His voice carried an unexpected note of apology—an apology directed at the very demon he had just killed.
The warmth of his hand and the quiet sorrow in his voice stunned Ling Yuzi.
She vaguely remembered that, when her father was still alive, he used to stroke her head just like this—with the same warmth.
Her father's hands had always been warm. Even in the coldest winters, as long as he gently patted her head like that, Ling Yuzi never felt cold.
That warmth had always reassured her… and now, once again, it made her feel at peace.
Ling Yuzi stopped crying and screaming. She lifted her eyes to look at the red-haired boy—the boy who had killed her. And strangely, she felt no hatred.
After all… it was true. She had eaten too many people.
It might have been out of hunger, but that didn't change the fact. Eating humans was always wrong.
In the final moment of her existence, Ling Yuzi remembered who she had once been—just a human girl.
Then, for reasons she couldn't explain, she suddenly said to the young man:
"Be careful… that man… he wants to kill you…"
After saying this, Ling Yuzi's body finally dissolved into a mist of bloody ashes and disappeared.
…
Takeo stood in silence, gazing at the spot where Ling Yuzi had vanished.
The reason he had tortured this Lower Moon wasn't solely to extract Muzan Kibutsuji's whereabouts. While that was certainly part of it, he had also wanted to vent the anger and grief of losing a friend.
But after carrying out the torture—after hearing Ling Yuzi's cries and final words—Takeo's heart softened again.
He knew he shouldn't feel sympathy for demons. He understood that well.
But… it's all right to be a little more merciful to a ghost who's already dead.
That was why he had stroked Ling Yuzi's head in the end. He hadn't expected that such a small, hypocritical gesture of kindness at the moment of death would end up bringing him something unexpected.
Ling Yuzi had told him something important.
Muzan Kibutsuji wanted him dead.
"Wants to kill me? Why?" Takeo looked up at the sky, rain still falling steadily, and asked aloud in confusion.
The fact that one of the Twelve Kizuki had been given specific instructions to target him meant that Muzan's "kill order" was aimed directly at him—Takeo.
But why?
There were many people in the Demon Slayer Corps. Many had slain members of the Twelve Demon Moons. And yet, Takeo had never heard of any demon pursuing a Hashira just to kill them.
So why him?
Why was it Takeo that Muzan Kibutsuji had singled out?
Come to think of it, the two of them had never met—so how did Muzan Kibutsuji even know of Takeo's existence?
Was there some kind of special communication method shared between the Twelve Demon Moons?
As he pondered this, Takeo suddenly regretted killing Ling Yuzi. He should have asked more questions.
But there was no helping it. Ling Yuzi had taken to the skies, and since Takeo couldn't fly, he had no choice but to kill her before she escaped completely.
There had been no time to hesitate, so he struck immediately. The seventh form of Wolf Breathing released a shock wave that sliced through the air like a crescent moon and decapitated Ling Yuzi mid-flight.
Originally, he had only intended to stop her. After all, a shock wave wasn't the same as the Nichirin Blade itself—he hadn't expected it would be enough to kill a demon.
What surprised him was that the shock wave released from his Nichirin Sword actually had the power to end a demon's life.
Later, Takeo realized why.
The power of the [Shock Wave] skill was tied to his own weapon and strength. The shock wave would cause damage equal to what Takeo himself could inflict with his blade.
And since he was using a Sun Blade, the shock wave carried the same properties—meaning it was naturally effective against demons.
That was why it could kill Ling Yuzi.
Without the shock wave, he might have only succeeded in severing her head from her body, but not in killing her. She would have regenerated, used her Blood Demon Art again, and continued to run.
In this expedition against the Twelve Demon Moons, Takeo had failed.
"…I can't keep doing this."
Takeo muttered inwardly.
In the end, Ling Yuzi had only given him a warning—she hadn't revealed Muzan Kibutsuji's location. This alone suggested that the Twelve Kizuki most likely didn't know Muzan Kibutsuji's whereabouts. It was even possible that not a single one of them had any idea where the Ghost King was hiding.
It seemed no one knew the location of that cautious and elusive ruler of demons.
So from now on, asking demons about Muzan Kibutsuji's whereabouts would be pointless.
If he encountered a demon, he would simply kill it.
There was no need for lengthy questioning. No need for interrogation or torture.
Just decapitate them—end it quickly, and make sure no demon ever escaped his blade.
If he ever let a demon slip through his fingers again, he would never be able to face Iori or Chendou at their graves.
"…I should be a Hashira now."
Standing in the rain, Takeo looked up, letting the raindrops fall on his face, and spoke softly to himself.
Senior Fang He…
I've become a Hashira.
He whispered the words in his heart, as if speaking to someone no longer among the living.
...
The news of the birth of the tenth hashira in the history of the Demon Slayer Corps spread to all places via the Demon Slayer Corps' crows the next day.
In less than a week, this news will spread to all members of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Wolf Hashira, Takeo Kamado.
If this matter gets out, it will definitely greatly boost the morale of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Because throughout history, except for the founding of the Demon Slayer Corps and the generation that created the breathing method, the nine Hashiras have never been complete.
There were even several generations where all the Hashiras were elderly people, and the Demon Slayer Corps was almost in a state of transition.
Only in this generation, the unprecedented tenth Hashira was born!
_________
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