"Ne… next potion…"
At this moment, Naofumi Iwatani was still chugging down recovery potions from his backpack.
He'd already been drinking them for quite a while—mainly because the others were still engaged in combat, and he, with his Four Holy Shield, was the only one capable of finding gaps mid-battle to drink.
Though… the potion wasn't exactly satiating. Its sweetness—infused with honey—was cloying. After drinking so many in succession, Naofumi felt like he might throw up.
"Mr. Iwatani, are you… alright?"
Seeing Naofumi covering his mouth, a nearby ordinary member of the Demon Slayer Corps asked with concern.
While Kairo Retsu and the others were fighting the Upper Ranks, Naofumi had stayed behind to protect the Ubuyashiki family. In the process, he had gathered and safeguarded a significant number of Demon Slayer Corps members while advancing through the Infinity Castle.
"I'm fine."
Waving a hand, Naofumi replied, "But we should stay alert. The terrain in the Infinity Castle changes constantly… This is, after all, their home turf."
As he spoke, Naofumi took another swig of potion. The surrounding Demon Slayers looked at him with admiration and respect.
They knew—this miraculous healing ability, which had saved so many lives, came from Naofumi tirelessly drinking those potions. Their gratitude for him was written all over their faces.
Such worship made Naofumi—who had long suffered mistreatment in his original world—a little uncomfortable.
"Lord Ubuyashiki."
After blasting away a demon that had suddenly pounced from a distance with his Heavy Bowgun, Naofumi returned to the Ubuyashiki family while drinking another potion and asked Kagaya Ubuyashiki:
"Now that we've gathered this many Demon Slayer members here… and you're with us… do you think Muzan will send an Upper Rank to attack us if he finds out?"
"He will."
Kagaya nodded. "I can easily imagine Muzan's thinking. If given the chance to kill me, he wouldn't hesitate. But if what you all said earlier is true—that you've already encountered Upper Rank Two, Upper Rank Three, and the newly appointed Upper Rank Six…"
Kagaya continued, "Then the most likely attacker… would be Upper Rank One."
"Upper Rank One… Kokushibo, huh."
Naofumi pondered while sipping another potion. "If it comes to that… in a real fight, the most I could do is…"
Just as Naofumi was deep in thought, a messenger crow suddenly flew over—delivering an exhilarating message.
"Reinforcements! Kairo Retsu! Kazuma Satou! And Demon Slayer members—Shinobu Kocho, Giyu Tomioka, Kanao Tsuyuri, Inosuke Hashibira—have successfully eliminated Upper Rank Two!! All members survived!!!"
Upon hearing the news, the Demon Slayer troops erupted with cheers, their morale soaring.
"This is… wonderful news."
Even Kagaya, moved by the report, began coughing from excitement. "But the death of an Upper Rank will surely put Muzan on high alert. We must find the one controlling the Infinity Castle—Nakuru—and destroy this domain…"
Meanwhile, Kairo Retsu and the others had completed their short break and were heading toward the battlefield where Akaza was fighting the Joseph Bros and Tanjiro.
As they moved, Kanao supported the slightly pale Shinobu, while on the other side—
Kazuma had retrieved Tamayo, and now marched alongside Kairo.
"You seem… to know a lot about Upper Rank Three."
Giyu Tomioka picked up his pace to walk beside them. "Is that why you sent Tanjiro and your comrade to face him?"
"Of course! We've been preparing for a long time to wipe out these demons."
Kairo grinned. At that moment, the sound of battle could already be heard echoing around them.
He suddenly called out to Tamayo:
"Miss Tamayo, if I'm not mistaken, your Blood Demon Art influences the opponent via aroma, right? Can it affect Upper Rank Three?"
After a moment of hesitation, Tamayo replied, "If I had fully restored my body, it should be possible… but my Blood Demon Art affects everyone who smells it…"
"I've got it covered! Just use your Blood Demon Art to the fullest!!!"
Kairo shouted without hesitation. "Leave the rest to Joseph ! He's the ultimate anti-demon counter!!!"
"Anti-demon counter?"
Giyu raised an eyebrow, puzzled. But with the sound of combat growing louder, he had to focus on the imminent battle.
And then—the scene before them shattered all prior conceptions of combat.
The battlefield was utterly devastated.
At its center, three people clashed in a frenzied, unrelenting fight—far beyond anything the Demon Slayers had imagined.
Every time Akaza struck, he would sever his own arms and toss them aside without hesitation—only to regrow new limbs and resume his attacks.
Joseph Joestar was soaked in blood, his body marked all over by Akaza's strikes. But every time he landed a hit on Akaza, the demon's flesh would disintegrate, forcing Akaza to sacrifice that part of his body.
But the most shocking of all—was Tanjiro.
Even in this brutal battle, Tanjiro was keeping pace. In just the few seconds since they'd arrived, Giyu had already seen Tanjiro land two strikes that nearly reached Akaza's vital neck.
"AKAZA!!!!!!"
Kairo's booming voice thundered across the battlefield the moment he arrived:
"Prepare to get mobbed!!!!!!"
"Hey! Why the hell are you warning him?!"
Kazuma yelled furiously beside him. "This is when you're supposed to sneak attack, damn it!!!"
"Silence! We're honorable Hunters! A just and noble beatdown is our way!"
Kairo shouted back righteously, then tossed a Max Potion toward Tamayo's direction and charged straight at Akaza:
"SIGNAL ARROW FIRED—THREE BRUTES CONVERGE!!!"
"I'm outta here!"
Kazuma caught the potion, shoved both Tamayo's head and the potion into Shinobu's arms behind him, and disappeared into stealth:
"I'm not dumb enough to go toe-to-toe with a meathead like that…"
"Tan-Pachi! I'm here to help!!"
Fully recovered, Inosuke roared into the fray, charging Akaza head-on:
"You tattooed bastard!! I'm gonna KILL YOU!!"