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After the Infinity Castle's collapse, every Corps member and Muzan were transported to the surface—materializing in an urban district.
"Kiriya-sama, the Hashira and Muzan have all reached the surface!"
"But the location differs significantly from our projections!"
Kiriya processed Kanata and Kuina's reports, mind racing. 'Yushiro and Muzan fought for control of the Castle. Just expelling Muzan to the surface was a monumental achievement. Right now, the Demon King is vulnerable.'
"How long until sunrise?"
"Kiriya-sama—three hours and fifteen minutes."
"That long..." His chest tightened with anxiety. 'Can they hold out? They have to. I believe in them.'
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"CAW! THREE HOURS FIFTEEN MINUTES! THREE HOURS FIFTEEN MINUTES UNTIL DAWN!"
The crow's announcement echoed across the battlefield.
Kaido's blood ran cold. 'Three hours?? The butterfly effect must have changed the timeline completely. But regardless—everyone survives. No exceptions.'
His resolve crystallized into diamond-hard determination. He raised his blade alongside Kyojuro and the others, preparing to continue the assault.
Muzan surveyed the empty urban district with mounting fury. Without the Infinity Castle, he'd lost his primary advantage—his safe haven. That realization fed his spiraling rage.
Seeing six warriors charging toward him again ignited his fury into an inferno.
"You insufferable hunters! You're all dead! Think you can pin me here until sunrise?? TRY IT!"
Nine rope-like appendages erupted from his back—tube whips extending several meters, each tipped with razor-sharp bone spurs. They could extend and retract at will according to his command.
Muzan's thorned whips and tube whips lashed forward. The speed was incomprehensible—sonic booms tore through the air, threatening to rend space itself.
"Dragon Breathing, Fifth Form Modified: Dragon Cleave!"
Kaido's blade carved nearly a thousand projectiles that collided with Muzan's whips—creating a pathway through the assault for the Hashira behind him.
The others moved as one—perfect coordination without verbal communication. They charged through Kaido's opening.
"Love Breathing, Sixth Form: Cat-Legged Winds of Love!"
"Serpent Breathing, First Form: Winding Serpent Slash!"
"Flame Breathing, First Form: Unknowing Fire!"
"Water Breathing, Fourth Form: Striking Tide!"
Mitsuri's flexibility allowed her to vault over the assault, her whip-blade coiling around Muzan's torso from behind.
Obanai closed from the front, his serpentine blade carving counterclockwise toward Muzan's throat—
The Demon King's whip intercepted effortlessly.
Kyojuro followed with blazing speed, attacking the opposite side of Muzan's neck—
Muzan's nine tube whips erupted to eliminate all four warriors simultaneously—
Giyu's multi-strike technique—fluid as ocean tides—severed every whip.
"They regenerated instantly!" Giyu barely concealed his shock as the severed appendages regrew in a heartbeat.
"Dragon Breathing, Second Form: Dragon Claw!"
Kaido descended from above, blade raised for a devastating overhead strike.
The four Hashira scattered the instant before impact. Muzan couldn't dodge—he concentrated his tube whips into a defensive rope, attempting to block—
The strike was too powerful. Kaido had poured everything into it. The whips shattered—and the blade continued downward.
Having absorbed partial impact, Muzan's hastily-formed defense caused the strike's trajectory to deviate—carving into his shoulder instead of his skull.
CRASH—
Half of Muzan's torso split open. The ground beneath him cracked like a spiderweb.
The Bright Red Blade's searing heat elicited agonized screams.
"AAAHHH! YOU BASTARD—GET OFF ME!"
"NEVER!"
The tube whips were damaged by the red blade, regeneration suppressed. Muzan's thorned whip struck at Kaido's exposed torso—
His other arm's whip severed the damaged whip sections, allowing fresh growth to replace them instantly.
The strike was about to connect—
"Hinokami Kagura: Burning Bones, Summer Sun!"
Tanjiro arrived, his rotating flame technique bisecting Muzan's whip—saving Kaido before driving his blade through Muzan's skull.
The other four Hashira converged again, denying Muzan any recovery time—
Without warning, Muzan twisted his entire body. The tube whips from his back erupted at supersonic speed.
All six warriors were caught mid-attack—unable to dodge—
Dozens of lower-rank Corps members materialized around them, using their own bodies as shields. They absorbed Muzan's strike, then grabbed the Hashira and carried them backward to safety.
Even as some died, others charged forward to continue the rescue.
"GO! Everyone forward! Get to the front lines! Use your bodies as shields! Protect the Hashira and those who can actually fight Muzan! The other Pillars are almost here!"
"CHARGE!"
"Without the Eleven Pillars, we'd all be dead already! Give everything to protect them!"
"Don't be afraid! Whatever it takes—we fight Muzan to the end!"
The charging swordsmen were slaughtered—torn apart by Muzan's casual brutality. Yet their eyes held no fear. Only unshakable resolve.
Tears streamed down the six warriors' faces as they watched their comrades die protecting them.
"No... NO! Everyone, stop—you'll die!" Mitsuri sobbed, watching the endless sacrifice. Her heart was being crushed.
Tanjiro looked at the fallen swordsman in his arms—the one who'd shielded him with his life. Tears carved rivers down his face.
Muzan's gaze swept across the carnage without mercy, cutting down everyone. "Dying instantly is a mercy. Even those who don't die immediately are doomed—I've injected my blood into every strike."
"This blood won't transform you into demons. It's pure poison—it will ravage your cells until death claims you."
Watching their comrades' bodies deteriorate, the six warriors' hatred reached critical mass—surpassing anything they'd felt before.
Kaido's hands pressed against the ground, fists clenched until his knuckles went white. Crimson veins crawled across his eyes. Blood tears traced down his cheeks, dripping onto the pavement.
He stood slowly, fixing Muzan with a death stare.
"Hm? That look in your eyes irritates me. If glares could kill, why haven't I gone to hell?"
"Muzan... Muzan..." A dark laugh escaped Kaido's throat. "If no one else will drag you to hell—then I'll be the one who sends you there! REPENT FOR EVERY LIFE YOU'VE TAKEN!"
Rage incarnate, Kaido retrieved a Clone Talisman from his pocket and tore it.
Light flashed. An identical copy materialized beside him.
The Clone Talisman had one limitation: if used while injured, the duplicate possessed only 80% of the original's strength. But for Kaido's purposes, that was enough.
The clone felt the original's fury—gripping his greatsword in perfect synchronization. One command, and he would charge without hesitation.
"With me—we kill Muzan."
"Understood."
"Dragon Breathing, Fifth Form Modified: Dragon Cleave!" x2
Both Kaidos carved nearly two thousand dragon-head projectiles through space—a devastating barrage that descended on Muzan like divine judgment. The speed left only afterimages.
Muzan didn't dare underestimate them. He still didn't understand what had happened—how tearing a paper slip had created a perfect duplicate.
But speculation was pointless. Facing this overwhelming assault, he unleashed everything—nine tube whips and both thorned whips creating a defensive maelstrom.
The other Hashira recovered from their grief. They understood—mourning could wait. Only destroying Muzan would honor the fallen.
They retrieved their own Clone Talismans, tearing them open. Light flashed as perfect duplicates appeared beside each warrior.
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'Nezuko, wake up! Your brother and Kaido are in danger!'
Nezuko's mother's voice pierced her slumber. Her eyes snapped open. She stood, staring toward the door.
"Nezuko... what's wrong?" Sakonji Urokodaki was startled by her sudden movement, unable to comprehend what was happening.
Nezuko crashed through the wooden door, sprinting into the night.
"NEZUKO!" Urokodaki gave chase immediately. He couldn't let her be harmed—if she encountered Muzan, the consequences would be catastrophic.
Kyojuro's father, Shinjuro Rengoku, saw Nezuko racing past with Urokodaki in pursuit. Before he could question Kiriya—
Kaido's clone stopped him. "Let her go. She must have a reason."
"But—"
Kiriya's voice emerged from inside. "Follow the Dragon Hashira's guidance. I trust him."
"Yes."
Kaido's clone nodded. "Thank you."
"Hah... hah..." Nezuko raced through the forest, her father's spirit guiding her path. She accelerated further.
'Too fast! I can't keep up!' Urokodaki pursued desperately, determined to protect her regardless.
Reaching a cliff's edge, Nezuko leapt without hesitation.
Urokodaki rushed forward in alarm—only to see her land safely far below and continue running.
"She jumped from that height?? Did Tamayo's humanization drug fail? Nezuko..."
A terrible premonition seized him. A face flashed through his mind.
"Kaido??"
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WHOOSH—
Clone and original fought Muzan in perfect coordination. The battle's intensity escalated exponentially.
Muzan's tube whips were impossibly fast with devastating range—and each strike injected massive quantities of poisoned blood.
Tanjiro failed to dodge completely. A whip pierced his shoulder.
Lethal toxins flooded his system. The wound began spreading—corrupting tissue at horrifying speed. He collapsed unconscious.
"WAAAH! I hit him—why is he still moving??"
"MITSURI, WATCH OUT!"
Muzan's whip descended. At this distance and speed, Mitsuri couldn't evade—
Her clone intercepted, using its body to shield the original.
"I'm... I'm sorry. I'm too weak—you got hurt because of me!"
"It's fine... I'm just... a clone. Protecting you is my purpose."
Tears streamed down Mitsuri's face as she watched her duplicate sacrifice itself.
Muzan's assault continued. He accelerated his whips into a rotating barrier—making approach impossible.
Even originals and clones suffered injuries across the board.
"Damn it! Even weakened by Tamayo-san's drugs, he's still this powerful!" Blood poured from multiple gashes across Kaido's legs.
As Muzan's next attack descended—
A spiked flail obliterated his tube whips.
A massive figure appeared before them. "Apologies, everyone. We're late."
Gyomei Himejima had arrived—and behind him, every remaining Hashira.
Tengen, Muichiro, Kanae, Shinobu, Sanemi, Genya, Kanao, Inosuke, and Zenitsu—all converging at once.
"BWAHAHA! LORD INOSUKE HAS ARRIVED! Muzan, prepare for—wait, what's happening?? Why are there two white-haired guys?? WAAAH! And two goggle-eyed weirdos!"
Inosuke stared at the clones in complete confusion.
"Everyone—we can't afford to hold back. Whether we survive until dawn or not, we fight with everything! KILL MUZAN!"
"RIGHT!"
"UNDERSTOOD!"
The arriving Hashira tore their Clone Talismans. Light flashed as duplicates materialized beside each warrior.
"MUZAN—YOUR JUDGMENT HAS COME!" Kaido's roar shook the district.
Facing twenty-two Hashira-level combatants, Muzan's scalp tingled. And beneath that physical sensation, a voice echoed endlessly through his consciousness:
'Muzan... Muzan... Muzan...'
'MUZAN! MUZAN! MUZAN!'
"AAAHHH! BASTARDS—ALL OF YOU DIE!"
Muzan abandoned restraint completely. Eight additional tube whips erupted from his legs—his fastest appendages, equally controllable through his will.
"One after another—all of this is YOUR fault, white-haired hunter! Kill you, and everything resolves! DIE!"
BOOM—
All eight leg whips struck simultaneously. Supersonic velocity tore the atmosphere apart, generating explosive detonations.
"YOU'RE THE ONE WHO DIES, MUZAN!"
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"CAW! TWO HOURS UNTIL DAWN!"
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