If there are demons, they must be killed.

And if the number of demons slain continues to rise, Muzan Kibutsuji might grow restless—and might come after Takeo himself.

After all, Muzan Kibutsuji now wanted Takeo dead.

Takeo wasn't entirely sure why Muzan wanted to kill him, but it was an opportunity nonetheless.

An opportunity to use himself as bait—to lure Muzan Kibutsuji out.

"I'm right here. Will you come find me?"

Takeo never made an effort to hide his presence from demons.

During his time in Tokyo, he had already slain two demons—deliberately making himself known in the underworld.

If Muzan Kibutsuji could observe the world through the eyes of his demons, then there was no way he would ignore the presence of someone like Takeo, openly hunting in Tokyo.

The question was: who would Muzan send to kill him?

A member of the Twelve Kizuki?

Speaking of them, Takeo recalled something Kyojuro had told him after he became a Hashira.

The Twelve Kizuki were divided into Upper and Lower Ranks. With Takeo's current strength, even a Lower-Rank demon would be no challenge—he could kill any of them instantly. Even if the opponent proved troublesome, it shouldn't take more than three moves to finish the fight.

But Upper-Rank demons were a different matter entirely.

In the past hundred years, countless Lower Moons of the Twelve Kizuki had been eliminated, yet the Upper Moons remained virtually untouchable—only ever seen by survivors, rarely.

Even the Hashira.

Over the last century, dozens of Hashira had risen and fallen. Every one of those who died in battle had perished at the hands of an Upper Moon.

Because of that, when facing an Upper-Rank demon, one had to be exceptionally cautious. If necessary, the protocol was to immediately request backup—nearby Hashira would rush to the scene as fast as possible.

Kyojuro's words had made it clear: Upper Moons were considered foes that no single Hashira could take on alone.

So, if Muzan Kibutsuji truly wanted Takeo dead, then most likely, he would send one of the Upper Moons.

The only question was—could Takeo fight an Upper Moon with his current strength?

Flap-flap—

While on night patrol, Takeo suddenly saw his crow flying toward him from the distance.

The crow landed on his shoulder and spoke in a slightly panicked tone:

"A-A demon has appeared in the valley... a demon has appeared in the valley! Support requested! Please rush over immediately!"

"Down the valley?"

After receiving the message from his crow, Takeo didn't hesitate—he sprinted straight toward the Shimotani District.

Unlike modern-day Tokyo, the Tokyo of this era had only fifteen districts, and the distance between them wasn't too far. Takeo wouldn't need to run long to reach his destination.

Roughly ten minutes later, he arrived at the scene of the battle—and saw the demon.

It was a warehouse, a dome-shaped structure built with a modern design prototype.

Inside, members of the Demon Slayer Corps were already engaged in combat. They were likely the first responders assigned to this region.

There were five in total. Three lay on the ground, severely injured, while only two were still standing and fighting the demon.

Takeo recognized them. They were all Demon Slayer Corps members assigned to Tokyo, and he had even seen one of them during his stay in the Swordsmith Village.

They were B- and C-rank Slayers—decently strong among the Corps, but clearly struggling now.

Because the enemy they faced was a demon whose strength approached that of a Twelve Kizuki.

"Yamada, hang in there! Reinforcements will arrive soon!"

Among the two still fighting, the girl Takeo recognized shouted to the black-haired boy beside her.

He blocked a swipe from the demon with difficulty, gritting his teeth.

"I know!!"

Wind swirled around the boy's Sun Blade—he was clearly a Wind Breathing user.

The girl beside him moved with fluid grace, water rippling around her form—she was using Water Breathing.

Among members of the Demon Slayer Corps, Wind and Water Breathing are the most commonly practiced. Thunder Breathing is rare, Flame Breathing is almost exclusively tied to the Rengoku family, and Stone Breathing is notoriously difficult to master.

Wind and Water are the most accessible. Some with unique talent may branch into derivative forms, but most stay within these two main styles.

Even so, seeing the techniques in action still stirred something in Takeo.

The two Slayers were skilled, but they were struggling. Worse yet, both were already wounded.

The demon they faced wielded a Blood Demon Art that turned his blood into sharp, poisonous arrows, which he launched relentlessly.

With each hit, the two Slayers slowed down.

"Hahaha! You stupid demon hunters!" the demon howled with laughter. "My blood is poisonous! Can't move now, can you? Your limbs are stiff! Just wait and watch me eat every last one of you! Once I do, I'll finally become one of the Twelve Kizuki! Kekekeke~~~"

As the demon reveled in his delusions, Takeo suddenly appeared in front of the two injured Slayers.

He didn't even glance at the demon.

Instead, he calmly said to the pair, "That's enough. Regulate your breathing and rest. Someone will come to pick you up soon."

"Kamado-sama!!"

When they saw Takeo appear, relief and joy were clear in their eyes.

Especially the girl—her excitement was almost palpable, even though she was covered in wounds.

But after that initial joy, she quickly warned, "Kamado-sama! Be careful! That demon—"

"Don't worry about him," Takeo said calmly, not even sparing the demon a glance. "He's already dead."

"Huh?!" the demon shouted, clearly displeased. "What are you talking about, brat?! How could I—"

Die?

Eh..?

Before he could finish his sentence, the demon felt the world tilt violently.

His head slid cleanly off his neck like a severed melon, thudded to the ground, bounced, and rolled away.

The two injured Slayers who witnessed the scene stood frozen, eyes wide in disbelief.

"Wh… When…?"

The black-haired boy was stunned. He hadn't seen Takeo make a single move. From the moment the Wolf Hashira had appeared, it was as if he hadn't even drawn his sword.

So when exactly had he struck?

When was the demon beheaded?

It wasn't just the black-haired boy who was confused—even the now-dead demon didn't understand what had happened.

Only the girl beside him looked increasingly excited and emotional, murmuring to herself:

"So strong… so strong! This is a Hashira… the youngest Hashira in the Demon Slayer Corps! So cool! Kyaaa~~~"

As she spoke, a gush of blood spurted from her nose, and she collapsed onto the ground with her eyes rolling back.

Takeo: "…"

This Kid… Is this girl okay??

_________

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