Tokyo outskirts, an abandoned quarry closed for decades.
A place where bizarrely protruding rocks stood like ghosts, tonight was completely isolated from the world.
A massive barrier installed by Tamamo-no-Mae with her soul energy enveloped the entire quarry like a black dome. All sounds, smells, and situations occurring inside would not be transmitted to Kibutsuji Muzan.
"I smell it, a very disgusting yet delicious smell."
At the quarry center, rock shadows squelched like a swamp, then an oni of strange form rose. Its entire body wrapped in black bandages, with six shadow blades shaped like insect legs undulating behind its back.
It was Lower Moon Four of the Twelve Kizuki. Its left pupil was engraved with the clear number 'Lower Four'.
"Lower Moon Four. Definitely different class."
Kanae drew her sword on a rock and muttered lowly. Sweat seeped into her hands. The presence it emitted was different from the miscellaneous oni faced until now.
Beside her, Shinobu bit her lip and glared at the oni, while at the very front stood Akira, shirtless, fists clenched.
"You two stand by. Don't step forward until my signal."
Akira's muscular upper body glowed pale under moonlight. He wanted to thoroughly confirm through a frontal battle with a Lower Moon how far his pure martial power would reach.
"Hoh? An oni trying to hunt an oni? You traitorous bastard!"
Lower Moon Four sneered and stomped the ground. Shadows surged like waves to cover Akira.
Boom!
Akira and Lower Moon Four collided head-on. Akira's fist and Lower Moon Four's shadow blades clashed, emitting a tremendous shockwave. Surrounding rocks were sliced like tofu, dirt and dust stormed up.
"Grugh?!"
The surprised one was rather Lower Moon Four. His shadow blades cut steel like paper, but the oni before him was blocking them with bare fists. Akira's fist skin tore and blood spattered, but bones didn't break.
"Not bad, Lower Moon Four. But this won't kill me."
Akira growled. Not being overwhelmed in strength. He grabbed Lower Moon Four's blades and drove a knee strike into its abdomen.
Thud!
"Cough!"
Lower Moon Four staggered. Akira's physical ability had already reached Lower Moon Five level. Could compete in simple strength fights.
But the terror of Lower Moons wasn't simple strength.
"Blood Demon Art, [Shadow Prison·Thorn Hell]!"
When Lower Moon Four struck the ground, shadows under Akira's feet instantly transformed into dozens of thorns shooting up.
Stab! Thud! Crack!
"Gruuuh!?"
No time to dodge. Akira's thigh, side, shoulder were simultaneously pierced. A fatal blow for ordinary oni. But Akira swallowed the pain and rather charged forward.
"Got you!"
Without even pulling out the thorns embedded in his body, Akira grabbed Lower Moon Four by the collar and slammed it to the ground.
Thump!
"Now!"
Akira's shout echoed through the quarry.
Seizing the opening Akira created, Kanae flew in as if dancing.
"Flower Breathing, Sixth Form! [Whirling Peach Blossom]!"
Kanae's body spun like a top in midair. This technique originally was an offense-defense integrated form attacking while evading. But Kanae added leaping power closer to acrobatics learned from Ushiwakamaru.
Whirr~ Clang! Crash!
Shadow thorns Lower Moon Four urgently shot up were deflected by Kanae's spinning sword strikes. Like whirling peach blossom petals knocking away steel thorns, it was soft yet powerful rotational force.
"You fly-like bitch!"
Lower Moon Four simultaneously extended dozens of shadow tentacles trying to surround Kanae.
"Where are you looking?"
But Kanae had already stepped on the tentacles and leaped again. Her sword maximizing centrifugal force of rotation deeply sliced through his shoulder.
Swish!
"Gwaaak!"
Black blood gushed from Lower Moon Four's shoulder. But shallow. Didn't reach bone. It angrily emitted shockwaves omnidirectionally.
Craaash!
"Kyaak!"
Kanae, with nowhere to dodge in midair, was swept by shockwaves and flung away. She minimized damage by performing breakfall while rolling on the ground, but red blood flowed from her mouth.
"Sister!"
Shinobu urgently cried out trying to step forward, but Lower Moon Four's murderous intent covered her.
"Die!"
Lower Moon Four's giant shadow fist flew toward Shinobu. Then, blood-soaked Akira jumped out again and blocked that fist with his whole body.
Thud!
"Cough!"
The sound of spine crumbling. But Akira didn't let go of its arm. He was thoroughly a tank. Taking all aggro and damage himself so the sisters could attack.
"Shinobu! Don't retreat! Watch for openings!"
Akira vomited blood while crushing Lower Moon Four's arm in his grip.
The battle was desperate. Kanae constantly distracted its vision with flashy swordsmanship, and Akira rose like a zombie, binding its feet.
But no finishing blow. Kanae's sword strikes couldn't completely pierce the shadow armor, and Akira was reaching his limit enduring rather than attacking.
Shinobu felt despair.
'Only me... only me can't do anything.'
Her thrusts bounced off its hard skin. Even trying to inject poison, must pierce first. Sister was bleeding, Akira was battered.
What am I doing here? Just baggage?
'No. I'm not weak. Mustn't be weak.'
Shinobu regripped her sword with trembling hands. If lacking arm strength, overwhelm with speed. If skin is hard, accelerate until pierced. If mass is insufficient, double the speed.
Okita Souji's cool voice came to her mind.
`Shinobu-san, don't try to slash. Just look at one point and stab. Your body becomes the sword. The moment you kick off the ground, you must already be there.`
Shukuchi (Reduced Earth).
Okita Souji's footwork. Swift footwork erasing distance from ground. Fuse that with her own breathing. Even if legs break. Even if muscles rupture.
Just once. Just need to pierce once.
"Kehahaha! It's over now! I'll kill you all!"
Lower Moon Four unleashed full power. The entire quarry was covered in black shadows. It kicked Akira away, and bound Kanae with shadow tentacles.
"Sister!"
"Next is you, brat!"
The moment Lower Moon Four tried to deliver the final strike toward Shinobu. Akira jumped out again and tightly hugged its waist.
"Now, Shinobu! Pierce through!!!"
Akira's shout. Shinobu's breathing stopped. Air in her lungs compressed to the extreme. Leg muscles contracted enough to scream.
World's sounds disappeared. Only heartbeats struck eardrums.
The breath from Shinobu's mouth wasn't Flower Breathing. It was the wingbeat sound of a small but deadly poison-bearing insect.
KABOOM!!!
An explosive sound erupted. Not gunpowder exploding. The rupture sound when an object breaks the sound barrier, a sonic boom.
The moment Shinobu kicked off the ground, the massive bedrock she stood on shattered. Lower Moon Four felt something flash before its eyes.
'What? Disappeared...'
No time even to think. Shinobu had already erased space and was right before its nose. All her weight, speed, rotational force loaded on her sword tip.
Crack!
The sword strike was one, but its impact was like an anti-tank shell. A thrust accelerated to sonic speed struck Lower Moon Four's hard neck vertebrae, pierced the cervical spine, then shattered the following vertebrae as it penetrated. aTF4RE5DbGowRWJBNjlXRzBRK3hYYnBPYW9YN08vTFdVdjhsWXE4WjEzb1lmRXdBSnBURXIrZUZVY2VOVlE2RQ
Akira saw Shinobu's sword brush past his face. Cool wind as if skin would be cut. And eardrum-tearing impact sound.
His eyes saw it. Behind Shinobu, the vague form of a giant hornet appeared.
"...Ke, heh?!"
Lower Moon Four even felt pain belatedly. With its neck pierced, it looked down at the small girl dug into its body with disbelieving eyes.
[Bee Sting Dance - True Bend]
Shinobu landed leaving afterimages. Smoke rose from the blade. Due to friction heat.
"Don't move."
Shinobu said coldly, shaking her sword. Her legs trembled, but eyes flashed with murderous intent.
"Poison lethal enough to kill an oni. Plus brain shaken by sonic impact, so can't even move a finger."
"Urgh... grrr...!"
The Lower Moon oni foamed at the mouth and went limp in Akira's arms. Even trying to regenerate, commands weren't transmitted from brain. Entire nervous system paralyzed and shut down. Perfect suppression.
Imperfect Insect Breathing awakening.
"Splendid, Shinobu."
Akira laughed heartily, grabbing the limp Lower Moon Four's nape. Paralyzed Lower Moon Four. Not a speck of resistance power remained.
Ultimately, Shuten who was waiting thinking it wouldn't work tried to smash Lower Moon Four, but that wasn't necessary.
"Now, bon appétit. Lower Moon nutrients."
Akira's hand dug into Lower Moon Four's body. Excluding parts where poison spread, greedily sucking in the torso where Lower Moon's high-density life force was concentrated.
"Gwaaa! Uwaaak! This can't be!"
Its desperate death throes scattered vainly within Tamamo's barrier. Lower Moon Four's body melted like candle wax and flowed into Akira's body.
Akira's blood vessels expanded as if about to burst. Life force denser than hundreds of ordinary oni combined. Lower Moon's blood and flesh began reconstructing each of Akira's cells.
Torn muscles instantly reattached, broken bones matured harder than steel. The sensation of his oni class rising one level.
'This is it. This is true power!'
Now Akira's martial power leaped to at least Lower Moon Three level, or possibly beyond. At this level, he could tear apart ordinary oni barehanded without Servants' help, without Blood Demon Art.
Akira's eyes burned red. Joy of blood boiling throughout his body.
His Blood Demon Art strengthened.
"Succeeded."
"Akira-san!"
Kanae staggered up, and Shinobu sat down as her legs gave out, gasping for breath. Dirt-covered clothes, blood-stained faces, but the two girls' eyes shone with victory's joy.
"We did it! We... caught a Lower Moon!"
Shinobu shouted with trembling voice. Akira approached the two and pulled them into a hug.
"Right, thanks to you both. Especially Shinobu, that strike just now was truly perfect. A sonic boom, you're a genius."
"Hehe... my legs are trembling..."
Shinobu buried her face in Akira's chest and laughed with reddened face. Kanae also leaned against Akira's shoulder in relief.
Akira looked up at the night sky. The barrier gradually lifted, real moonlight shone upon them. The powerful strength gained by devouring Lower Moon Four. And the new connection he would soon meet.
'Now, who will come out this time?'
A thick smile spread across Akira's mouth.