Impulse is the Devil

Hearing the tremendous rumbling from the ground, Sabito suddenly woke up. He found that Giyu Tomioka had also drawn his sword warily, which surprised Sabito somewhat. Has this kid finally caught on?

Suddenly, two green arms as thick as small trees shot out from the bushes, targeting the two of them. However, both attacks were neutralized by Water Breathing, First Form: Water Surface Slash.

"This demon is powerful!" Sabito exclaimed.

After all, after just one exchange, his Tiger Mouth ached. It must have been caused by cutting through the other party's arms.

At that moment, a colossal figure over three meters tall emerged from the bushes. Its entire body was wrapped in arms, with only half its head exposed.

The two of them visibly tightened their grips on their swords. This creature was strong—stronger than every demon they had encountered so far. Weren't the demons in the Final Selection supposed to have eaten only one or two people? Yet this one clearly was not.

When the Hand Demon saw their Fox Masks, it immediately began to laugh happily. It was a different kind of excitement.

"Wonderful! I get to kill Urokodaki's disciples again. I wonder what expression he'll make when another two disciples die. That's bound to be entertaining, kekeke!"

The Hand Demon looked completely certain of victory, as if the Water Hashira duo before it were already corpses.

"What did you say?" Sabito was already growing angry.

"You don't know?" the Hand Demon asked in a mocking tone.

"What?"

"Hasn't not a single disciple your teacher sent here ever returned? That's because I ate all the ones wearing Fox Masks. There should have been eleven."

As it spoke, the Hand Demon counted on its fingers. It couldn't be helped—having so many hands meant it had more than enough to use.

By then, Sabito's rage had reached its peak. Every one of his senior brothers had died at the hands of the demon before him. He would never forget the look of sorrow on his master's face. That was probably why his master had been so unwilling to send them here.

"So it was you, you bastard! You've made me furious! I'll kill you!" Sabito roared as he charged at the Hand Demon.

"Calm down!"

Giyu Tomioka was furious too, but he could not lose his reason. Otherwise, the enemy would seize on his weakness. Misfortunes never came alone—sure enough, three more demons ran out of the bushes. They had heard the commotion and come to get a share of the spoils.

But when they saw the Hand Demon, they were so frightened that they did not dare move. The Hand Demon rolled its eyes and said, "You three, go stall the other one. But don't eat him, or I'll kill you!"

The three demons tremblingly accepted the Hand Demon's command. Though the Hand Demon was the king of Wisteria Mountain, it was not foolish enough to face two Water Hashira swordsmen at once. After all, every generation of Fox Masks was formidable.

Still, the Hand Demon believed it would have no problem dealing with one of them.

The Hand Demon's arms lashed toward Sabito like octopus tentacles, but Sabito continuously cut them down.

However, under the Hand Demon's constant verbal provocation, Sabito had lost his calm, and his breathing had become disordered. His strength at its peak was gone as well.

The Hand Demon even began describing how it had eaten Sabito's senior brothers, while endlessly insulting Sakuji Urokodaki. This tactic was effective. It might only frighten others, but against Water Hashira swordsmen, it was exactly enough.

Dozens of arms relentlessly pursued Sabito. Though he cut them all apart, they immediately grew back. Sabito used Water Breathing, Third Form: Flowing Dance, continuously closing in on the Hand Demon. Even the Hand Demon, with its rapid regeneration, could no longer keep up.

Then, more than a dozen arms gathered before the Hand Demon's chest, forming a ball of flesh. A much larger arm shot out like a projectile and sent the charging Sabito flying.

Countless arms then smashed down simultaneously where Sabito had fallen. Once the dust settled, the boy charged at the Hand Demon again with his sword in hand. After all, Sabito's talent was even greater than Giyu Tomioka's.

"You're stronger than all the ones I've eaten. I wonder how much Urokodaki will regret it after I eat you. Just thinking about it makes me happy!"

"Shut your mouth!" Sabito shouted.

Suddenly, countless arms burst out of the ground like earthen spikes, forcing Sabito to leap into the air. The moment he was suspended in midair, the Hand Demon smiled.

Another gigantic arm formed from the fusion of multiple arms appeared. The two arms blocked Sabito in, then slammed toward each other. If they hit, Sabito would undoubtedly die.

As expected of a naturally gifted fighter, Sabito immediately used Water Breathing, Sixth Form: Twisting Whirlpool.

This was a sword form that could be used where there was no footing, or where the footing was unstable.

Sabito's body began to spin, and the Hand Demon's attack struck nothing but air. Before the Hand Demon could even be surprised, Sabito had already raced toward it by stepping on its massive arms.

It had never imagined that the arm meant to kill Sabito would become the stepping stone to its own grave. Sabito pressed forward fiercely, but he could feel a sharp pain in his lungs. His breathing had been disordered from the start.

The Hand Demon tried endlessly to intercept Sabito, but it was all in vain. Panic seized it. This brat was too strong. It regretted not wearing them down for a few days before making its move.

But all of that was pointless. Sabito had already reached its neck. He leaped into the air and used Water Breathing, Eighth Form: Waterfall Basin.

A fierce downward slash was about to land on the Hand Demon's neck when Sabito suddenly coughed violently. He was momentarily unable to breathe, and his attack went wide.

Though the descending slash severed several of the Hand Demon's arms, none of them were its neck. If Sabito had lost in his previous life because his strength had run out, then this time, he lost because his heart was unsettled and his breathing had been thrown into disarray.

"Hahaha! Those who wear Fox Masks are destined to die! Die!"

A thick arm smashed toward Sabito's head like a cannonball. At that moment, Sabito regretted it. He had always urged Giyu not to die, yet he was about to die before him.

I'm sorry, Master! I'm sorry, Giyu! I'm sorry, Makomo!

Sabito turned his head and saw Giyu Tomioka charging toward him like a madman. He had just finished dealing with the three demons, but the distance was too great. It seemed he would not make it in time.

Giyu Tomioka felt as if he were about to watch someone closest to him die before his eyes again. In the end, he truly could not save anyone.

The Hand Demon did not care about that. Though the facts had proven that Giyu Tomioka was strong as well, it intended to kill whoever it could, then flee after killing this brat.

Not only would Sakuji Urokodaki suffer, but his disciple would also suffer for the rest of his life for failing to save his companion. Just thinking about it made it feel as if it had gained everything.

In that moment of despair, Sabito closed his eyes. Perhaps that way, he would not die too ugly a death. He deeply regretted not listening to Giyu and calming down. Otherwise, the hateful demon would be the one dying now.

At that moment of despair, a streak of flame tore through the night sky and severed the Hand Demon's gigantic arm.