countless illusions of tsukumogami appeared all around.

Tanjiro tried to distinguish them by smell, but each one had a strong demonic scent, making it impossible to tell who was who.

Tanjiro and the others dared not make any rash moves, for fear of attacking their own people.

However, the tsukumogami launched the first attack. Tanjiro raised his sword to defend, but the tsukumogami's attack passed through the Nichirin Blade and did not harm Tanjiro.

"Fake? An illusion?"

Just as Tanjiro was wondering what was going on, the attack from the tsukumogami came again.

Tanjiro swung his sword to block once more, this time feeling a numbing sensation from the electric current emanating from the blade.

Zenitsu! It's me!

However, Tanjiro's calls went unanswered by Zenitsu.

Zenitsu, who was asleep, could only distinguish demons by hearing, but at this moment his hearing was disturbed. Tanjiro's call sounded like the mocking voice of a tsukumogami to Zenitsu.

Inosuke was the same; his once-proud sense of touch was completely ineffective, leaving him only able to wield his Nichirin Blade and attack haphazardly.

But the next second, Inosuke was pinned to the ground. Inosuke's sixth sense told him that it was Kyojuro Rengoku who had pinned him to the ground.

Faced with such a predicament, Kyojuro Rengoku's expression was very solemn. His method of distinguishing demons by breathing had failed, and in order to prevent Tanjiro and the other two from being accidentally injured by the attack of the 'Tsukumogami', he could only passively defend himself.

The situation in the battle gradually turned unfavorable.

Chapter 75 The Stalemate

The mocking voice of the tsukumogami reached Rengoku Kyojuro's ears: "I'm right in front of you, why don't you attack? Are you helpless? Let me tell you something, those three brats have already fought each other and are seriously injured and lying on the ground!"

Kyojuro Rengoku, however, showed no concern whatsoever: "I believe in the bond between Kamado, Zenitsu, and Inosuke! They won't hurt each other!"

Moreover, every ability has a weakness. Once you find that weakness, your Blood Demon Art can be broken!

The tsukumogami sneered, "Then... give it a try. If you make a mistake, the price will be death."

While constantly defending, Rengoku Kyojuro assessed the situation and analyzed the weaknesses of the Tsukumogami's Blood Demon Art.

Every Blood Demon Art requires a medium to be activated. For example, for Nightmare's Blood Demon Art to be successfully activated, she needs to make eye contact with someone.

So, as long as we find that medium, we can break the Blood Demon Art.

However, what troubles Rengoku Kyojuro at this moment is that his five senses have been manipulated, and even if the medium is right in front of him, he may not be able to detect it.

The more agitated Rengoku Kyojuro became, the more frequently the phantom attacks of the tsukumogami (spirits) increased.

Kyojuro Rengoku had a sudden inspiration and gradually emptied his mind. The frequency of the illusion attacks from the tsukumogami gradually decreased, and the outlines of the illusions in front of him gradually became blurred.

"I see. Your Blood Demon Art is less about manipulating the five senses and more about manipulating emotions. The effect of your Blood Demon Art is simply to make us believe that the person in front of us is the real you. As long as we suppress our emotions and empty ourselves, your Blood Demon Art will collapse on its own."

The tsukumogami didn't care at all: "Were you discovered? But so what? You've completely emptied yourself, which means you've given up your five senses. In this state, you can't even swing a sword."

Kyojuro Rengoku closed his eyes, completely emptied his mind, and stood motionless, as if he had given up resisting!

"Hmph, playing tricks! Since you've chosen to give up, it seems this show is over!"

The tsukumogami, with its five fingers together, used its hand as a knife to stab at Rengoku Kyojuro's heart.

"go to hell!"

Just before the tsukumogami's palm was about to strike, Rengoku Kyojuro's Nichirin Blade suddenly swung, severing the tsukumogami's palm.

The tsukumogami retreated repeatedly, its severed hand regenerating, its brow furrowed: "What's going on?! How can a human who has given up their five senses still swing a sword so accurately?!"

Kyojuro Rengoku opened his eyes, breaking the Blood Demon Art of the tsukumogami, and all the illusions before him vanished.

"Besides the five senses, humans have one more sense: instinct, which comes from relentless self-improvement and countless battles!"

The tsukumogami couldn't help but clap his hands: "Interesting, Flame Pillar of the Demon Slayer Corps, you've really surprised me. From beginning to end, you can count the number of people who can break my techniques on one hand, but as a human, you are the first."

However, just because you can break this Blood Demon Art doesn't mean others can. You should be able to sense the current state of those three brats, right?

At this moment, Tanjiro, Inosuke, and Zenitsu, unable to distinguish friend from foe, dared not use their full strength and could only fight timidly, which caused a slight ripple in Rengoku Kyojuro's heart.

"Your heart... has wavered! Blood Demon Art? Manipulation!"

Kyojuro Rengoku uncontrollably swung his Nichirin Blade, and a scorching flame shot towards Tanjiro and the other two.

"Quickly open!"

Although Kyojuro Rengoku broke free from control, it was too late to stop the flames from attacking.

Just as the flames were about to hit Tanjiro and his two companions, Nezuko suddenly appeared and kicked out the flames.

"Well done, little sister!"

The tsukumogami looked at Nezuko with a solemn expression. Nezuko had not been affected by its Blood Demon Art from beginning to end, which reminded it of Doma.

Doma was born without emotions, so the Blood Demon Art of the Tsukumogami had no effect on him. However, Nezuko in front of him clearly had her own emotions, and the Blood Demon Art of the Tsukumogami still had no effect.

The skeptical spirit unleashed its Blood Demon Art once more.

"Blood Demon Art? This is not what it seems!"

Nezuko's expression turned visibly angry, but the next second, flames erupted from her body, and her expression returned to a blank look.

Nezuko's flames spread to Tanjiro, and the three of them regained their senses.

"Zenitsu, Inosuke, are you alright?!"

"I'm fine! It's just so frustrating, I can't tell who's who at all! I'm going to give it a good beating!" Inosuke angrily exhaled two puffs of white breath from the pig's nostrils.

Although Zenitsu was still asleep, he answered as if in his sleep, "It's nothing..."

Tanjiro breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that his companions were safe and sound.