"..."
After Kairo Retsu tripped on the doorframe, tumbled head over heels several times, and faceplanted onto the ground, the entire battlefield fell into a moment of stunned silence.
Especially because… after the fall, Kairo's face remained buried in the floor without moving an inch.
Tengen Uzui, who had rushed in right behind Kairo, looked at him and was utterly baffled: "???"
"Did he… knock himself out?" Muichiro Tokito frowned slightly, a question mark rising on his forehead.
"Guildmaster?" Tengen Uzui rushed over to check on Kairo's condition in confusion. "Upper Rank One is right in front of us! What are you doing?!"
"What kind of guy manages to trip over himself?!" Sanemi Shinazugawa's forehead bulged with veins.
"...?"
At this moment, Kokushibo had more question marks than anyone else.
He had meticulously prepared himself, fully ready to confront a formidable enemy—yet no one had told him what to do if that enemy faceplanted on entrance because of a wooden threshold.
Furthermore, with his Transparent World, Kokushibo could clearly see: that man lying on the floor—Kairo Retsu—had not fainted at all. His heart rate was elevated, and blood was rushing to his face, clearly indicating…
Embarrassment????
"Shinazugawa," Gyomei Himejima's voice broke the silence, now carrying a rare note of seriousness. "Can you see what kind of person that is?"
"Huh? He's wearing some kind of weird armor and carrying a ridiculously huge longsword on his back." Sanemi replied, annoyed. "Is that guy really the reinforcement the crow was talking about?"
"Goddammit! That was mortifying! But hey—we made it to the battlefield!!"
At that moment, Kairo seemed to realize this was no time to stay down, and he leapt up from the ground. "Hah! You over there with the six eyes! I, the proud Guildmaster of the Hunter's Guild, have come to slay you!"
"..."
Kokushibo was beginning to doubt his own senses.
From the Transparent World, the pressure emanating from Kairo was immense—but seeing him in person, Kokushibo couldn't reconcile that presence with the man who had just tripped on a doorframe.
Could this be another monster like Yoriichi Tsugikuni?
But then, why would someone of that caliber trip over something so trivial?
As he recalled his memories of Yoriichi, Kokushibo's grip on his sword unconsciously tightened.
He had initially awaited the Demon Slayers to challenge him—but now it felt like he had become the challenger…
"Uh…? Is he just trying to pretend the fall didn't happen?" From behind a pillar, Genya muttered as he watched. From his observer's angle, he could see clearly what was going on.
"'Hunter'? Is that what you people call Demon Slayers these days?" Kokushibo didn't dare act rashly. "I've never encountered one like you before… Your body is forged like tempered steel, yet you've kept your technique hidden?"
Muichiro turned to look at Kokushibo, surprised.
Kokushibo's attitude toward Kairo was incredibly serious—tinged with rare caution. That kind of vigilance hadn't shown at all during their long battle just moments earlier.
"Doma! I've already slain him!" Kairo clenched his fist. "Akaza's already been sent straight to Hell for his sins too… and now it's your turn! Tsugikuni Michikatsu!!"
"Tsugikuni…"
"Michikatsu?"
Gyomei and Sanemi, who had arrived later, hadn't heard the earlier conversation between Muichiro and Kokushibo, and were hearing the name for the first time.
"You… know my name?" All of Kokushibo's eyes narrowed slightly as he tried to analyze this mysterious man.
Kairo was more than happy to stall with a little trash talk.
Rattling the opponent's mental state before the fight was always a win—like throwing a Dung Bomb at a monster you didn't feel like dealing with.
"Of course I know! Tsugikuni Michikatsu… twin brother of Yoriichi Tsugikuni, the creator of the Breathing Styles. Also the ancestor of Muichiro Tokito." As Kairo said this, he waved at Sanemi and the others, signaling them to move to a safer distance.
Kokushibo's expression grew even more grim.
He was certain he had never seen nor heard of this man in his centuries of existence—yet the man not only called out his true name but also knew about his relationship with Yoriichi…
"To possess such knowledge… and emit such presence…"
Kokushibo's wariness toward Kairo was now off the charts.
As he listened to Kairo's words, he had been closely monitoring the man's heartbeat and blood flow. There had been no fluctuations—no lies.
Even regarding Doma and Akaza's deaths—Kairo hadn't lied, meaning… in the short time between the deaths of Doma and Akaza, this man alone had accomplished both—and then rushed here with surgical precision to take him down.
Even the insects Kokushibo couldn't slash apart… were released by this man. Despite having the means to directly track Muzan, this man had chosen to target Kokushibo first.
A storm of thoughts swirled in Kokushibo's mind, but the more he contemplated, the less he wanted to act recklessly.
"That guy's really your ancestor?" Sanemi asked Muichiro.
Muichiro gave a firm nod. "Before you arrived, I spoke with him… that's how he introduced himself."
"Hah! Doesn't matter who that guy is. With the four of us Hashira here, we'll cut him down in dazzling style!" Uzui declared with confidence.
"Namu… No matter what, we've indeed received tremendous reinforcements." Gyomei quietly intoned a prayer.
Perhaps the others hadn't noticed it—but Gyomei had seen the same thing Kokushibo did.
From within the Transparent World, they could both sense the threat Kairo emitted… and the enormous gap between Kairo's seemingly clumsy exterior and his expertly honed body and techniques.
"How do you know… about Yoriichi?" Kokushibo finally asked, his voice strained by the pressure. "Those things… no one should remember anymore!"
"That's none of your business! Not only do I know—" Kairo threw his arm outward dramatically, "I could break your whole mental state with a single sentence, believe it or not!"
"After all, you—Tsugikuni Michikatsu—your Breathing Style is nothing but…"
"A derivative of Sun Breathing, the Moon Breathing Style!!"