In front of the narrow passage on the west side, which is only a line away from the core area,
On a granite plate that was at least two zhang square, leaned a figure that inspired awe!
[Wind Hashira] -- Sanemi Shinazugawa.
This man, known for his violent temper, now wore his dark green haori wide open, revealing his muscular chest covered in scars.
He was chewing on a half-dried blade of grass, his arms crossed over his chest.
The Nichirin Blade, gleaming with a chilling blue light, was stuck vertically into the soil beside him.
[It's one thing for Giyu Tomioka to have that perpetually expressionless face and his God-Making Plan, but why does my Master insist on making me here as a guard dog?!]
[Damn it? What part of my face looks like a doorman's?!]
Sanemi felt his back teeth ache more and more as he thought about it, and the anger in his chest was so intense that he felt he could set the entire Mount Fujikasane right then and there.
"To be a babysitter for a bunch of kids who haven't even grown their first hairs and can't even kill a chicken?"
"Pooh!"
"I don't care anymore! If any fool dares to take even half a step towards this obstacle, I'll make them know what true cruelty is... Whether they're human or ghost, I'll bleed them three bowls of blood first!"
As if to confirm the malicious prayer of this grumpy old man, just half a second after he finished speaking—
"Thump! Thump! Thump! Rumble--!"
Wood chips turned into a torrential downpour.
Inosuke Hashibira crashed through the last bushes at 80 kilometers per hour!
"Wow haha! The pig is advancing suddenly! The pig is advancing suddenly!!"
"I can smell it! Every inch of my skin is screaming!"
"Hey you little punk with the white hair up there, get on your knees and get out of my way! Ahhh!!"
There was absolutely no slowdown!
Inosuke's feet cracked the frozen ground, and he transformed into a meteor hammer, his boar head hurtling straight towards Sanemi's chest!
"..."
On the rock, Sanemi Shinazugawa didn't even loosen his arms, which were clasped to his chest.
A fierce glint suddenly erupted from the depths of his eyes!
"Where did this savage come from... daring to yell at me like that?!"
Sanemi's voice was not loud, even as calm as still water, but to Inosuke him, it was like a thunderclap from the heavens!
It moved!
In that instant, the figure of the Wind Hashira vanished completely from Inosuke's sight!
Sanemi lightly flicked the ground with the toe of his right foot, and the blue Nichirin Blade, deeply embedded in the earth, emitted a joyful hum as it spun and fell into his right palm.
With your five fingers together, press the handle down at a 45-degree angle instantly!
"Clang--!"
A breathtakingly beautiful azure aurora burst forth, shattering the countless fallen leaves!
Sanemi Shinazugawa's beliefs are simple:
For arrogant and ignorant bastards, fists and kicks are just slaps; only the pain of having their flesh torn apart by Nichirin Blade can make them engrave the word "reverence" into their very bones!
Therefore—draw your sword! Draw blood!
"Wind Breathing - Fourth Form-- "
Sanemi's face, contorted in the moonlight, resembled a demon, and his lips parted to utter a cold judgment:
" --Rising Dust Storm!!"
"Boom--!"
From bottom to top, the storm tears it apart!
A cyan wind tornado, entirely formed from sword energy, surged skyward against the current with ferocious force!
Inosuke, who was originally unstoppable, didn't even have a chance to see the trajectory of the blade before crashing headfirst into the rapidly spinning storm!
"Sizzle--!"
The scalding, crimson blood transformed into a thick cloud of blood mist, swirling wildly in the gale!
"Waaaaah!!"
Inosuke felt as if a layer of flesh had been scraped off his chest, the tearing sensation rushing into his brain!
However--
A monster is still a monster.
Inosuke grown up fighting bears and wolves in the deep mountains and forests, Inosuke's brain circuitry is on a completely different level from that of ordinary humans!
The blood spurting from his chest did not instill any fear in him; instead, it instantly ignited the ferocity of the beast within him!
"Ouch, it hurts! But it feels so good!!"
In the void where there was no foothold, Inosuke actually managed to twist his waist and abdomen 180 degrees using his superhuman physique!
With his feet pushing off the horizontally broken tree trunk in mid-air, he gripped the two serrated Nichirin Blades tightly in his hands, and with blood droplets flying everywhere, he slashed down like two rapidly spinning propellers once again!
The more blood I bleed, the stronger I become! I'll chop off your spiky white head and use it as a snack!
"Beast Breathing - Fifth Fang - Crazy Cutting!!"
"Clang clang--!"
Afterimages filled the sky!
A chaotic barrage of jagged blade light poured down, almost sealing off the entire three-meter radius around Sanemi!
"Oh?"
Sanemi was somewhat surprised!
Although the wild boar brat's attacks were chaotic and full of flaws, its ferocity did give this seasoned Wind Hashira a long-lost sense of wildness.
[Good foundation, strong backbone, and plenty of fighting spirit... Within the Demon Slayer Corps, he could barely be considered a dagger with barbs!]
"Too slow! Too scattered! The blade is shaking like it's trembling! Are you trying to tickle me, you idiot?!"
Sanemi held the sword with one hand.
His figure was like a wisp of blue wind weaving through the gaps in the blade's light!
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
Three sharp, rapid cracking sounds!
Inosuke felt his right arm go numb from the shock, and the serrated knife in his hand almost flew out of his grasp!
Before his sluggish brain could react, Sanemi's hideous face had already magnified infinitely in his eyes!
A flash of blue light!
"Swoosh! Swoosh!"
Two smooth, subtle lines of blood appeared on the outer sides of Inosuke's arms.
The flesh rolled back, and blood spurted out again, but the depth remained precisely two inches below the skin, neither causing real damage to bones nor muscles, yet still bringing excruciating burning pain!
"Go back to your mother's breasts and get the hell out of here!!"
With a roar from Sanemi, his left leg shot through the air and landed squarely on Inosuke's abs!
"Bang--!"
"Pfft--!"
Inosuke transformed into a heavy cannon flying close to the ground, finally crashing into a pile of rocks thirty meters away, kicking up a cloud of dust!
Click.
Sanemi slowly lowered his right arm, and a drop of blood slid from the tip of his knife, landing on a withered leaf.
He glanced at the wild boar-like boy rolling his eyes in the ruins and scoffed coldly:
"Hmph, you ignorant fool! With your pathetic skills, you dare to boast about entering the core area? You'd better practice for another hundred years!"
"Boom! Boom! Crash--!"
"Waaaaah--!"
"Help! May the Taishang Laojun command you urgently! May Buddha protect us! May Jesus appear to us!"
"Tanjiro, where are you?! Didn't you say this mountain was safe?!"
!!!
Sanemi's lips twitched violently.
Following the sound, a dazzling bright yellow figure was seen speeding along the forest path at an alarming speed!
"Thump--"
Zenitsu wasn't looking where he was going and crashed right into the granite slab in front of Sanemi!
"Pfft!"
The enormous reaction force sent Zenitsu bouncing twice in the air before he instinctively grabbed Sanemi's legs with both hands!
"Grandpa! Whoever you are! Save me! I'll do anything for you! I'll give you half of my future wife's dowry! Waaaaah..."
Sanemi:...