Zenitsu raised his trembling hand. The place where the spider had bitten him had already turned purple. A terrible realization dawned on him. The Spider Demon Brother smiled.
"Hehehe..."
"You've been poisoned by my venom."
"The poison will spread through your body with your blood."
"The more you struggle, the faster it spreads."
"Your body will slowly become weaker. Your movements will become slower, and eventually you'll collapse."
"When that happens..."
"I'll eat you piece by piece."
Zenitsu stood frozen.
For a moment, it seemed like he was thinking about the demon's words. Then—
"AAAAAHHHHH!"
He screamed again and ran. The Spider Demon Brother stared in disbelief.
"Seriously?"
"You're not only a coward..."
"You're also an idiot."
He raised his hand. "Get him." The spider-headed creatures surrounding the area immediately rushed toward Zenitsu. Seeing that there was nowhere to escape, Zenitsu climbed up the nearest tree and desperately hugged the trunk.
"I can't..."
"I can't die here..."
But then he noticed something wrong. His arms were becoming weaker. His fingers slowly lost their strength. His body slipped. And he fell. The moment he hit the ground, memories from his past surfaced. A mountain. A strict old man. And countless days of painful training.
Whenever Zenitsu became tired and wanted to give up, he would hide inside a tree.
His grandfather, Jigoro Kuwajima, would always find him.
"Zenitsu!"
"Get down from there!"
"Do you think running away will make you stronger?"
Even though Zenitsu was cowardly, lazy, and lacked confidence, his grandfather never abandoned him.
He believed in him.
Even when Zenitsu could only learn one technique of Thunder Breathing...
His grandfather still praised him.
"One technique is enough."
"If you master that one technique completely, it can become stronger than anyone else's."
Those words carried Zenitsu until today.
Slowly...
Zenitsu stood.
He lowered his body.
His left hand rested against the sheath.
His thumb pressed against the tsuba.
His right hand gripped the sword handle.
A drawing stance.
His eyes closed.
His breathing became steady.
Then—
Crackling sounds echoed.
Electric sparks danced around his body.
The spider creatures froze.
"What...?"
Before they could react—
Lightning flashed.
The spider heads surrounding him were blasted away.
The Spider Demon Brother's expression changed.
Something was wrong.
The coward from before...
Was gone.
---
"Why are you running?"
The Spider Demon Brother quickly climbed upward using his threads.
"He has already been poisoned!"
"He won't last long!"
"Attack him together!"
The spider creatures obeyed.
They rushed toward Zenitsu again.
But Zenitsu didn't move.
He remained in his stance.
Waiting.
Gathering everything.
Every breath.
Every muscle.
Every bit of strength remaining.
The spider creatures attacked.
Zenitsu moved only when necessary.
One step.
A dodge.
Another step.
A leap.
He created distance between himself and the swarm.
Then he stepped onto the trunk of a tree.
His body shot upward.
Straight toward the Spider Demon Brother.
The demon's eyes widened.
"What happened to him?"
"That coward..."
"He's completely different."
The Spider Demon Brother panicked.
The human was moving through the air.
A place where humans should have no advantage.
"He can't change direction here!"
The demon opened his mouth.
Poisonous liquid gathered.
But before he could attack—
Zenitsu disappeared.
The demon's eyes widened.
He had already changed direction.
Too fast.
The poisonous attack struck the tree instead.
The trunk instantly corroded.
The Spider Demon Brother's fear grew.
Zenitsu landed.
But he still hadn't moved from his stance.
His aura continued growing sharper.
The air around him seemed to tremble.
The demon understood.
This human was preparing something.
A final attack.
"He only knows one move!"
The demon shouted.
"Don't be afraid!"
"Attack him!"
The spider creatures surrounded Zenitsu.
The Spider Demon Brother quickly escaped toward the wooden house hanging among the trees.
He hid inside.
He only needed to wait.
The poison would eventually defeat this human.
Then he could eat him.
But Zenitsu remembered something.
His senior brother, Kaigaku.
The one who mocked him.
"You only know one move."
"You can't even use the others."
But his grandfather had said something different.
"Zenitsu."
"That one move is your strength."
"Master it."
"Make it your own."
Those words were the reason Zenitsu continued forward.
Even now.
Even when death was approaching.
He would prove his grandfather was right.
---
The spider creatures completely surrounded Zenitsu.
The Spider Demon Brother smiled.
"It's over."
But then—
A flash of golden light appeared.
The entire clearing shook.
The spider creatures were instantly cut apart.
Zenitsu opened his eyes.
A brilliant flash reflected within them.
"Thunder Breathing..."
"First Form..."
"Thunderclap and Flash."
BOOM!
Lightning exploded across the battlefield.
Zenitsu vanished.
His speed was beyond sight.
The Spider Demon Brother froze.
He couldn't react.
"Sixfold."
A golden streak tore through the night.
Zenitsu used the spider threads hanging around the trees as his path.
In an instant—
He reached the wooden house.
The blade passed through.
Silence.
Then...
The Spider Demon Brother's head separated from his body.
"No..."
"Impossible..."
"I was defeated..."
"By a coward..."
His body turned into ash.
The wind carried away the remains of the demon.
---
Zenitsu's strength finally left him.
He collapsed onto the roof.
The poison had spread throughout most of his body.
His vision became blurry.
His consciousness faded.
Then—
"Chirp."
A familiar sound reached his ears.
Zenitsu slowly opened his eyes.
A small sparrow flew toward him.
"Chuntaro..."
His voice was weak.
The sparrow cried anxiously.
Zenitsu smiled faintly.
"So you're here..."
He wanted to say more.
But his body wouldn't listen.
Tanjirou...
Nezuko...
Inosuke...
I won't be able to go on adventures with you anymore...
His eyes slowly closed.
Then—
A familiar voice echoed in his mind.
"Stand up, Zenitsu!"
"Don't give up!"
"Hold on!"
His grandfather.
Jigoro Kuwajima.
The voice was strict.
The same voice from his training days.
But now...
It sounded warm.
Comforting.
"Grandfather..."
Zenitsu opened his eyes again.
No.
He couldn't die.
Not yet.
He focused his breathing.
He used Total Concentration Breathing.
Slowing his body's functions.
Slowing the spread of the poison.
He didn't know how long passed.
But eventually...
A butterfly flew through the darkness.
At first, Zenitsu thought he was hallucinating.
Then a figure landed beside him.
A woman wearing the Demon Slayer Corps uniform.
A butterfly hair ornament rested in her hair.
Beautiful purple eyes looked down at him.
Shinobu Kocho smiled gently.
"Are you still alive?"
Zenitsu blinked.
Who...
Who is this?
A Demon Slayer?
There are really people this beautiful in the Corps?
Shinobu placed her fingers against his forehead and checked his condition.
After a moment, her expression relaxed.
"Fortunately, the poison hasn't spread completely."
"You still have a chance."
She looked at him with surprise.
"You did well."
"Using Total Concentration Breathing helped slow the poison."
Shinobu took out medicine and injected the antidote into Zenitsu's body.
Then she asked:
"Have you seen a boy with white hair and a girl traveling with him?"
Zenitsu weakly shook his head.
"I see."
"Rest here."
"The recovery team will arrive soon."
With that, Shinobu jumped down from the wooden house.
Her figure disappeared into the forest.
Leaving Zenitsu waiting beneath the moonlight.
---
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