Demon Slayer: I am a Demon

Chapter 133 Is this the kind of person Miss Makomo sees? (Part 2/4)

"Water Breathing. Seventh Form: Shizuku Ripple Strike"

Makomo's movements were not only agile, but incredibly fast. In Teki's incredulous gaze, the Nichirin Blade sliced ​​through the cold blade and, before Teki could react, had already struck Teki's neck.

"clang!"

Ordinary demons, when their necks are slashed by a swordsman's Nichirin Blade, have no other option but to die.

But at this moment, the sharp blade struck the hand demon's neck, but the expected scene of flesh and blood separating did not occur. It was as if the blade was not striking flesh and blood, but striking hard rock, only cutting a slightly deeper mark on it.

"Swish swish——"

A sharp, piercing sound suddenly exploded in Makomo's ears. The Hand Demon's twisted, grotesque tentacles, like an enraged venomous python, swept towards Makomo with terrifying speed, accompanied by a muffled whistling sound.

While Makomo was shocked by the hardness of the Hand Demon's neck, she nimbly leaped and twirled among the giant tentacles, like a nimble bird. Despite the countless tentacles surrounding and attacking her, they never touched the hem of the girl's clothes.

"Water Breathing. First Form: Water Surface Slash"

The girl exhaled, landing on a tentacle. In an instant, her Nichirin Blade sliced ​​the tentacle in two. As the other two tentacles approached, she nimbly retreated far away, her eyes filled with shock as she stared at the Hand Demon.

Completely—completely unable to split the ghost's neck.

"Heh heh—that's the look in my eyes, the look that will soon turn to despair. I remember that flesh-haired boy, that boy who had no strength left, finally managed to seize an opportunity and slash at my neck, but he couldn't cut it open—"

"The scene of that boy's despair is still vivid in my mind."

"Hehehe————"

The Hand Demon laughed loudly: "That must be the Eye Rabbit you mentioned, right? Do you know how much pain he was in? So much pain—"

Makomo gritted her teeth, nimbly dodging a slashing tentacle. She listened to the demon's words, but her mind wavered, and the scene of Seito being cruelly harmed by the demon in front of her kept flashing through her mind.

Although I know I shouldn't be thinking about these things while fighting, the image of Sabito's cruel death inevitably surfaced in my mind as the Hand Demon described it.

It makes a young girl's heart restless and her breathing disordered.

"Bang bang bang—"

Tentacles slammed down, but the girl nimbly dodged them. The tentacles struck rocks, causing them to shatter; they struck trees, breaking them and leaving huge craters on the ground with each strike.

Makomo held the sword in one hand, dodging the attacks of the surrounding tentacles time and time again.

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.

"Splash!"

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. Fourth Form: Tide of Strike"

The sharp, light blue blade of the Nichirin Blade struck the demon's right neck once more, clanging and sparking.

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 not very useful.

The Nichirin Blade struck the demon's neck as if striking the hardest rock, unable to 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" level, they cannot maintain the breathing state indefinitely and can only persist for a few minutes. For example, Shinko is already very strong in breathing, but now, he 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 breathed heavily, took extremely fast steps, and leaped into the air. At this moment, even the axe blade seemed to shimmer with a scorching heat.

"Bang!"

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

This also prevented Zhen from getting injured in a direct confrontation.

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

The Hand Demon's head, covered in tumors, stared at Tanjiro, who was wielding an axe: "Truly—brave."

As he spoke, the Hand Demon's voice deepened, "Do you want to be devoured by me?"

"Hehehe————"

The Hand Demon suddenly burst into laughter again, pointing into the distance: "See? You should learn from your companions. They—they've 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 a sense of disappointment welled up inside 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 a feeling that the other person is different; perhaps deep down, there's a hope that the other person would—

This shouldn't have happened.

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 up—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—almost out of strength, huh? 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! Hate your master now!"

Makomo was panting heavily, her sweat-drenched black hair clinging 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!"

"Bang----"

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.

"Hehehe————"

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 understand.

"You—you're back? Didn't you already—already escape?"

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

"You should leave!"

Facing the Hand Demon, Su Mu turned to look 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 with bloodstains, but her eyes, at that moment, seemed bright.

"Is that how Ms. Makomo sees me? 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: "Hey, friend, your size is truly enormous."

The Hand Demon stared at its fellow demons with a puzzled expression: "Why? We're all the same kind, yet they don't attack you?"

"Friend, your neck's gotten stiff, but why's your brain gotten dull? When did I become like 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 before..."

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?"

"Help me with what?"

"I'll cut your neck off."

Su Mu grinned and said, "Your neck has been attached to your body for too long; it's time to break it off."

The hand ghost was stunned for a moment, then flew into a rage: "You're playing me?"

"Hey~ You just realized that? No wonder you're so dense."

Su Mu chuckled softly.

"choke!"

The blade was drawn, its sharp edge gleaming with a burning heat, and under the moonlight, it exuded a chilling aura.

To everyone's astonishment, Su Mu began to breathe. Despite being of the same kind, this fellow being seemed to breathe just like the swordsman who slays demons.

He even used the Nahura Blade like a swordsman.

"Breath of the Sun. First Form. Waltz"

Su Mu murmured softly, and in that instant, the Nichirin Blade in his hand slashed out, the blade radiating an extremely scorching aura.

"hateful----"

The Hand Demon was shocked and furious: "You can't cut my neck. Now, I'm going to tear your limbs apart, I'm going to shove your head into your ass, I'm going to—"

"Really? That sounds really exciting, but it's impossible now."

Su Mu spoke softly, and the terrifying blade was already on the hand ghost's neck.

He cannot, like Tanjiro in the anime, "sniff out weaknesses in battle," nor can he, like Tanjiro in the anime, sever the neck of a demon by cutting the "line of death."

But he is very strong and very fast.

Sufficient strength, combined with sufficient speed, and a sharp blade.

Not to mention a neck as hard as rock, even steel can be cut through it.

He relies purely on numbers.

"Snap!"

The blade sliced ​​through the hard, rock-like neck, severing it before the Hand Demon's incredulous gaze.

The head flew off, and the Hand Demon's massive body crashed to the ground, dust flying everywhere.

Su Mu's body fell down along with the Hand Ghost's body. A wisp of almost invisible red mist seeped into the Hand Ghost's body from the hand that was pressing against the blade, and then quickly returned.

As he drew his sword and sheathed it, his eyes grew even more bloodshot.

Turning back, he looked at Makomo Somu, who was about to help but had stopped and was staring at him in shock, and gave her a gentle smile: "Beautiful Makomo, you look quite disheveled right now."

Makomo looked at the smile on Su Mu's face, then at the severed neck of the demon, still finding it hard to believe.

"Sorry, I stole your kill."

He shrugged. "You won't blame me, will you? After all, a certain beautiful lady once said she wanted to end all this sorrow."

Seeing the man still smiling at her, the girl's face flushed involuntarily. She turned her head away, sheathed her Nichirin Blade, turned her back, and said stubbornly, "I just—made a mistake."

"I never expected it to be you..."

"That's amazing."