As Tsukihiko's words settled, the air grew thick and cold. The tension was so heavy it felt like a physical weight, and a murderous energy simmered, ready to explode at any moment. But what truly horrified Kagaya Ubuyashiki and the remaining Demon Slayers was a simple, impossible fact: Tsukihiko was standing in the middle of broad daylight, completely unharmed.
The sun, their greatest ally and last hope, was useless against him. Their final, desperate strategy—to hold out until sunrise and let the dawn burn Muzan Kibutsuji to ash—was now nothing more than a foolish dream. This was terrifying. It was absolute, soul-crushing terror.
At that same moment, the eyes of Shinobu Kocho, Mitsuri Kanroji, and Gyomei Himejima were drawn to the figures materializing behind Tsukihiko's throne. Six dark, cloaked shapes stood in silent attendance. As their black robes slid to the floor, a collective gasp of disbelief and horror echoed through the clearing. Before them stood six of the nine Hashira who had previously died in battle.
The Water Hashira, Giyu Tomioka. The Flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku. The Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito. The Serpent Hashira, Obanai Iguro. The Sound Hashira, Tengen Uzui. The Wind Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa.
It was them. They had the same faces, the same builds, the same familiar stances. But they were not the same. Something was fundamentally wrong. They were new beings, life forms created from the remnants of the fallen. Tsukihiko had preserved their cells after death, cultivating them with his own demonic blood.
On one hand, they looked exactly as they had in life, and they even retained their fighting instincts and old habits. On the other hand, their loyalty no longer belonged to the Ubuyashiki family or the Demon Slayer Corps. They now served only one master: Muzan Kibutsuji, the man standing before them as Tsukihiko.
"This... this can't be possible," Kagaya Ubuyashiki whispered, his body trembling with a shock that ran deeper than his physical weakness.
He remembered fighting demons that looked like former Hashira on his way to the Yoshiwara district. He had slain three of them himself. But he now understood that those had been nothing more than crude copies, demons that Tsukihiko had merely reshaped to look like his fallen comrades. Their true nature had been easy for a powerful slayer to see through.
But these six were different. As the Six Oni Servants stood there, radiating a power born from a fusion of human, divine, and demonic bloodlines, Kagaya felt a profound chill seep into his bones. Even with the strange, immense power still flowing through his own veins, he knew he was no match for them. He ran thousands of battle simulations through his mind in a fraction of a second, but every single one ended in the same, impossible conclusion. They could not win.
"It seems their appearance has come as quite a shock to you all," Tsukihiko said, his voice calm and detached as he observed their horrified expressions. "Ubuyashiki, your so-called demon-slaying clan ends today. But the rest of you don't need to worry just yet," he continued, his gaze sweeping over Shinobu and the others. "After the Ubuyashiki clan is wiped out, you'll be next."
A faint, cruel smile touched his lips. "You Hashira were always so close, weren't you? Like brothers and sisters, a real family. I'm sure you're just dying to reunite with them."
His words fell into a dead, icy silence. A moment ago, the Demon Slayers had been filled with sorrow over their leader's fading life, but they still held onto a fierce determination to defeat Muzan. Now, with the appearance of the Twelve Kizuki and these twisted versions of their fallen friends, that hope was extinguished. It was a clear signal that everything was over. Even the prophesied "Child of Brilliance," Tanjiro Kamado, was powerless to change this outcome. The end had arrived.
"Cough, cough... Pfft..."
Kagaya could no longer contain the damage wrecking his body. A spray of blood erupted from his mouth as his aging physique failed him. Yet, he forced himself to stand straight. "Muzan Kibutsuji... do you really think you've already won!?"
A defiant smile spread across Kagaya's pale face. "Tell me, aren't you curious? I should have died long ago, so how did I manage to not only survive but also gain this extraordinary power?"
His eyes darted toward the Upper Ranks of the Twelve Kizuki. Kokushibo, Doma, and Akaza all turned their gazes toward him. They remembered his power all too well. During the battle in Yoshiwara, Kagaya had defeated Akaza in just three strikes. He had shattered Doma's Blood Demon Art in six. And within nine strikes, he had completely overwhelmed Kokushibo, allowing Shinobu and the others to retreat safely. The power he had displayed was terrifying enough to shake gods and demons alike.
Even now, as he stood on the verge of death, none of them could be certain if his weakness was real or just another trick. No one knew for sure.
"Interesting," Tsukihiko said after a moment of silence, a genuine smile gracing his features. "Kagaya Ubuyashiki, do you have any idea what you're talking about?"
"What do you mean by that!?" Kagaya's heart skipped a beat.
"What do I mean? It's simple. Power in this world doesn't just appear from nowhere, and it doesn't disappear into nothing," Tsukihiko said, looking at Kagaya as if he were a foolish child. "The only reason you gained power that surpassed human limits was because of the methods used by the Shrine Maiden clan."
What!?
Tsukihiko's words struck Kagaya like a bolt of lightning. He never could have imagined that his greatest secret, his ultimate trump card, was already known to his enemy. It was worse than that; it was possible that his entire journey, his desperate fight in Yoshiwara, had been watched by Muzan from the very beginning.
It was a terrifying thought. If Muzan knew everything, then even a powerful group like the Shrine Maiden clan might not be enough to stop this cunning and ruthless demon king.
"Kagaya Ubuyashiki... have you never stopped to wonder?" Tsukihiko continued, his voice dropping low as he delivered another crushing blow. "Why did the so-called curse of a short life fall specifically on your Ubuyashiki family, out of all the people in the world? And isn't it convenient that the Shrine Maiden clan appeared right when you needed them, to change your so-called fate?"
Boom!
These simple questions carried a terrifying weight, plunging Kagaya's world into chaos. Tsukihiko's words had opened Pandora's Box, and the truth that was now spilling out caused Kagaya's face to twist in pure shock and horror.
He wasn't the only one. Every person present felt a cold dread wash over them, as if they could finally feel the strings of a puppet master they never knew existed. It felt as though a great, shadowy hand had been manipulating everything from behind the scenes all along.
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