"A peculiar technique, to unleash flames over such a wide area. It's somewhat like our Blood Demon Arts... but utterly useless against us. Didn't you know?"
After the inferno subsided, Lower Rank Five, Rui, stood unscathed in the same spot. He was on the ground now only because Uchiha Nagi's great fire had incinerated all the surrounding threads. It wasn't that he was truly unharmed; rather, his regenerative speed was astonishing, even faster than Hidan's. The fire damage had healed almost instantly, making it seem as if he hadn't been attacked at all.
"Hmph. This is just the beginning," Uchiha Nagi stated coolly.
"Is that so? For mere food to even think of resisting... I've killed Hashira before, let alone ordinary Demon Slayers." Rui, his expression blank, raised a hand. "Blood Demon Art: Cutting Thread Cage—"
Lower Rank Five, Rui, flicked his left hand. Instantly, dozens of blood-red spider threads shot out, weaving together as they flew towards Uchiha Nagi.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"
Facing the imminent web of threads, Nagi unleashed the Uchiha clan's signature fire jutsu. However, in the next second, his eyes widened in shock. The massive fireball had absolutely no effect on the crimson threads. The threads even sliced through the fireball, scattering it into smaller pockets of flame that dissipated on the ground. The tensile strength of these blood-red threads was beyond imagination—
The Cutting Thread Cage enveloped Uchiha Nagi completely, then constricted, seemingly dicing him into several pieces.
"Hm?" Rui frowned slightly. The Uchiha Nagi "killed" by his Blood Demon Art dissolved into a puff of smoke the next instant, and several wooden logs clattered to the ground. Substitution Jutsu. A ninja's bread and butter. As long as there was enough time to form the hand seals, it could be used to evade an attack.
"A fascinating technique. To escape my Cutting Thread Cage at the very moment of impact... how did you manage that? Demon Slayers aren't capable of such feats." Rui slowly turned, his gaze shifting to another direction. From there, a figure emerged—it was Uchiha Nagi.
Nagi was somewhat curious. Could Chidori, with its focused lightning, sever these incredibly fine yet unbelievably strong threads? Unfortunately, he didn't know Chidori. Without guidance, developing a new ninjutsu from scratch was exceedingly difficult. To kill the demon before him, many of the tools and techniques from the ninja world were proving ineffective... Or rather, he could defeat him, but not kill him. A troublesome enemy. Each of these demons was like Hidan, but a Hidan who also possessed abilities akin to ninjutsu. And their regenerative capabilities... far surpassed Hidan's.
"Thunder Breathing, First Form: Thunderclap and Flash." Uchiha Nagi exhaled sharply, his body flickering with arcs of electricity. This was Zenitsu's Thunder Breathing. At this point, Zenitsu, still struggling with his crippling fear, had only mastered the first form. Of course, he had honed that single strike to perfection, making it more powerful than any of the other forms would have been in his hands.
CRACK!
With a burst of lightning, Uchiha Nagi transformed into a thunderbolt, instantly appearing before Rui and slashing at his neck. However, in the next moment, Rui manipulated a dense barrage of blood-red threads to converge on Nagi, aiming to shred him to pieces.
Not enough time! The threads are too dense all around. Substitution Jutsu won't get me out of this range!
"Well then—" Uchiha Nagi's eyes narrowed. "Water Breathing, Second Form: Improved—Lateral Water Wheel!" He channeled the Water Breathing technique. As his Nichirin Blade danced, his entire body spun like a water wheel, relentlessly rotating. Finally, he managed to sever the surrounding cage of threads, creating an opening to escape.
After breaking free from the demon's Blood Demon Art, Nagi performed several backflips to create distance. Only then did he notice a nearly invisible thread wrapped tightly around Rui's neck, hidden beneath his shoulder-length white hair.
"I see," Uchiha Nagi remarked, a note of admiration in his voice. "The moment my blade was about to connect, you used your own thread to sever your neck first, then immediately reattached it. Impressive combat awareness." Compared to a certain someone like Hidan, who became completely immobilized once his head was lopped off, this Rui was on another level of formidable.
"Such astonishing speed," Rui said, his face devoid of emotion. "You almost had me there. But you only get one chance. From now on, you won't have any."
"Has anyone ever told you that you're genuinely terrifying with that look? You could play Sadako," Uchiha Nagi sighed. Rui, naturally, had no idea who Sadako was, nor did he feel anything. Since becoming a demon, he had gradually lost his human emotions. To fill the gnawing emptiness within, he had gathered many weaker demons to play the roles of his family—parents, siblings. But these bonds were a fragile facade, built solely upon the terror his superior strength inspired.
Rui spread his arms wide, his expression contorting into a fearsome snarl. "Blood Demon Art: Cutting Thread Rotation—"
Meanwhile, Tanjiro and Inosuke had finally located the culprit controlling the Demon Slayers: a woman, also clad in white, much like Rui. After a fierce struggle, they managed to defeat her. But before they could even celebrate, they were confronted by another powerful demon—a towering male figure, accompanied by a white-clad, white-haired girl.
"Mother... was defeated by them," the girl said, her voice cold. "Father, I'll leave them to you. Avenge Mother." The male demon, with multiple rows of countless eyes covering his head and a mouth that opened to reveal rows of sharp fangs, was one of the demons Rui had forced into playing the role of his "father." Despite being a subordinate, his strength was considerable. Tanjiro and Inosuke's power was clearly outmatched. The demon's physical body, in particular, was unexpectedly tough, their blades struggling to cut through its hide.
Finally, during a brief opening in the battle, Tanjiro seized a momentary weakness in his opponent's stance and unleashed a Breathing Form. "Water Breathing, Second Form: Water Wheel!" With a sharp sound, a section of the demon's arm was successfully severed, flying into the air.
Inosuke roared in delight. "Haha! We won!" Because the hulking spider demon, now missing an arm, had actually turned and fled, scrambling away in a panic. Such a sight was rare.
"You damn coward! Running away scared, huh?! Let's chase 'im down~~!" Inosuke yelled excitedly, "PIG ASSAULT!" and immediately tore after the retreating demon. "Wait, Inosuke! Be careful, it could be a trap! Wait for me!" Tanjiro shouted, hurrying to catch up.
The two pursued the two-and-a-half-meter-tall spider demon deep into the forest, but they soon lost sight of him. "Dammit! You can't hide from me! Beast Breathing, Seventh Fang: Spatial Awareness! Hooo—" Inosuke squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, then snapped them open, pointing excitedly at a large tree. "Haha! Found you! You're over there!"
"Wait, Inosuke! Something's... not right with it," Tanjiro called out, a sense of unease creeping into his voice. "Aaaargh... Aaaah..." The massive spider demon was clinging to the tree, writhing and struggling in apparent agony. A few moments later, a hand burst out from its original body. Then another. Followed by a head, and then a torso.
"What the heck is it doing?" Inosuke asked, scratching his boar mask in confusion. "It's... it's molting...!" Tanjiro gasped, his eyes wide with horror. "This is bad! Its aura... it's getting stronger! Such terrifying power!" "GROOOOAAAAAAR......"