Paradise?

Standing by the window, gazing at Konohagakure under the night sky, Shinji mentally reviewed Konoha's layout once more.

Regarding the 'invasion,' he had analyzed many possibilities these past few days and devised some countermeasures.

For instance, he had already memorized Konoha's layout. He could pinpoint the locations of important facilities like the Hokage Building, the Anbu headquarters, the Hospital, and so on, even with his eyes closed.

Should an 'invasion' truly occur, he could react immediately.

After all, this was Konoha. No matter what kind of intruder appeared, Konoha wouldn't stand idly by. Therefore

Normal attacks have very limited effect on demons unless targeting their weak points.

Just like those fearless guards, no matter how many times they shot, cut, or blew up the Hand Demon, they couldn't eliminate it. The Hand Demon, on the other hand, could quickly recover from its injuries by simply devouring them.

Fortunately, Shinji knew the weakness of demons in Demon Slayer.

The greatest weakness is undoubtedly the sun. As long as they are exposed to sunlight, even the most powerful demons will turn to ash under normal circumstances.

Besides the sun, another weakness of demons is their neck.

Decapitating a demon's neck with a Nichirin Blade is the Demon Slayer Corps' most conventional method of eliminating them. Additionally, demons fear a plant called wisteria.

However, Shinji currently had neither a Nichirin Blade nor wisteria.

Looking at the time, it was just past midnight, and sunrise was still a long way off.

"What should I do!"

Shinji was plagued by a headache, his gaze returning to the courtyard.

Judging by the attire of the guards in the courtyard and the Explosive Tags they used, this place was likely still in the Ninja World. Therefore, he guessed it might be the palace of some daimyo.

This could also be inferred from the guards' fearless engagement with the Hand Demon.

Analyzing the battle situation, the Hand Demon was very strong!

It wasn't that the Hand Demon couldn't be countered. In fact, the guards had severed and blown off its arms more than ten times. Once, they even blew away half of its body.

But these injuries, which would be fatal to normal creatures, had little effect on the Hand Demon.

The Hand Demon, however, could rapidly increase its strength by continuously devouring the guards. In just this short while, its body had already expanded by another circle, looking like a moving mountain of flesh from a distance.

"Why do the people here smell so good, ah. Gulp, gulp, so sweet!"

The Hand Demon let out chilling chewing sounds as it slaughtered.

"Damn it, what kind of monster is this!"

"Reinforcements, why aren't they here yet!"

"Don't eat me!"

Amidst roars and wails, the guards' resistance gradually weakened.

Hiss.

Watching the Hand Demon devour the last guard, Shinji's expression grew grave.

Even just moving, the Hand Demon emitted rumbling sounds that made the ground tremble slightly. The buildings that stood in its path were like tofu, shattering at the slightest touch.

At this moment, it seemed to have set its sights on the main hall not far away.

Dragging its bloated body, it shuffled step by step towards the main hall.

Shinji, hidden in the side hall, felt a bit fortunate: "It doesn't seem to have discovered me yet..."

Swish.

The moment Shinji let his guard down slightly, an arm suddenly shot out from the Hand Demon's back, accompanied by a foul, fishy wind. It instantly broke through the wall and lunged towards Shinji, who was hiding behind it.

"What?!"

Before he could react, Shinji was firmly grasped by the Hand Demon.

Then, the arm holding Shinji rapidly retracted, lifting him into the air and bringing him before the Hand Demon.

"Ohoho, I smelled you long ago. You smell better than them, much better. I'm drooling just thinking about it!"

The Hand Demon stared at Shinji with a foolish expression, saliva actually dripping from its mouth.

Shinji felt so disgusted he wanted to vomit.

Suddenly, the Hand Demon seemed to sense something. Its already deformed face contorted with even more madness: "So you're the 'Light' of this world! Don't drive me away!"

"'Light'?"

Seeing the Hand Demon's reaction, Shinji realized his identity seemed to be quite special.

Countless arms danced and swayed around it. The Hand Demon, resembling a celestial demon, grew even more frenzied. It grabbed Shinji and lifted him above its gaping maw: "If I eat you, I can stay here forever! This is my paradise!"

"Paradise?" Shinji scoffed and said coldly, "Do you have a misunderstanding of the Ninja World! This is hell!"

Before his voice even fell, Shinji's eyes turned scarlet.

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