The changes in Kamihara Tetsuya instantly caught Kamanue's attention.
"Pillar!"
Kamanue's heart trembled; why did a demon give him such a dangerous feeling, like a Demon Slayer Corps Pillar-level Swordsman!
Crack!
Kamihara Tetsuya broke off an arm-thick branch from a roadside tree, removed the side branches and green leaves, and it could barely be used as a wooden sword.
Seeing this, Kamanue's face turned cold, "To use a branch against me, you're truly underestimating me!"
Kamihara Tetsuya weighed the branch in his hand and said calmly, "Stop pretending; you're relieved, aren't you, that what's in my hand isn't a nichirin blade!"
Kamihara Tetsuya's eyes were blood-red, with two blood-colored tomoe spinning; under the powerful insight of his Sharingan, Kamanue's subtle facial expressions were clearly visible.
It wasn't difficult to guess Kamanue's inner thoughts.
With his thoughts exposed, Kamanue became enraged, "I won't let you die so easily!"
He was one of the Twelve Kizuki, an existence above all other demons, second only to That Lord and the Upper Moons; how dare a mere unknown demon challenge him? He was courting death!
Everyone present was a demon, possessing an immortal body, but don't think that demons couldn't kill each other.
Demons also had stamina limits; as long as you crippled the opponent and waited for the sun to rise, throwing them into the sunlight would still turn them to ash!
Coincidentally, Kamihara Tetsuya had the same idea.
Bang!
Kamanue moved like a startled rabbit, his figure hidden in the night, swiftly darting, flashing behind Kamihara Tetsuya.
"So fast, be careful..." Tamayo warned, truly worthy of being one of the Twelve Kizuki; he was completely different from the demons she had encountered before, not on the same level.
Whoosh!
Kamanue aimed at Kamihara Tetsuya's head and unleashed a powerful punch, holding nothing back, determined to kill him with a single blow; however, his movements were clearly seen by the Sharingan.
"Flower Breathing: Fourth Form: Crimson Hanagoromo!"
Kamihara Tetsuya spun around, delivering an upward, arc-shaped double slash!
Such a sharp slash immediately reminded Kamanue of the fear he felt when facing a Demon Slayer Corps Pillar.
Bang!
The two collided; a branch was not a nichirin blade after all, and the front half was shattered by Kamanue's punch, the sharp wind from his fist pressing towards Kamihara Tetsuya like a blade.
Kamanue's inner tension eased considerably, "It seems you're only good with your mouth!"
"Flower Breathing: Sixth Form: Whirling Peach!"
Kamihara Tetsuya's expression was calm; just as Kamanue's fist was about to land, his leg muscles tensed, instantly exerting force, leaping up and performing a side flip in mid-air.
He nimbly dodged Kamanue's fist, while simultaneously unleashing a horizontal slash; flower petals flew, carrying a deadly killing intent, landing on Kamanue's back.
Bang!
A dull sound echoed, and Kamanue's back deeply caved in.
"Pfft!"
Kamanue's eyes widened in shock, his internal organs rattled, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.
He staggered forward two steps; with just one move, he understood, his mind filled with disbelief: besides the Twelve Kizuki, how could there be such a powerful demon!
"Flower Breathing: Fifth Form: Futile Peony!"
How could Kamihara Tetsuya let this opportunity slip away? He launched nine consecutive attacks from all directions, aiming at Kamanue's head, the branch fiercely stabbing the same point, like the petals of a peony.
If this move connected, Kamanue's head would be shattered.
Even a mere branch, in the hands of a Pillar-level Swordsman, could unleash astonishing power.
"Blood Demon Art: Whimsical Metamorphosis!"
Kamanue's scalp tingled, and he roared, his body glowing with blood-red light, his flesh transforming into sharp barbs, furiously stabbing outwards, instantly turning him into a porcupine.
Whoosh!
The dangerously gleaming barbs came flying.
Kamihara Tetsuya retreated rapidly; he had always been wary of the opponent's unknown Blood Demon Art, his moves always seventy percent offense and thirty percent reserved, allowing himself room to withdraw.
Pulling back twenty to thirty meters, Kamihara Tetsuya gazed at Kamanue ahead; since the latter was dismissed by Kibutsuji Muzan in the original timeline, information about him was pitifully scarce.
Kamanue sneered, "To make me use my Blood Demon Art, you can be proud!"
Then, the barbs on Kamanue's body reverted to flesh, and his hands transformed into sharp blades; the gleaming silver blades reflected the bright moonlight, emitting a dangerous glow.
Kamihara Tetsuya's eyes narrowed; to transform one's own body into a weapon, the opponent's Blood Demon Art was quite interesting.
At the same time, he also encountered some difficulties.
After continuously using Flower Breathing, he clearly felt something was off, a very awkward sensation.
He had gained Kocho Kanae's sword skills and techniques through Soul Manipulation: Controller.
But he was not Kocho Kanae; his strength, speed, flexibility, and physique were all different.
Flower Breathing's sword techniques themselves were developed by Kocho Kanae based on her own physical condition, extended from Water Breathing.
The same sword technique, when used by different people, would inevitably not have the same power.
Given this, he didn't need to cling to the Flower Breathing that Kocho Kanae excelled at.
"Water Breathing: Fourth Form: Striking Tide!"
Kamihara Tetsuya surged forward, his figure like a ghost, launching multiple attacks like a tide, sharp sword gleams chasing Kamanue to slash him.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Kamanue and Kamihara Tetsuya's figures rapidly weaved through the road, branches and sharp blades constantly colliding.
Crisp, loud sounds broke the silent night.
Naturally, a branch could not contend with sharp blades.
Upon closer inspection, Kamihara Tetsuya's slashes did not directly contact Kamanue's blades, but rather landed on the sides of the blades, avoiding their sharpest points.
Kamanue was furious, "You hateful monkey!"
Whoosh!
Kamanue wildly swung his sharp blades, the blood-colored slashes overwhelming, sealing off Kamihara Tetsuya's escape route.
Kamihara Tetsuya's eyes were like still water; his Sharingan moved rapidly in his eye sockets, finding a breakthrough point amidst the net-like slashes.
He nimbly slipped out.
In a flash, the two had exchanged dozens of blows, with ferocious marks left by their battle everywhere.
Kamihara Tetsuya waited, calmly observing Kamanue's emotional changes.
"Water Breathing: Seventh Form: Drop Ripple Thrust!"
Kamihara Tetsuya decided to feign an opening, gripping the branch with both hands, thrusting it in a straight line, just like ripples spreading on the water's surface.
"Good opportunity!"
Kamanue's face lit up with joy; as long as he could confront him head-on, with just that branch, he could shatter it in minutes.
"Blood Demon Art: Crested Dragon Slash!"
Kamanue's face twisted into a sinister grin; he raised the sharp blades that were his hands high and fiercely slashed down.
"Water Breathing: Tenth Form: Constant Flux!"
Just then, Kamihara Tetsuya changed his technique, rotating and tumbling like a dragon, striking Kamanue's twin blades from the side, deflecting them.
Kamanue's eyes widened.
Kamihara Tetsuya's rotation did not stop; as the number of rotations increased, a furious wind was stirred up, and the power contained within the branch became even more terrifying.
Bang!
The slash landed on Kamanue's head, the accumulated power instantly erupting, causing his entire head to explode like a watermelon.