A full moon hung high in the night sky, and what was slightly strange was that tonight's moon appeared blood-red and seemed larger than usual.
Under the night sky, a figure dressed as a samurai walked slowly along the road, the grass beside the road rustling in the breeze, and the tree shadows swayed, casting their shadows on the ground under the moonlight.
The figure dressed as a samurai looked up at the blood moon in the sky, and memories in his mind returned to four hundred years ago.
Such a night scene has come again…
Kokushibou gazed at the blood moon, and in his mind, he recalled the incredible sight he had witnessed that night.
Over these four hundred years, he had experienced countless blood moon nights, but he had never seen that sight again, though he had already anticipated this after that night four hundred years ago; it was destined when that short flute broke.
So many years had passed, and his strength was already several times greater than before, but the humiliation left behind could never be washed away.
After all… that person had already…
A face surfaced in Kokushibou's mind. In the past, whenever he recalled this face, his mood would become anxious and furious, but the passage of time had gradually calmed him down, and the quiet environment of the night made it difficult for any fluctuations to arise in his heart.
"Tap… tap…"
Faint footsteps sounded incredibly clear in such a night, the sound coming from ahead on the road.
Dead…
Turning his head to look forward, a figure gradually emerged from the front of the road…
Kokushibou's state of mind changed at this moment; his once calm inner self was now stirred by surging waves, tumultuous and rolling.
The figure ahead on the road also saw Kokushibou, and his footsteps stopped.
One human, one demon, with extremely similar appearances.
Kokushibou's body trembled slightly at this moment, unsure if it was due to fear or excitement.
Almost identical scene, Kokushibou felt as if he had returned to that night four hundred years ago.
Blood moon, gentle breeze, Yoriichi…
Although the person in front of him was not in an old state, Kokushibou was already somewhat unable to distinguish at this moment.
The scene of that night clearly appeared in his mind, as if overlapping with everything in his eyes.
The person in front of him seemed to have become his human brother, Yoriichi.
Kokushibou stood frozen in place, gazing at the figure ahead.
…
"How pitiful, elder brother…"
…
The scene in his mind began to move, and Yoriichi, with tears in his eyes, looked at him and said so.
"Upper Moon… One…"
The scene before him suddenly separated from the memories in his mind. Different voices, different words, brought Kokushibou back to his senses. The scene in his mind shattered, and what appeared before Kokushibou was a young figure.
…He is not Yoriichi… Yoriichi is dead…
Kokushibou's slightly trembling body stopped, and his mood calmed down again.
Kokushibou recognized that the person in front of him was the demon slayer Muzan had ordered them to kill.
He felt somewhat strange. Originally, he thought that after encountering this person, he would impatiently draw his sword to fight, defeat him to alleviate the humiliation he faced when confronting Yoriichi, or be honorably slain by his powerful strength, dying in battle.
But now that he truly encountered him, he did not have such a feeling. Instead, a hint of sadness arose from the bottom of his heart, just like the inexplicable sadness he felt when he encountered the frail Yoriichi four hundred years ago, without reason, unpredictable…
He had even wavered because of it back then. He had attributed it to his surprise at his brother expressing emotions in front of him for the first time.
"Powerful swordsman, state your name."
Both sides were silent for a moment, then Kokushibou spoke first. He had already learned of Gyokko's death at Musashi's hands and acknowledged Musashi's strength.
Musashi, on the other side, was stunned when he heard this question. He felt that this demon in front of him was quite different from the ones he had encountered before. He wasn't sure why, he just had this feeling.
After leaving Tamayo's place, Musashi followed his original plan to search for the upper moon whose information he had obtained from residents earlier, and he encountered him tonight, a day later.
Upon seeing upper moon one for the first time, Musashi felt a pressure not much different from Muzan. Just as he was about to make a move, he didn't expect this demon to ask for his name.
"Musashi." After a moment of hesitation, Musashi told the demon his name. He was somewhat confused, because the demon in front of him vaguely gave him a sense of familiarity.
"Musashi… From your situation, you should be a descendant of that branch family back then…"
Kokushibou spoke.
His words confused Musashi. Because of that strange sense of familiarity, Musashi didn't immediately attack. He frowned and asked Kokushibou, "What do you mean?"
"My name when I was human was Tsugikuni Michikatsu Tsugikuni… I was a member of a samurai family named Tsugikuni during the Sengoku period several hundred years ago… And you are a descendant of the Tsugikuni family's children…"
Kokushibou slowly explained to Musashi. After waking up from his memories, he had already discovered that Musashi had Tsugikuni family blood, and at the same time, he understood why his appearance was so similar to his brother's; coincidence was one aspect, and genetics also played a part.
However, he also saw that Musashi was not a descendant of his direct lineage, but rather a bloodline from a collateral branch of the Tsugikuni family at that time.
Kokushibou's words surprised Musashi. His words let Musashi know that he still retained his memories from when he was human. Besides that, another reason for Musashi's surprise was the surname Tsugikuni.
Four hundred years ago… Sengoku period… It perfectly matches the era of that Tsugikuni senior… And his appearance…
Is it a coincidence…
Musashi didn't care whether he was a descendant of the Tsugikuni family. Several hundred years had passed, and such a relationship had long become meaningless. Even if his bloodline was inherited from a large family in the past, he had still lived a poor and miserable life.
However, Kokushibou's words also made Musashi understand why he had this inexplicable sense of familiarity; it was a feeling passed down to him through his bloodline.
Beyond that, he was more concerned about the relationship between this Tsugikuni and the Tsugikuni senior he had heard about from Tamayo earlier.
"What is your relationship with that senior named Yoriichi?" Musashi asked Kokushibou.
Upon hearing that name, Kokushibou fell silent, looked up at the sky, and murmured, "Does anyone still remember your name now…"
The Tsugikuni surname had long since lost its lineage in the long river of history; people had even forgotten that such a family once existed, yet Yoriichi's name is still remembered by some to this day…