~# Keep the chapters coming — Support with Power Stones!
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"MUZAN—FACE YOUR JUDGMENT!"
"Judge me? YOU PEOPLE?? Laughable! If you truly have the strength—COME AND TRY!"
WHOOSH—
Nine tube whips erupted from Muzan's back, all targeting Kaido directly.
Both Kaido and his clone leapt clear. The ground where they'd stood fractured like broken glass.
Sanemi and his duplicate exploited the opening—one descending from above, cleaving Muzan vertically in half. The other vaulted upward, severing both arms at the shoulders.
"Endless interference. One after another!" The bisected halves fused in an eyeblink. Severed arms regenerated just as quickly.
Then Muzan unleashed everything—nine back whips, eight leg whips, all moving at supersonic velocity. Even the ground beneath him cracked like a spiderweb from the sonic pressure.
Both thorned whips lashed in alternating patterns, creating an impenetrable barrier. No one could approach.
Speed wasn't the only problem—the attack radius was overwhelming.
Even Gyomei and Muichiro with Transparent World active could only perceive afterimages.
Kaido combined Demon Eye and Transparent World—barely tracking the movements. But tracking didn't mean closing distance.
The whip barrier formed an absolute defense. No openings existed.
The Kocho sisters' agility, enhanced by their Marks, allowed evasion—but the sonic booms and wind pressure still carved wounds across their bodies.
'This won't work. We can't outlast him through attrition—everyone will die at this rate. I need to create an opening, no matter the cost.'
Kaido deflected attacks while his mind raced through possibilities.
'Think. THINK. If I could block his assault for even an instant—'
Realization struck. He locked eyes with his clone. Understanding passed between them wordlessly. The duplicate nodded.
Kaido shouted across the battlefield. "HIMEJIMA!"
Gyomei understood immediately. He and his clone launched forward together.
"Stone Breathing, Third Form: Stone Skin!"
"Stone Breathing, Fifth Form: Arcs of Justice!"
Gyomei advanced while spinning his flail in a defensive pattern, deflecting Muzan's tube whips. His clone leapt skyward, hurling the axe followed by the flail in alternating strikes—buying exactly one second.
One second. For Kaido, enough.
"Dragon Breathing, Sixth Form: Dragon Tornado Storm!"
"Dragon Breathing, Eighth Form: Wandering Dragon Flash!"
Kaido spun into a drilling vortex, advancing on Muzan. Sword energy shredded approaching whips.
Even severed, the appendages regenerated instantly—continuing their assault.
His clone materialized behind Muzan mid-air, greatsword raised overhead with every ounce of strength.
"Dragon Breathing, Second Form: Dragon Claw!"
Muzan sensed the devastating strike from behind. Leg whips erupted skyward—
'Strike now! No hesitation! Buy them time!'
The clone didn't falter. Even facing obliteration, he continued his downward slash—creating the opening others needed.
"Mist Breathing, Fourth Form: Shifting Flow Slash!"
"Mist Breathing, Second Form: Eight-Layered Mist!"
Muichiro and his duplicate arrived at the critical moment. One executed a sliding cut across Muzan's legs. The other flashed upward, carving eight consecutive strikes that severed multiple whips.
The clone's blade descended—bisecting Muzan once more.
But Muzan's regeneration defied comprehension. Like when Sanemi had split him earlier—complete restoration in a heartbeat.
The originals and clones fell back into desperate combat. Injuries accumulated across every fighter.
During the exchange, Giyu spotted Murata in the distance. "MURATA! Tanjiro can't move—get him to safety and treat his wounds!"
Murata rushed to Tanjiro's side, hefting him onto his back. "Hold on, Tanjiro! I'm getting you across the street for treatment!"
CRASH—
Muzan's combined assault hammered the ground. Shockwaves hurled everyone backward. The pavement—with Muzan as epicenter—shattered completely.
The whips accelerated further. Attack radius expanded. The warriors were being overwhelmed.
Seventeen whips descended at sonic velocity. The turbulence alone demolished surrounding walls and infrastructure.
SLASH—
Without warning, Muzan's arm severed at the elbow.
"What?" He stared at the irregular wound—like an animal had torn through flesh rather than a blade making a clean cut.
Before comprehension formed, the second arm fell. Identical wound pattern.
Gunfire echoed. A bullet punched through his shoulder.
'What's happening? Not the stone weapon user. Not the white-haired Mist brat. Not those three women... The wound isn't from a sharp blade. And that gunshot...'
Understanding dawned. "I see. Invisible but present the entire time. Dust clouds, wind displacement, thunder, gunfire—one, two, three, FOUR PEOPLE!"
BOOM—
A whip hammered the ground. Three figures materialized from thin air—Inosuke, Zenitsu, Kanao, and Genya. They'd been concealed by Yushiro's talismans.
"OWWW! That hurt!" Zenitsu wailed.
"Tch, discovered already!" Genya cursed.
"I have to help Sister and everyone!" Kanao's determination burned.
"Pain! This dung beetle hits hard!" Inosuke bellowed.
"You four survived??"
"Of course we're alive, moron! I'm gonna surpass White-Hair one day!" Inosuke shouted back.
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"Please evacuate immediately! This area is extremely dangerous!"
"Everyone move this direction! The ground collapsed—very hazardous! Please seek shelter!"
The Kakushi were systematically evacuating the district's civilians, preventing collateral casualties.
"Are you police officers? Why is the ground collapsing?" a citizen asked.
"We're the geological investigation team commissioned by the police. Please leave quickly—this zone is unstable!"
After half an hour, the evacuation was complete.
"Everyone's clear. Let's support the other swordsmen!"
"Right!"
As they prepared to leave, a cat's cry emerged from nearby rubble.
"Meow~"
"Poor thing—hold on, I'll get you out!"
They lifted debris. A cat crawled free—Yushiro's cat, Chachamaru, wearing a small backpack.
"There you go. Now get away from here!"
"Meow~" Chachamaru ran in the opposite direction—toward the battle.
"Hey! That way is dangerous! Don't go there!"
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'No choice. In this group, I'm the smallest target—easiest to evade the whips. I'll create another opening!'
"Dragon Breathing, Eighth Form: Wandering Dragon Assault!"
ROAR—
A dragon's cry. Kaido exploded forward like a charging serpent, blade carving through approaching whips. The residual shockwaves tore flesh—he didn't slow down.
'Faster! FASTER! Almost there—just a little more!'
SLASH! SLASH!
Whip bone-blades carved into his arms, shoulders, legs. Blood streamed freely. Muzan's poisoned blood spread from every wound.
"KAIDO!"
"KAIDO-KUN!"
"LITTLE BROTHER!"
Seeing the opening, Muzan sprouted black brambles from both arms—concentrating them into a killing strike aimed at Kaido's torso—
CRACK—
Kaido's blade descended, severing the brambles. But the greatsword couldn't withstand more punishment. It fractured along the existing crack—splitting in two.
'No... my blade... broke...!'
Staring at the half-sword remaining in his grip, surrounded by converging whips—Kaido felt crushing inadequacy.
'I'm sorry, everyone. I'm useless. Failed when it mattered most.'
His life flashed before him. Memories cascaded like falling photographs.
'Kaido-niisan, I'll wait for you to come home!'
"Retsuki?? No—I can't give up! The battle isn't over! She's waiting for me!"
"Dragon Breathing, Seventh Form: Eight-Sided Swift Massacre!"
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
Using the broken blade, Kaido carved massive sword projections in all directions—severing every encroaching whip. Then he charged Muzan again with the shattered weapon.
"Dragon Breathing, Third Form: Divine Dragon's Tail!"
A wide fan-shaped slash—like a dragon's sweeping tail—carved horizontally through Muzan's waist. Bisection.
At that instant, Gyomei's flail punched through Muzan's chest cavity. His clone's axe descended toward the demon's throat.
"Sound Breathing, Fifth Form: String Performance!" x2
Tengen and his duplicate spun their blades in high-velocity rotation, advancing through explosions that obliterated Muzan's whips—carving a path for those behind them.
"Water Breathing, Third Form: Flowing Dance!" x2
Giyu and his clone moved at blinding speed, leaving afterimages while coordinating with Tengen. Every approaching whip was severed.
Through their four-way coordination, everyone finally closed the distance. This time—they would finish it.
"ANNOYING INSECTS—DIE!"
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Muzan's whips accelerated beyond comprehension. Everything shattered. The ground itself collapsed as if struck by an earthquake.
Unable to dodge, originals and clones alike took direct hits. Poisoned blood flooded their systems through the tube whips.
A violent shockwave erupted from Muzan's body, radiating outward. Everyone charging forward was launched backward—crashing into surrounding buildings and walls.
Kaido, closest to the epicenter, suffered the worst. A whip had punched clean through his abdomen—a two-finger-wide hole. His arm bore a deep laceration. Another inch and the limb would've been lost completely.
Combined with the shockwave impact, his condition was critical.
The clones fared no better. They'd used their bodies to shield their originals from whip strikes—then absorbed additional punishment from the shockwave.
Kaido's duplicate had positioned itself as a cushion between the original and a collapsing building. One horn was shattered. The left arm was gone. The back was a mangled mess of torn flesh—blood soaking through clothing.
Genya's group of four had also been thrown clear—all grievously wounded.
Everyone bore critical injuries. Muzan's poisoned blood was taking its toll.
Muzan felt something wrong within his own body. Regeneration had slowed dramatically. Even his overall strength was declining steadily.
'What did that witch Tamayo inject me with?? How many drugs??'
He needed sustenance to bolster himself. His gaze fell on the corpses of fallen Corps members scattered across the battlefield. A vicious idea formed.
"How fortunate for you—even in death, you contribute to my cause."
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