Demon Slayer: My breathing technique went awry after Nezuko pushed me down.

"The First Form..."

Pink flames flickered on the blade, emitting a soft "humming" sound.

The short sword, originally only the length of a forearm, was now covered by a thick layer of pink energy that looked like it was burning. That energy continued to extend forward, condense, and take shape...

In the blink of an eye, a giant energy blade, over ten meters long and composed entirely of pink flames, appeared in Bai Chuanyu's hand!

Urokodaki: "?!!"

Tanjiro: "!??"

The outline of the giant blade vaguely retains the shape of a Nichirin Blade. As Shirakawa Yu slowly raises the blade, the pink light appears exceptionally brilliant, dazzling, and magnificent in the night sky!

The same image reflects the terrified expression on the ghost's face under the tree, as well as Shirakawa Yu's serious profile.

No!!! No!!!

Ghost Head's heart-wrenching screams were met only with a cold laugh, "Heh~ Too late."

"Type One - Heroine!"

The moment the shout fell, Shirakawa Yu moved!

There are no complicated footwork, no dazzling combos, it's just the simplest, most direct, and most violent strike—a vertical slash!

The short sword covered with a pink giant blade, with an aura that seemed capable of splitting mountains, slashed down fiercely from above!

The first to suffer was the tree with the ghost head nailed to it; it suddenly split open, starting from the crown!

The temple demon roared, its eyes rolling upwards as it tried to see what was happening above.

But the next second, the pink giant blade sliced ​​through the demon's forehead, nose, and mouth without any resistance...

"Do not--!!!"

The temple ghost only had time to let out a short scream before it was precisely cleaved into two even halves!

It turned to ashes on its own.

Tanjiro's hand axe, which was stuck around his neck, was also split in two and fell to the ground.

However, the giant blade's slashing force remained undiminished, as if cutting through tofu, and crashed heavily to the ground amidst the booming sound of the tree trunk breaking!

Boom!!!

Dust flew everywhere, and bits of grass were scattered all over the place.

This strike not only cleaved the ghost head and the tree he was standing in, but also split a large tree directly behind him, which required two people to hug, in two!

On the ground, there is a jagged ravine several meters long and half a foot deep!

The soil at the edge of the gully was charred black, as if burned by high temperatures, with faint pink specks of light scattered about.

Crack... Boom!

The split tree slowly fell to both sides, crashing to the ground with a dull thud.

Quiet.

A deathly silence.

Urokodaki Sakonji stood still, his tengu mask facing the ditch and the fallen trees, as if he had become a sculpture.

Beneath the mask, the corner of his left eye was twitching incessantly.

What... what kind of power is this?!

As a half-master, Urokodaki knew very well how strong Shirakawa Yu's body was, and the power contained in this strike... was definitely not something he could unleash.

In other words, the giant blade formed from pink flames not only extended the attack range, but more importantly, it unleashed absolute power in an instant!

The power of that attack just now far exceeded that of an ordinary Demon Slayer Corps member, and even... it was close to the level of a "Pillar"!

He stared blankly at Bai Chuanyu, who was panting heavily, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down, but he couldn't utter a single word.

This kid... this silly boy who, under my tutelage, couldn't even touch the water breathing valve after eight months...

Just now, in the short time he was tackled by the little ghost girl, he not only created his own breathing technique, but he actually... created such a powerful move?!

How is that possible?!

What kind of breathing technique is that pinkish aura he exudes?

Could it be... that I really have misled the younger generation?

Actually, he's a genius?

Tanjiro was completely dumbfounded.

His mouth was agape, his jaw almost dropping to the ground, and his crimson pupils were filled with the question, "Who am I? Where am I? What am I seeing?"

Humans...can human power achieve this level?

One slash... splitting such a thick tree in half? And cutting such a deep trench in the ground?

Is this really something a human could do? Not a ghost? Not a god?

Amidst the shock to his worldview... for some reason, Tanjiro felt a strange sense of familiarity as he watched the pink giant blade slashing.

The blade grows larger... and slashes with tremendous force...

The image of his petite younger sister suddenly growing bigger and then forcefully kicking the ghost's head away is slightly similar to that of his sister.

Tanjiro suddenly turned his head to look at Nezuko, who was being protected behind him and was also curiously peeking out to see what was happening.

Nezuko blinked her big pink eyes, looking at the cleavage, then at Shirakawa Yu's smug expression, and there seemed to be a little bit of... confusion on her little face?

"Cough cough!"

Suppressing his inner elation, Shirakawa Yu coughed twice, dispelling the last trace of pink aura from the dagger and restoring it to its original state.

He turned around, his slightly pale face bearing an undisguised smile.

"Master, how was it? I didn't lie to you, did I?" He handed the dagger back to Urokodaki, who was still in a daze. "How was my 'Heroine' move?"

Shirakawa Yu shamelessly attributed the system's achievements to himself.

Urokodaki mechanically took the short sword, but the slightly warm touch of the hilt brought him back to his senses.

He looked down at the knife, then up at Shirakawa Yu, then at the ditch and the fallen tree...

After a long silence, he finally managed to squeeze out a few words: "...so-so."

But anyone could hear the shock beneath that cold, hard tone.

This kid... might really be a monster.

Tch~ That stubborn old man who doesn't mean what he says, he won't even give me a single compliment!

Just as Shirakawa Yu was pouting and inwardly cursing this old tsundere...

The sky was beginning to lighten with the first light of dawn.

Chapter 5 Nezuko's 'Ownership'!

The faint morning light began to dispel the darkness in the forest.

"Huh?" Nezuko, who had been sitting quietly, suddenly shuddered.

Her pink eyes looked at the gradually brightening sky, revealing a clear sense of unease.

She stopped paying attention to Bai Chuanyu, turned around, took a step, and instantly transformed into a pink blur as she rushed into the temple, her movements as fast as a startled little rabbit.

"Nezuko!" Tanjiro rushed in first.

Urokodaki and Shirakawa Yu exchanged a glance and then followed them inside.

The temple was dimly lit, but in the shadows of a corner, Shirakawa Yu spotted the simple bamboo basket at a glance.

Inside the bamboo basket, Nezuko had shrunk in size and become a little bean in the shape of a child, and was curled up obediently inside.

Two small, white, and tender hands clung to the edge of the basket, half of its little head peeking out from the edge of the bamboo basket, its big pink eyes blinking, like a little animal hiding in its nest, so cute that it melted your heart.

Shirakawa Yu glanced at the three villagers' corpses on the ground, murdered by demons.

He noticed that Nezuko didn't even glance at the corpses anymore, as if they were just ordinary stones and wood.

That's good news.

Urokodaki noticed this as well, and his eyes flickered slightly beneath the mask.

He walked over to the three corpses and stared at them silently for a while.

"Tanjiro, Shirakawa Yu," he said, "Let's bury them..."

"Yes!" *2

The burial process is silent.

The three of them found a relatively flat and dry spot next to the temple and dug a hole with the simple tools they could find.

Shirakawa Yu had just "exploded" and was somewhat exhausted, so he wasn't much faster at digging than Tanjiro, who hadn't trained.

Urokodaki's movements were the most steady and fastest; every shovelful of soil seemed to carry a certain rhythm.

No one speaks.

The only sounds were the rustling of soil and increasingly heavy breathing.

The three mutilated bodies were carefully placed into the pit, filled with soil, and a simple grave was built.

There was no name, no tombstone, only three irregularly shaped stones standing in front of the grave as a marker.

The three stood in front of the grave, with Urokodaki bowing first.

Tanjiro followed closely behind.

Shirakawa Yu has also been unusually quiet lately, not doing anything silly.

But his silence was not due to overflowing sympathy or a saintly heart.

He had little sympathy for strangers in this country.

All he felt was a sense of感慨 (gǎnkǎi, a complex emotion encompassing feelings, emotions, and reflections).

If you don't have the system or the chance to find Urokodaki.