[Patreon :TheFool_0]
Successfully slaying the demon, Kanzaki Aoi felt as if she had undergone some kind of baptism in that instant.
Her entire demeanor underwent an indescribable change; the timidity in her eyes lessened, replaced by a hint of resolve.
"Tetsuya-sensei, I killed the demon!" Kanzaki Aoi's small face was flushed with excitement.
"Congratulations, congratulations."
Kamihara Tetsuya clapped his hands and said with a smile, "Then next, you will go and slay a demon by yourself."
"Ah?"
Kanzaki Aoi's small face fell. She knew her own capabilities; just now, it was Kamihara Tetsuya who defeated the demon, and she merely delivered the final, effortless blow.
"Don't worry, I'll be watching over you," Kamihara Tetsuya said with a smile. Without pressure, how could there be progress?
With that, Kamihara Tetsuya walked deeper into the forest.
"Tetsuya-sensei!"
Kanzaki Aoi wanted to follow, but she found that although Kamihara Tetsuya's steps seemed slow, his speed was extraordinarily swift. In less than three or four seconds, he vanished into the depths of the forest.
Left alone, the cool night breeze blew, and Kanzaki Aoi couldn't help but shiver, gripping her nichirin blade tightly, her small face pale.
Every slight movement around her made her little heart pound.
Her panicked eyes frantically searched her surroundings.
Fearing that some terrifying monster would suddenly leap out!
In fact, Kamihara Tetsuya hadn't gone too far. After all, he had promised Kochou Shinobu to look after this young girl, and if she died, he wouldn't be able to explain it.
Kamihara Tetsuya quietly returned and hid in a large tree to observe Kanzaki Aoi's reaction.
Kanzaki Aoi trained very hard, and her strength was not weak. A demon that had consumed twenty or thirty humans might not even be her match. It was likely that the psychological trauma from her childhood was too deep, preventing her from fully utilizing her original strength.
"It's a woman!"
Kamihara Tetsuya didn't wait long; soon, a demon targeted Kanzaki Aoi.
This demon had three heads and six arms, like a monster from a myth, with well-built muscles, but its aura was not much stronger than the previous demon—it was a paper tiger.
"Hahahaha, I actually encountered a well-nourished woman." This demon's six eyes gleamed ferociously. This girl's nutrition was equivalent to seven or eight people, and it would elevate its strength to the next level.
Bang!
To prevent other demons from snatching its prey, it struck first. This demon leaped out, directly pouncing on Kanzaki Aoi.
"Water Breathing, Third Form: Flowing Dance!"
Kanzaki Aoi found strength from somewhere, moving her body at high speed like flowing water. Due to her extremely swift movements, several afterimages were left in her wake.
"So fast!"
The demon's face showed surprise, then its expression turned strange, because this woman was constantly dodging, with no intention of attacking at all.
It immediately understood that the opponent was afraid of demons.
Its three faces simultaneously showed a sinister smile. This was a common problem among new Demon Slayer Corps members.
Even though they were stronger than the demons, they foolishly stood still out of fear, and were eventually killed by them.
"I'm moving?"
Kanzaki Aoi murmured to herself. If it were before, she might have been killed by the demon just like that.
But at this moment, she seemed to follow her instincts.
However, she still didn't dare to swing her nichirin blade at the demon.
Rustle!
A boy holding a nichirin blade emerged from the bushes.
The three-headed, six-armed demon was chasing Kanzaki Aoi, and when it saw the scene before it, the boy froze.
"Help me!" Kanzaki Aoi pleaded.
"You're the girl who was with Kamihara Tetsuya before. Where is Kamihara Tetsuya?" The boy looked confused. He realized he had asked a foolish question; he must be dead.
In this deep mountain, if someone couldn't be seen, they were most likely killed and eaten by a demon.
"Tsk!"
The boy pouted. He had such a famous reputation, and he thought he was very strong, but he died so easily.
The appearance of this boy made the three-headed, six-armed demon's heart tighten. To deal with two swordsmen stronger than itself at the same time was quite strenuous, to be honest.
But the next moment, the boy's action made it breathe a sigh of relief.
"How lucky, now I can get an extra nichirin blade." The boy said with a chuckle, crossing his arms and leaning against a large tree, showing no intention of attacking.
Kanzaki Aoi's face turned pale. How could this be? She understood what the boy meant.
nichirin blades are easily consumed weapons. When striking a demon's tough body, if the angle is incorrect, the nichirin blade will quickly become dull and damaged.
For such times, having an extra nichirin blade provides an additional layer of security.
The other party intended to watch her be killed by the demon, then eliminate the demon, thereby obtaining her nichirin blade.
Since members of the 'Kakushi' would later come to retrieve the bodies, the sword marks on the body would be easily discovered, so the boy couldn't attack other people.
But being killed by a demon was different.
The boy sneered. He could then, with a sorrowful heart, tearfully accept that nichirin blade.
Kanzaki Aoi's pupils trembled. No wonder Kamihara Tetsuya-sensei was unwilling to bring these people along.
This was the ugliness of human nature!
"Hahahaha, even your companion has abandoned you." The three-headed, six-armed demon pursued Kanzaki Aoi even more frantically, sneering inwardly, 'What a fool.'
Once it ate this girl and its strength surged, that boy would also become its food!
Kanzaki Aoi gripped her nichirin blade tightly. The fear and unease in her heart were now completely driven away by anger.
"Die!"
The demon's six fists simultaneously smashed towards Kanzaki Aoi, blocking all her escape routes, making death inevitable.
Bang!
Kanzaki Aoi leaped with force, dodging the incoming fists, then performed a backflip and delivered a sharp slash.
The demon's eyes widened. Too fast. Had this girl already overcome her fear?
"Water Breathing, Second Form: Water Wheel!"
Kanzaki Aoi shouted, heavily swinging her nichirin blade downwards in a circular slash. The flowing blade light directly split the demon in front of her vertically in half.
"Hah!"
Kanzaki Aoi pressed her advantage, quickly swinging her blade and cutting off the demon's three heads.
The demon, along with its body, vanished into thin air.
"Hoo! Hoo!"
Kanzaki Aoi knelt on the ground, panting heavily.
The boy leaning against the large tree looked stunned. The counterattack came so suddenly that he hadn't even reacted.
"This is a misunderstanding, I originally wanted to help you…" The boy quickly began to explain. If this girl told others what happened, his reputation would be ruined.
However, he hadn't finished speaking.
An iron-blue hand pierced through the boy's heart from behind, dripping with blood.
Kanzaki Aoi's mind reeled.
Under extreme tension, neither of them noticed the demon that had suddenly approached them.
Looking out, a dozen or so eerie green "demon fires" glowed in the darkness, which were clearly the eyes of demons.
"Save me…"
Blood overflowed from the boy's mouth as he weakly reached out to Kanzaki Aoi for help, completely forgetting how he had watched Kanzaki Aoi's battle from start to finish earlier.
With his heart destroyed, the boy painfully collapsed to the ground, his eyes gradually becoming lifeless as he breathed his last.
Kamihara Tetsuya, hidden in the large tree, had a broader view, especially with his Sharingan activated.
So he could see Kaigaku fleeing the scene, a smug smile of successful conspiracy on his face.
Kamihara Tetsuya's eyes were cold and chilling. He had killed too many demons and was suddenly a bit tired of it; he wanted to kill a human!