Following a blood trial, she came to the house at the entrance of the village while sending her Kasugai crow to report what's happened there.
As Kanae ventured deep into the village, she encountered a tall, imposing man standing in the passageway. He exuded a menacing aura despite the ever-present smile on his face while his hands held two folded fans.
"Oh? A girl? You look young... and delicious," he said, his rainbow-colored eyes gleaming as they scanned Kanae's figure, devoid of even a hint of shame.
His mouth was streaked with blood, and he stood beside a heap of women's corpses, most of whom were dead.
Looking at the corpses of young girls and women, Kanae raged as her eyes turned cold. Gripping her katana, she looked at the demon.
"Hi there! Nice to meet you! My name is Doma. A nice night, huh?" Doma cheerfully introduced himself.
"Help… me!" A faint cry came from the pile of corpses. One young girl sprang alive and scrambled forward, begging for help.
"Shh! I'm talking right now," Doma said, waving his fan lazily. A sharp gust flew toward the girl, but Kanae dashed in and pulled her away just in time.
But blood gushed from the young girl's throat, revealing a cut.
"You're fast, but not fast enough. You must be a Hashira," Doma mused. "I'm going to enjoy devouring you. Don't worry—you'll be part of me forever."
"You make me sick!" Kanae spat and used her breathing technique, 'Flower Breathing, Fourth Form: Crimson Hanagoromo.'
With breathtaking speed and elegance, she reached the demon and unleashed a powerful slash with all her strength. Her slash was quick and graceful with twists and curves.
Her target is the demon's head. She knew it was an Upper Moon Rank Two demon, but she wanted to take this chance and end the battle right here if it was possible.
Doma casually stepped back, allowing the blade to slice deep into his shoulder. But the wound recovered in an instant!
"Oh my! You are so strong!" Doma exclaimed while clapping his hands enthusiastically, but then he paused mid-clap and pressed a finger to his bottom lip, pretending to ponder.
"You're so rude, though! You didn't even introduce yourself properly!" he scolded, feigning anger.
Without caring about his exaggerated expression and words, Kanae charged and attacked again. This time, she used 'Fifth Form: Peonies of Futility'.
At the right distance, she unleashed a flurry of nine consecutive sword swings that flowed and weaved in on themselves.
Doma avoided the strikes with ease, smiling and commenting, "Your attacks are pretty. Show me your other forms!" he used his Blood Demon Art: Barren Hanging Garden.
Kanae barely fends off with her Flower Breathing, Second Form: Honorable Shadow Plum. Several rotating sword slashes deflected the ice shards.
"It's rude not to answer when asked. And, you know it's pointless, you can't defeat me. Why don't you give up?" He showed a grinning smile while waving his fan.
"My name's Kanae Kocho! Flower Hashira. As a Hashira, it's my duty to slay the demons. If I give up, who will protect the innocents from demons like you?" Kanae's eyes blazed with unwavering resolve.
He pouted, "Well, if you say so, Kanae-chan. I'm going to enjoy absorbing your body when we're done with this pointless fight."
Kanae knows she may die today because no Hashira has ever defeated the Upper Moon for centuries. She wasn't that arrogant to think she could slay one.
If possible, she wants to delay until sunrise. She wasn't afraid of death, but at the same time, she didn't want to leave her sister alone in the world.
Doma who was passive till now, took action. At a speed too quick for the eye to process, he charged at Kanae while waving his fan.
Kanae jumped back, dodging Doma's attack. In mid-air, she spun around and delivered a series of powerful slashes using her body weight.
"Freezing Clouds!" Doma cried, waving his fans. A wave of freezing wind surged forward, and with another wave, he scattered it across the area.
The air turned deathly cold, freezing the ground and buildings nearby. As the technique had a long reach, it affected Kanae by freezing her sword and some strands of her hair.
If she hadn't reacted quickly, she would have turned into an icicle by now. 'He's strong!'
Just now, she discovered that her breathing was getting disordered. 'It's the cold. I shouldn't breathe in too much, otherwise, it will prove fatal!'
--
Just as Kanae and Doma were fighting, Ryou who arrived shortly after Kanae watched the battle from a distance by masking his presence and body.
'She's good, better than Shinobu of the future. Not reckless. Her breathing forms are perfect, and she's intelligent enough to stall for time.' Ryou mused.
'But against Doma, she has no chance. He's simply playing with his prey so that he can enjoy better.' Ryou played countless battle strategies in his mind.
Kanae survives till now because she's a girl. If he intervenes, it's a different matter. The Upper Moon will try to eliminate him at the fastest time possible for interrupting his play.
'There's still time for sunrise. Since she survived in the original work, it's not a problem.' Ryou lay in wait for the right opportunity and time.
--
Fifteen minutes passed,
With top-notch evasive maneuvers and quick steps, Kanae managed to avoid Doma's attacks and inflicted deep wounds on him. But, everything is for naught.
As an Upper Moon demon, his recovery ability is on another level. He recovered from all the attacks at finger-snapping speed.
On the other hand, Doma was slowly getting frustrated by Kanae's evading strategy. He wants her complete body, it's the reason why he hadn't used his entire strength.
But, he's losing his patience as his attacks slowly grow deadlier while his Blood demon art increases in power.
Evading Kanae's powerful slash, 'Scattering Lotuses', Doma swung his fan, creating a blizzard of long-ranged, razor-sharp ice shards shaped like lotus petals.
Blood splashed! Kanae failed to completely block his attacks. Her shoulder and leg were injured while blood flowed from her wounds, drenching her haori.
She started panting with exhaustion as the cold affected her breathing. It prevented her from exploding with a hundred percent of her strength.
Kanae narrowed her eyes while she maintained the Total Concentrating Breathing: Constant with difficulty. 'Maybe this is it for me...One last time...I should at least bring this Demon with me to Hell!'
Putting every ounce of her strength into the attack, Kanae performed her Flower Breathing, First Form: Withering Rose.