Yoriichi Tsugikuni did not waver at the appearance of Kokushibō. His resolve remained unchanged—Muzan Kibutsuji was still the primary target.
At this moment, Muzan cowered behind the three demons. The wound on his shoulder, inflicted by Yoriichi's blade, still had not healed. Fear and fury twisted his face.
Muzan's murderous gaze fixed on Yoriichi. "So that's it. The courage you show in facing me—it all rests on this one human? Very well. Allow me to grant you true despair! Amanojaku!"
From the shadows stepped Amanojaku—a demon with long black-brown hair, a third eye on his forehead, clad in the garb of an onmyōji. Bringing his hands together, he chanted:
"Blood Demon Art: Eye Reversal!"
His third eye radiated a violet-black light that spread across the ground beneath Yoriichi's feet.
"Breath of the Sun, Third Form: Setting Sun Transformation!"
Yoriichi swung his blade in a blazing crimson arc, carving a massive fissure into the earth. The violet-black light evaporated instantly.
Amanojaku clutched his third eye in agony. "Muzan-sama! This human's attacks restrain my art. I need Aobōzu's aid!"
Muzan turned to another demon. "Aobōzu!"
"Yes, my lord!"
Clad in blue robes, his skin a mottled brown-black, with a single horn protruding from his forehead and wooden fish in hand, Aobōzu began striking his instrument with deliberate rhythm.
Yosuke's brows furrowed. Something was wrong. Yoriichi's attacks so naturally countered Muzan's existence—yet Muzan was not fleeing? Why?
A chill of dread crept over Yosuke's heart. He decided immediately: the two assisting demons must not be allowed to hinder Yoriichi.
"Blood Demon Art: Dark Binding!"
Countless ropes of blood wove together and lashed out to ensnare Amanojaku and Aobōzu.
But Muzan shattered the attack with ease. Tendrils of thorned whips lashed out from his back, striking relentlessly at Yosuke.
"Yosuke Ubuyashiki," Muzan sneered, "these three demons were prepared for you. But who would have thought a human capable of threatening me would appear? Your so-called hope rests on him, doesn't it? Once I erase him, what will you have left to oppose me?"
Yosuke ignored Muzan's taunts. He had faith in Yoriichi, yet demons empowered by Muzan's own blood wielded twisted, unpredictable arts. Any misstep could prove fatal.
"Blood Demon Art: Blood Clone!"
Against Muzan's whipping strikes, Yosuke created a duplicate of himself formed entirely of blood, while his true body slipped backward in an instant.
Muzan's attack struck the clone. Yosuke immediately drew back, intending to regroup with Yoriichi and cut down all three demons.
But then—
"Breath of the Moon, Fourteenth Form: Catastrophe, Tenman Crescent Moon!"
Kokushibō swung his demonic blade, conjured from his own flesh, unleashing a storm of massive crescent blades. Enormous arcs of moonlight roared toward Yosuke, threatening to crush him between Kokushibō ahead and Muzan behind.
Yosuke had no choice but to raise his sword in defense.
Meanwhile, Yoriichi struck.
"Breath of the Sun, Ninth Form: Solar Refinement!"
His body vanished into the air, inverted in mid-flight, his blade wreathed in sunfire. From above, he cleaved horizontally toward both Amanojaku and Aobōzu.
"Blood Demon Art: Iron Seal!"
In an instant, Aobōzu's wooden fish swelled in size, enclosing Amanojaku within it like a shell.
Yoriichi's slash struck the wooden fish, igniting it in an inferno. Within moments, Aobōzu's blood art was burned away, exposing Amanojaku once more.
A sense of unease gripped Yoriichi. Muzan, Kokushibō, and Aobōzu—all had been protecting Amanojaku. Whatever he was preparing, it must not be allowed to succeed.
"Breath of the Sun, Seventh Form: Sunflower Thrust!"
From the air, Yoriichi thrust his blade downward, fire spiraling in concentric rings, aimed directly at Amanojaku.
At the last instant, Aobōzu leapt into the path of the strike.
Yoriichi's blade pierced his brow. Flames erupted, consuming him utterly. Aobōzu crumbled into ash.
But Yoriichi did not pause—not for a heartbeat. One had fallen, yet Amanojaku remained.
"Breath of the Sun, Second Form: Clear Blue Sky!"
His sword swept upward, flames tracing a perfect circle, aimed once more at Amanojaku.
But Amanojaku only smirked. A human form appeared suddenly in front of him.
If Yoriichi's blade fell, the innocent human would be cut down as well.
Yoriichi's strike faltered—only for an instant.
"You hesitated, human!"
"Blood Demon Art: Eye Reversal!"
Violet-black light engulfed Yoriichi. In a flash, both he and Kokushibō vanished from the battlefield.
When Yosuke saw Yoriichi disappear, his expression turned grim. Amanojaku's ability—it was spatial transfer.
Yet, in casting the art, Amanojaku's body had been grazed by Yoriichi's burning blade. Fire clung to him like a parasite, spreading rapidly across his body.
"Muzan-sama… save me…"
He staggered to Muzan's side, reaching out desperately.
Muzan only smiled cruelly. He seized Amanojaku's head in one hand and twisted it free. Without hesitation, he devoured it whole.
Then he turned his mocking gaze upon Yosuke. "Your precious hope has been cast away—sent thousands of kilometers from here to battle his brother. And here you stand, alone before me. Tell me, Yosuke… how do you intend to stop me now?"
Surprisingly, Yosuke's heart was calm. He did not panic at Yoriichi's absence.
He thought of his parents, of Kaori, of Yūta, of Tamayo, of Yoriichi, of Kagaya Ubuyashiki—even of Kento Kamado, who had always looked at him with disdain. All of them lived in his memories. Yet strangely, the recollections of his previous world were fading into vagueness.
As fragments of his old life slipped away, a faint smile curved Yosuke's lips.
"Do you know something, Muzan Kibutsuji? You and I—we are beings from different worlds. When I first arrived here, I believed I could live free of morals, unbound, doing whatever I pleased. I thought nothing mattered, as long as I indulged myself.
But under the care of my parents, and through all the kind people I've met, I realized I was wrong. I could not ignore the love and trust given to me. I am no different from them. Even reborn, I still carry responsibilities."
The smile vanished. His eyes burned with unyielding resolve. He leveled his Nichirin blade straight at Muzan.
"Today, no matter the cost—even if it means my own destruction—I will cut you down!"
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