Legend had it that after the sun set, Evil Demons appeared to eat people. There were also Demon Slayers who slew Evil Demons and protected the people.
A light rain pattered down. Tsugikuni Kuuga instinctively pulled his thin clothes tighter around himself, rainwater dripping from the tips of his red hair onto the bamboo chair beneath him.
Drip. Drip.
The raindrops tapped against the bamboo chair as though telling a story. The boy was about to be sacrificed by the villagers to the so-called Mountain God. Only Tsugikuni Kuuga knew that the Mountain God was merely an evil demon that ate people.
The four burly men carried the boy up moss-covered blue stone steps to the dilapidated red Mountain God Shrine. The peeling, mottled walls seemed to say that no one had come here in a very long time.
The four men suddenly knelt before Tsugikuni Kuuga. One of them cried out, "Kuuga, the villagers have wronged you. But for the sake of the fourteen years we raised you, please don't hate us!"
Just as the boy was about to say something, a beastlike roar came from the ruined shrine. The four men scrambled to their feet in terror and ran down the blue stone steps.
Whether from fright or because the rain had made the path slippery, one of the men nearly fell. Tsugikuni Kuuga was not afraid. Instead, he stared resolutely at the shrine's entrance.
"I said I wouldn't be afraid, so why are my hands still shaking? You're the descendant of the man revered as a god. Don't be scared!" Tsugikuni Kuuga comforted himself.
Today marked the fourteenth year since Tsugikuni Kuuga had reincarnated into the world of Demon Slayer. Since he had spent all his life deep in the mountains, he had no idea what was happening outside. Every day, he prayed that his Shinobu-wife was still alive.
As a seasoned anime fan, how could he not know Blade of Demon Destruction? Thinking back on those nights when he had cried under the blankets after getting stabbed in the heart by the story, Tsugikuni Kuuga still could not accept the fact that Shinobu-wife had died. And Big Brother too.
Tsugikuni Kuuga pulled a small bronze mirror from somewhere and examined the scar on his forehead, which looked as though it had been burned. Only he knew that it was the legendary Mark.
When Tsugikuni Kuuga had learned that he possessed a Mark, he had nearly died on the spot. After all, Marked swordsmen never lived past twenty-five. But after reading the family genealogy, his eyes had lit up. He was Yoriichi Tsugikuni's descendant. It was perfectly normal for him to be born with a Mark.
Still, Tsugikuni Kuuga worried that his days were numbered. Then he remembered that he was an outstanding descendant of China. Surely his ancestors had left behind methods to strengthen the body and prolong life.
Tai Chi was an excellent practice for regulating yin and yang and strengthening the body. As the saying went: The Dao gave birth to One; One gave birth to Two; Two gave birth to Three; Three gave birth to all things.
From the age of eight, Tsugikuni Kuuga had practiced Tai Chi once a day and swung his sword five hundred times. His body was in great shape, and he could eat anything with gusto!
At this point, Tsugikuni Kuuga wanted to thank his college PE teacher. Thank him for teaching him Tai Chi. He believed that one day, there would be a Demon Slayer Corps where everyone practiced Tai Chi.
Another roar came from within the ruined shrine, jolting Tsugikuni Kuuga back to reality. He stood up and gripped the Broken Sword in his hand.
The sword had been passed down through his ancestors. It was one of Tsugikuni Kuuga's few possessions, though he did not know whether it could still kill demons.
The shrine doors shook violently before flying straight off their hinges. Tsugikuni Kuuga sidestepped, and the door flew past his Hanafuda Earrings. Those were another of his possessions, which he called the same model as the Head Pillar's.
After the dust at the entrance to the ruined shrine settled, a yellowish-brown demon crawled out. In its eyes, Tsugikuni Kuuga was a lamb awaiting slaughter, someone it could kill with a casual swipe of its claws.
A heavy stench of blood drifted into Tsugikuni Kuuga's nose on the wind. His stomach protested and immediately churned.
Tsugikuni Kuuga had thought he was someone who had seen it all, but facing the real thing was far more unpleasant than he had expected.
"Kid, are you holding that sword because you want to cut me?" the evil demon mocked.
"Uh, did a door crush your head? If I'm not going to cut you, why would I be holding it? Should I slice myself up and serve myself to you?" Tsugikuni Kuuga shot back.
Tsugikuni Kuuga was starting to worry about this demon's intelligence. It did not look very bright.
"Tch! Sharp tongue. When you're kneeling and begging me not to eat you, let's see whether you can still be so arrogant!"
Arrogant? Tsugikuni Kuuga was baffled. He had only told the truth. How was that arrogant? There was definitely something wrong with this guy.
The Earth Demon did not waste any more words on Tsugikuni Kuuga. After all, torturing prey to death was its hobby. How could meat that had not been thoroughly beaten be tasty?
The Earth Demon pushed off the ground with its hind legs and assumed the posture of a predator pouncing on prey. Then it leaped into the air and lunged straight at Tsugikuni Kuuga. Tsugikuni Kuuga stood still and quietly watched it, even though his body trembled.
This was his first time seeing a demon that ate people. Besides, he had the body of a child. Of course he was scared, but Tsugikuni Kuuga had even greater confidence in his Tai Chi.
The instant the Earth Demon pounced, Tsugikuni Kuuga swayed like a reed in the wind and slipped right past it. The Earth Demon was dumbfounded. Was this kid's body made of rubber? How could it be so flexible?
Tsugikuni Kuuga drew the Broken Sword in one fluid motion and swung it at the Earth Demon's neck. He even wore a victorious smile.
He said smugly, "You underestimated me. Don't think I'm weak just because I'm a kid. Can you handle my six years of skill?"
But when nothing unexpected was supposed to happen, something unexpected happened. With a crack, the sword in Tsugikuni Kuuga's hand broke in two, and the Earth Demon burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! This is your six years of skill? I'm so scared!"
The Earth Demon laughed loudly, then slashed at Tsugikuni Kuuga with its claws. It moved so fast that Tsugikuni Kuuga did not even have time to react. Then a graceful arc cut through the sky as Tsugikuni Kuuga flew ten meters away.
After hitting the ground, he rolled a long way before crashing into a tree. Fresh blood trickled from the corner of Tsugikuni Kuuga's mouth.
Tsugikuni Kuuga clutched his chest in pain. Waves of agonizing pain surged through it; perhaps his ribs were broken. Were his ancestors trying to scam him? It had snapped just like that.
Tsugikuni Kuuga used half of the Broken Sword to brace himself against the ground and slowly stood up. The Earth Demon, meanwhile, approached him slowly with an amused expression.
Suddenly, Tsugikuni Kuuga pointed behind the Earth Demon and shouted, "Look! Your daddy Muzan is here!"
At the word "Muzan," the Earth Demon's pupils instantly dilated. Its entire body trembled, and it hurriedly turned around and dropped to its knees.
Of course, Tsugikuni Kuuga had tricked it. Right now, no one wanted to encounter Muzan Kibutsuji less than he did. After all, a descendant of the Tsugikuni family facing Muzan would surely end up dead.
Still, bringing out the big boss to bluff one of his underlings worked just fine. The results proved it. It seemed he could use this trick more often in the future.
"You stupid demon, your boss would never come to a backwater like this. Stop kneeling. Rise, then. Your daddy Kuuga permits you to stand!"
Tsugikuni Kuuga's mockery was cranked to the max. Then came the Thirty-Six Stratagems: retreat was the best option. Time to run!
Before you continue