A Breath Style That Was Countered (Please Keep Reading)

"Sorcery... hahaha."

The Demon looked intrigued, with a hint of disdain in his expression.

"Interesting..."

"But I told you."

"Humans are still just humans."

"And I'm a being close to a god."

Unusual crimson patterns spread across the Demon's skin. Blood-red mist poured from his pores, mouth, and nose.

In the blink of an eye, it spread across the surrounding area, mingling with the thick white fog on the mountain.

"Blood Demon Art..."

"Demon Mist!"

The Demon grinned viciously, his eerie, hoarse voice echoing through the mountain.

"You've been under my Blood Demon Art from the very beginning..."

"You've been breathing in the blood mist from my body..."

"But you don't seem to be swordsmen who rely on breathing like the ones I met last time."

"My ability doesn't work nearly as well on you..."

Tsugikuni Yoriichi nodded. Now he understood why his comrades had never returned. Some had even been prodigious swordsmen stronger than the Demon before them.

"So that's it."

"You can mix poisonous blood into the air."

"That really does counter swordsmen who use Breathing Styles like me..."

"No wonder my comrades never came back."

Sarutobi Hiruzen felt the same. This was the weakness of swordsmen who used Breathing Styles: they depended on the air far more than practitioners of other power systems.

If Hanzo were in the Demon Slayer World, he could probably wipe out every swordsman who used a Breathing Style.

That old poison master, Hanzo, would be more than capable.

"So there's no such thing as a perfect ability."

"Demons can also develop powers that counter swordsmen who use Breathing Styles..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen warned him,

"Remember to leave him alive, Yoriichi."

Tsugikuni Yoriichi humbly agreed.

"Indeed. We shouldn't underestimate Demons with such long lives..."

"They can improve, too..."

"But for the sake of this world's peace, it's better if he dies."

The Demon curled his lip. These humans sounded far too arrogant—more arrogant than he was.

"Hahahaha..."

"You idiots have fallen under my Blood Demon Art."

"You're already—"

Clang!

The sound of a blade leaving its sheath rang clear and long. Yet faster than the blade itself was a streak of crimson light.

Flames made tangible, carrying the sun's energy, surged forth like a flood and poured into the Demon's neck.

The blazing Yang Power invaded the Demon's cells like a biological virus, instantly killing most of his brain.

Thump.

The Demon's body fell straight to the ground, his face still bearing the disdainful expression from a moment before.

But faced with Tsugikuni Yoriichi's strike, he hadn't even had time to react.

"Sun Breathing, First Form..."

"Waltz."

Tsugikuni Yoriichi quietly returned his blade to its sheath, his expression as calm as still water, as if nothing had happened.

Masahiro, drained after breathing in the blood mist, stared blankly at the dazzling swordsmanship before him. For a moment, the swordsman before him didn't seem human.

He seemed like a spirit of the sun.

Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled at the sight, admiring the swordsmanship's blend of beauty and power.

Of course, if Hanzo came to this world, Tsugikuni Yoriichi would be the one exception among the swordsmen with Breathing Styles he wiped out.

After all, swordsmen who used Breathing Styles were just that—swordsmen who used Breathing Styles. Tsugikuni Yoriichi was Tsugikuni Yoriichi. They weren't even the same species.

As for the blood mist that had been lurking in the air since they started up the mountain, it had probably been dispelled by the power of Sun Breathing the moment Tsugikuni Yoriichi inhaled it.

Sarutobi Hiruzen walked over to the fallen Demon.

At Sarutobi Hiruzen's suggestion, Tsugikuni Yoriichi hadn't killed the Blood Mist Demon. He had left a strip of flesh at the back of his neck rather than severing his head completely.

That had left the Demon barely alive.

Whoosh!

Without warning, the fallen Demon sprang up. Flesh still connected his head to his body, and it catapulted the head forward.

From a distance, he looked like a monstrous Demon with its head torn from its body.

Whoosh!

A Kunai shot through the air and pinned the flying Demon head to the ground with unstoppable force.

The Kunai wasn't made of Nichirin Sword material; it was ordinary iron that Sarutobi Hiruzen had brought from the world of Naruto.

But the invisible changes from Wind Style attached to it let it pierce the Demon's hard skull as easily as tofu.

Though the Kunai wasn't made of Scarlet Crimson Iron, the Demon, with his brain pierced, had lost all ability to move.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Sarutobi."

"I almost got you hurt."

Tsugikuni Yoriichi looked genuinely apologetic. He hadn't expected the Demon to remain mobile after being cut.

This was the first time he had left a Demon alive, and he hadn't realized they were so tenacious.

Even with the sun's power invading his brain, the Demon could still move.

"It's fine. It wasn't your fault..."

Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head calmly and looked at the grotesque Demon's head.

"The Demon has already lost consciousness."

"That attack just now was more instinct than anything..."

Like a snake whose head had been cut off but could still bite, a Demon might catch an unwary hunter in its jaws.

On the brink of death, the Demon had desperately sought energy to heal his wounds. Smelling human flesh, he had gone for Sarutobi Hiruzen.

What looked like a deliberate attack had really been an instinct to survive.

Still, it showed just how terrifying Demons were. Even at death's door, they instinctively tried to eat people. Their brains and even their lower nervous systems were utterly unlike those of humans.

Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't give the Demon a chance to recover. He immediately bound him with Sealing Jutsu, then ran iron chains made from Scarlet Crimson Iron through his collarbones.

He tossed the chains to Masahiro, who stood nearby.

Chakra was on a much higher level. Though Blood Demon Arts were mysterious, Masahiro was able to purge the Demon's power by wrapping it in Chakra and spitting up a few mouthfuls of foul blood.

Masahiro looked at the Demon dangling from his hand like a dead dog and felt a surge of admiration.

Whether it was Mr. Tsugikuni's dazzling swordsmanship or Lord Sarutobi's inscrutable Ninjutsu, both were far beyond the abilities of a rookie like him.

The powerful Demon he hadn't been able to handle at all had been tossed around like a ball of dough in their hands.

Suddenly, Masahiro looked toward the wooden cabin not far away. It seemed to be where the Demon lived.

Holding the half-dead Demon, Masahiro walked up to the cabin and slowly pushed the door open.

A strong stench of blood hit him at once, and Masahiro's eyes widened in fury.

But it wasn't just the overpowering stench, enough to make anyone dizzy, that left him speechless. It was the hundreds of pieces of flesh inside the cabin.

Limbs, organs, heads, flesh, bones.

Some were fresh, still dripping with blood. Others had been specially preserved, retaining their basic appearance.

But there was no doubt about it: every one of them had belonged to a human being!

"Ugh!"

Though he had seen Demons eat people before, the sheer horror of this scene still made Masahiro vomit his heart out.

One update today. Something came up; I'll make it up tomorrow.

I still need you to keep reading, or I won't be able to get promoted!