"Tsk tsk, what a fierce battle," a voice mused from a remote, unnoticed corner.
A pair of golden eyes watched the chaos with detached interest.
"The Demon Slayer Corps is certainly well-prepared. It seems they truly intend to end this tonight."
The roars of demons and the hum of Nichirin blades had turned the ruined Moriki Manor into the final, bloody stage for a thousand-year war.
"However," the voice continued, a hint of amusement in its tone, "Muzan-sama is so very afraid of death. To make this battle more interesting for everyone, I suppose I'll have to lend a hand."
At that moment, a young slayer with a prominent red nose spotted the strange figure in the shadows.
Without hesitation, the boy gripped his Nichirin blade and charged.
"Die, demon!"
Pfft!
Blood sprayed.
The slayer's sword fell from his lifeless hand.
A gaping wound had opened in his chest, and a look of confusion crossed his face before he collapsed into a pool of his own blood.
The golden eyes, engraved with the characters for "Upper Rank Six," held a look of deep disdain.
Kamaro, casually shook the blood from his hand.
"Brave, but foolish, little one. Can't you see the words in my eyes? You dare attack me when you are not even a Hashira?"
Before he finished speaking, several more slayers surrounded him, their eyes burning with grief and rage.
...
A moment later, only broken limbs and scattered bodies remained.
Kamaro's form rippled and dissolved back into the shadows.
Buzz~
Within the impossible, shifting architecture of the Infinity Castle, invisible ripples distorted the air.
Nakime, the biwa demon, sat quietly at her post, her existence tied to this dimension, her will bound to Muzan's.
Suddenly, Kamaro's figure materialized behind her.
As another of the Upper Ranks, his presence did not trigger her immediate alarm.
"Good evening, Miss Nakime."
"Huh?"
Startled, she turned her head, but it was too late.
A large, cold hand clamped down on her skull, the force of it making her tremble violently.
As his power flooded into her, the connection between Nakime and Muzan was instantly and violently severed.
....
On the battlefield, Muzan flinched.
'Huh? What was that? Nakime?'
....
Back in the castle, Kamaro smiled down at the now-controlled biwa demon.
"There. Now we don't have to worry about our master escaping. Next, it's time to report to my master."
Nakime's hand trembled, then, like a puppet, she stiffly picked up her biwa and under Kamaro's gaze, plucked a single, shrill note.
Clang!
Kamaro appeared in a dark, silent room.
He snapped his fingers, and another note from the biwa caused dozens of candles to flare to life, illuminating the scene.
Before him, pierced by countless bloody thorns and bound to the very walls, was the figure of Shokyu.
Kamaro lowered his head and forced Nakime to her knees.
"My lord. You have been waiting."
"Hmm," the weak voice rasped. "So my foolish brother truly walked into the Demon Slayer's trap?"
"Yes. Everything is as you predict."
"Haha… I knew it," Shokyu chuckled, a dry, rattling sound.
"So proud, and so terrified of death. How could he resist the temptation to destroy the Corps and eliminate his weakness to the sun, all in one night? Now… I am eager to see how much our little Shinichi has to show."
....
CLANG!
A blood-red sword slammed against Uzui Tengen's twin blades, forcing him back.
The wielder, Maito, condensed another blade of blood and thrust it backward with the speed of a striking snake, perfectly parrying a blow from Iguro Obanai.
The moment Shinichi had arrived on the battlefield, the brutish Upper Moon Four had locked onto him, his golden eyes burning with a primal desire to fight.
"Blood Demon Art: Blood Armor! Blood Demon Art: Shield!"
Ignoring the attacks from the two Hashira, Maito encased himself in his defenses and charged straight for Shinichi.
"Stop him!" dozens of Demon Slayers cried, bravely throwing themselves in the demon's path.
A flurry of breathing techniques slashed at Maito, but he paid them no mind.
"GET OUT OF MY WAY!" he roared.
The first two slayers in his path were simply obliterated by his brute force.
The bloody scene didn't deter the others.
"Everyone! Breathe together!" one of them shouted.
Following the coordinated breathing method taught to them by their Forest Hashira, the slayers synchronized their power.
The force of one was weak, but together, it was something more.
BANG!
A single Nichirin blade slammed against Maito's shield.
The blow was from an ordinary slayer, but the combined force behind it, the unfamiliar, intensive breathing rate, actually made Maito look sideways.
"What is this? Interesting," he grunted. "But that's all! Anyone standing in my way dies!"
A fierce light grew in his eyes.
He could feel two other powerful auras catching up to him; he had no more time to waste on these pests.
His only target was Shinichi.
Just as Maito was about to slaughter the slayers before him, a sharp, green slash, as precise and unexpected as a bolt of lightning, slammed into his shield.
CRACK!
A deep, grinding sound echoed as a groove was carved into the nearly indestructible defense.
"SHINICHI" Maito roared, a thrilled, bloodthirsty grin spreading across his face.
"You're finally here!"
"You talk too much," Shinichi's cold voice cut through the air.
"Forest Breathing, Seventh Form: Wood Dragon's Slash!"
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